I thought I'd share with your a few of the tricks I've found to keeping life a little less scattered and a little more organized with my "situation." Nothing fancy you know, just small swaps that help a sister out when trying to make dinner and clean and entertain children during the "witching hours" of the evening. Usually after PM naps and before dinner is on the table. And by dinner, I mean spaghetti-O's or something else super lame :)
This is my cupboard under the island countertop - near the kitchen table. It's full of "activities" such as play-doh, crayons, stickers, markers, paints and all the paper you can imagine. I usually try to have Layla and Rider doing something at the table before dinner because most likely I FINALLY got the house clean while they napped and I don't want them leaving a new path of destruction.
Have a laundry basket in the kitchen. We live in a split - multi level home and the laundry room is in the basement. The kids dirty clothes baskets are upstairs in their rooms. So where do I put all the millions of bibs, burp clothes and wash rags we go through each day? I chuck them in the laundry basket to be later emptied in the basement at the end of the day. Viola. No more trips up and down the stairs every 15 seconds. Lazy. I know.
Same reason I don't want to go up and down the stairs 579 times a day to change Rider's diaper... seriously! The kid poops at least 8 times a day. And that's just during his waking hours. So I have a diaper and a toy station on each level of the house. Again, lazy. I also rotate toys from the play room, to their room to the family room. Keeps em guessing.
Binki's. Oh the binki's we go through. Owen likes to chuck everything. It's a family trait. Super. And Rider likes to steal every binki I give to Owen. So, despite having two drawers filled with binki's around the house, plus a few spare in the car... we lose track of them too quickly. And when I have my hands full with two boys and they're screaming - I can just say "Hey Layla, go grab a binki out of the drawer." She knows right where to go. Next to the fridge or in the boys dresser.
Wear protection. Not that I have some fantastically expensive designer table... but just because I don't want it to look totally trashed before it needs to. Each of the kids have their own place mat and it also makes for quick clean up.
And this chair is fantastic. It catches almost all the millions of little crumbies that fall out of one's hand as he likes to crinkle up his food and apply direct pressure to each cracker before placing into his mouth. Rider. And when all else fails and I've already vacuumed and mopped the floors for the day... I call in the dog to re-clean them. He's fantastic at it.
LEAVE A COMMENT AND SHARE YOUR TRICKS OR TREATS WITH ME!
4 comments:
I have no tricks sadly. Just get through the craziness at times.
But with dinner I do love making a meal that we can have leftovers the next day. It keeps me sane knowing I can take it easy the next day when meal time rolls around.
you are so smart> I used to keep a bottom drawer or cupboard in kitchen with things like tupperware, measuring cups, etc that kids could get into and play with, thinking that they were being naughty when in reality it was a fun, safe, drawer for them to play in. Keep an old pan and wooden spoon to use for a drum and drumstick.
Above comment really made by Nana Mary, but using Gary's computer.
those are awesome tricks! I think I NEED a chicco chair for future feeding times.
We also have a drawer for crayons, pencils, erasers, markers anything that might be used for homework or creative projects. My other 'catch-all' are the hanging baskets I put on the blank wall to the side of the fridge, the boys' papers go in their baskets and any important reminders, etc go on an 8X10 sheet metal piece that is beside each basket with a magnet, at least it cuts down on the random papers that pile up everywhere (at the end of the term I go through the papers and save what I want and recycle the rest--that way I have their work if a notice comes home with a missing assignment, I can check the papers I have)
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