Hey, Hey! Happy Tuesday!

Today’s blog post is this month’s edition of, “Tell All Tuesday.”

I have a fun topic this month. I’m talking all about…

I’m listing my top 10 things/ ideas that I consider a good “life hack.”

1. Wake up before everyone– Quiet time in the morning is everything! Giving myself time to wake- up, do my morning skincare routine, pour coffee, read my Bible, light a candle, work out, etc. sets the tone for my day. I feel set & ready for the kiddos to wake up once I’ve had time to get the morning going!

2. Prep ahead– Whatever you can do to prep in advance is key! A few things I like to prep ahead: having breakfast made before kiddos wake up, pack diaper bags in advance, and in the summer, I keep a “pool bag” packed. That way, if we decide to go to the lake, a pool, swim lessons, etc. the bag is always ready!

3. One load of laundry per day– Does anyone else feel like laundry is never ending? I have found that emptying all the laundry baskets isn’t that satisfying because by night time, all the baskets are getting full again when a family of 4 is showering and changing into pajamas. Now, my goal is to stay on top of the laundry, not have it all complete. One load of laundry a day helps things stay maintained around here!

4. Tote bag- I’ve talked about this so many times! Have a large scrunchable tote bag. I use mine alllll the time. I use it to take the boys into daycare with all of their many items and bags. I used it to take goodies to a friend who had a baby. I use it when we go on vacation. I use it for picnics in the park. Everything!

5. Set timers– I recently started setting automatic timers on my phone that gives myself a limit for how much time I spend on social media apps each day. Once I hit my limit, I’m locked out of the app for the day. This has really helped me not to waste time scrolling! There are so many useful purposes for setting a timer. Like setting a 20 minute timer to get organized, pick up the house, read, etc! Make use of that timer on your phone!

6. Meal plan- This kind of goes along with “prep ahead.” Every Sunday, we make a meal plan for the week, write out our meal options for the week, and go to the grocery store. If for some reason, we don’t make it to the store on Sunday, I’ll at least order groceries for pick up on Monday! Have a designated day for grocery shopping/ meal planning. For us, it makes sense to begin the week with this task.

7. Name stamps– I was recently gifted name stamps from a company called, “the name stamp.” I have one for each of the boys with their name. It makes it so easy to label their stuff! It’s been a neat little mom hack.

8. Declutter + use of storage space– I’m all about organization and making use of storage space. It feels good to declutter, organize, and label things. An example: every few months, I clean out the boys closets and pack their clothes away in bins in the attic that are labeled. That way I’m not digging through clothes that I know don’t fit when dressing the boys each day.

9. Shop in advance– Christmas is coming! We do the most shopping and planning for this holiday, like most people. I start buying in advance. Even now, I’ve bought end of season clothes that were on sale and I’ll put them away for Christmas for the boys because they won’t need the clothes anytime soon. Or if I see something on sale that Brewer has asked for but doesn’t need right now, I’ll buy it and put it away for later. I do this for family members too. Adults can be hard to shop for so if I randomly come across something, I’ll buy it and save it for Christmas or a birthday! It feels so good to know I’ve accomplished a lot on my list when the holidays roll around, just by being proactive!

10. Write it all down- I use a paper planner!! I love to write everything down. We have a family calendar on the refrigerator where Harry and I write things that we should both know about. If digital calendars are your jam, that’s great too! I also make use of the note app on my phone. I keep a “to buy” list where I jot things down when I notice I’m out of something. This is helpful next time I’m out and about OR grocery shopping.

Okay, that’s my top 10!

Let’s keep this going!! What are some of your “life hacks?” Send them my way!

That wraps up today’s blog post!

I will be back here next Tuesday!!