With life’s constant changes things are always busy around here. One moment everything seems decently in order and a few minutes later things seem like they are tumbling into chaos. Fast! Today I am sharing how you can Boost productivity at home with These 3 simple homemaking habits that have changed my life. If you are intentional with them, they will change yours too.
over the years I’ve had ups and downs with keeping the kitchen very tidy. Many times, it has been a weekly challenge. As a stay-at-home wife and mom to a toddler, there is always some kind of activity going on in the kitchen. Which means there is a constant rotation of cookware and dishes…
and if the kitchen is perfectly clean, the laundry somehow gets behind. You might say that it is typical, however I aim to change that (as much as I can) for my little home 🏡 I’m always looking for ways to improve. Recently I’ve found a little secret that has been helping me stay on top of the kitchen. And in turn helps me accomplish more tasks around the house besides.
By being intentional, you are investing in tomorrow
Lori – www.vaughnstead.com
When rushing around, many household items get displaced or are less likely to make it back to their home. But By being intentional you are investing in tomorrow. So here are the top things that have changed my life as a homemaker and Stay-at-home mom (SAHM)
Not rushing around = Being intentional
Before this first lifechanging homemaking habit, i have a Confession…I have had a tendency to just let things go a bit when Friday comes around. Am I alone here?! We like to go do something fun somewhere or just hang out at home together at the end of the week…and if things weren’t picked up well before, despite picking up here and there, they would just continue to slowly build up over the weekend.
I love spending time with my family, so sacrificing that time with them really isn’t an option and definitely is not a long-term solution. So, I have been being more intentional through the week, keeping in mind what is coming up, so that it doesn’t catch me by surprise.
Honestly, as I am writing this down, it sounds so simple and common knowledge, you might think it’s silly but just knowing these things doesn’t make them happen. (Speaking from experience here!) “Actions speak louder than words” my mom used to say. So, I’ve been acting on those thoughts and trying to keep things tidier as we go.
Slowing down just a bit and taking that time to straighten the house and wipe down the counters makes all the difference. I’ve even been trying to wipe out the shower with a towel after use, as that helps prevent mold and mildew thus helping to maintain it.
Taking this time also gives you a few moments to reflect, wether on something important or just enjoying taking extra care of your space. It’s not Pinterest perfect, yet things do flow so much better when you are prepare ahead.
Meal Planning
next up on my list is Meal planning. Some people find a system or lack there of that works for them other than meal planning, however there are so many benefits to this simple habit that I simply can’t imagine giving it up!
Whether in depth or just a general meal plan, having a list of meals you intend to make takes the stress out of figuring it out the day of, or even last minute at times.
At this point in time, I am more of a general meal planner. Starting with what we have on hand, I pick specific meals to make for the week ahead. Most of the time I try to pick specific days for meals as a general guideline to keep track of meals that use fresh ingredients that will go bad sooner. otherwise, I keep it pretty flexible so that if plans change for an evening it is just fine.
If you’ve been sitting on the fence here, this is your sign. Start by just planning evening meals and go from there. Small steps make a huge difference and help build a good foundation to keep building upon.
It not only gets the brainstorming out of the way, but it gives you the opportunity (Yes, I said opportunity. – More on that at the end of this post.) to inventory your pantry and freezer for grocery shopping. Yay, just one trip in the week! Or maybe even two weeks? 🙂
Meal Prepping
Fixing lunch, the night before.
I’m usually the one to fix my husband’s lunch for work, and we both can tell a huge difference in the quality of our morning, if that is done the night before.
And while I’m at it, fixing my own lunch, and Gabriel’s too. It is transformational to our days.
I don’t know about you, but I can easily get distracted, and the day starts to get away from me. By preparing lunch the evening before, everything goes so much smoother.
Fixing breakfast ahead – Also fixing breakfast ahead of time has its powerful perks too.
Many times I will fix overnight oats, which my whole family loves. What is great about this dish is that there are so many ways to fix oats.
Other times I’ll make breakfast burritos, breakfast sandwiches or pancakes and wrap them Up for breakfast later. They are easy to heat, as healthy as you want them to be and make for a satisfying meal to start your day.
Fixing meals ahead of time rolls into our next simple homemaking habit that is life changing.
Cleaning the kitchen sink before going to bed.
This is something I’ve recently made an actual goal in my life. – Don’t get me wrong I’ve always loved a clean sink.
It can get challenging as a SAHM to always have a clean kitchen, as there’s always some kind of meal prep, snacking and all around utility use going on in the kitchen.
When I have a clean sink in the morning staring at me as if to say, “yep, that’s right you cleaned me yesterday”, it is such a good good feeling. (Whew)
It is SO worth the bit of effort, and extra few minutes to do this. For yourself.
It also creates a domino effect.
when cleaning your sink, you are likely to clear off the counters and wipe them down, and that will likely trigger you to sweep the floors. It’s like a system with built in motivation. All with one purpose. To help you maintain a tidy home where you and your family can enjoy ALL the time.
When you know through the day that you want to keep a clean sink, it causes you to make different choices.
Instead of rinsing the dish and leaving it for later to completely clean or load into the dishwasher, it causes you to want to put it in the dishwasher right away or quickly wash and dry it, then put it where it goes. Kinda cool, huh? You’ll have fewer piles of dishes and when there is a stack, it will likely be much smaller than if you let them collect through the day.
it will make a difference wether you yourself are mainly responsible for the dishes or if you have other family members to delegate them to.
I don’t know exactly why, but I’ve never been the greatest with rituals or routines. So, making the decision to make sure that we have a clean sink at the end of the day has changed my life. Like a guideline or boundary, that forces me to create a routine around it. 😂 – I’m getting better, by God’s grace.
Deciding what you want and then creating actions around that goal or topic makes tasks easier to organize into a routine.
I’ve heard of the clean sink rule many times, but I really was inspired by kali at But first coffee. I have her to thank for reiterating it over and over.
Sometimes you just need to hear someone else’s experience, to finally gain the courage to not get too discouraged or exhausted and back down.
I’m so glad I took the challenge, because it really is such a simple homemaking habit.
Challenges come. You might leave a dish in the sink. ( you, the kids, or even hubby maybe ? 🤭 But just know all is not lost. Ebb and flow, always keeping your main priorities in mind. 🤗
Prioritizing tasks with a higher Time commitment
When you are feeling challenged, just take a step back and consider tackling the project or task anyhow versus whether it is wiser to save it for another time.
In my experience, saving tasks for later most of the time results in long term procrastination and so does not add any quality to life. So if physically possible, try to accomplish the task sooner rather than later
If you are not able to complete a task, just pull back, acknowledging that you accomplished part of the job and you are that much closer to your end goal.
Changing your mindset
Why, simply changing your mindset is a lifechanging homemaking habit
At the beginning of this post, I stated that planning your and/or your family’s meal gives you the opportunity to inventory your pantry and other food storage.
We as humans often think we are out of time or can hardly do things fast enough.
But we often miss the little moments, the little chances that we can use to tidy here and there or even to just plan our days out so we can not only highlight the items that are urgent, but to underline those things that make life so much more pleasant and smooth. They are so easily overlooked in our rush.
Why I bring this up.
The reason I mention taking the opportunity to plan or to inventory or even to clean, is because I noticed a pattern that has been happening to me and our home/ family. Week after week, I’d pass up some of the moments that would prepare me for other opportunities.
I try to clean the house, keep up with gave etc and then Friday rolls around… We like to go out Friday many times and then even Saturday I’ve been running my own errands and writing so with Jon and babe home or in and out of the house things add up so quickly!
Jackets and laundry..
The dishes start to hang around the sink if we aren’t being intentional…
The living room starts to get cluttered with items that need put away. The list goes on.
We love to have our home clean and ready for Sunday. It’s way less distracting for service and much more pleasant to sit and listen.
But I also love spending time with my hubby and baby on the weekends, so I’ve found a way that seems to be working well
Doing my best to keep things picked up all week, being especially intentional about it on Thursday and Friday so that a huge mess doesn’t seem to suddenly look upon me on Sunday
Sunday I want to relax with my family and making a habit of consistently tidying as I go through the weekend has been such a game changer.
The Chance to tidy or write down a checklist, has become an opportunity to me. An opportunity for family time to be more pleasant. Being intentional prevents the feeling of “running in circles” all the time.
So there you have it, the top things that have been helping me be more efficient at home with my little family.
Do you have a particular method or routine that helps you keep things tidy and smooth in your home? Let me know in the comments! 💕
If you’ve enjoyed this post about simple homemaking habits that changed my life, be sure and check out this other productivity post How To Get It All Done With A Toddler
Tags: cleaning, efficiency, goals, habits, habits of highly productive people, homemaker, homemaking, new goals, New year, priortizing, productivity, resolution, stay at home wife, time management
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