5 Essentials for the Working Mom
Written by Amanda Owen
Let’s be honest, whether you stay at home with your babes or work outside the home, being a Mom is hard work, period… but totally, totally, without a doubt, SO worth it! So, today I’m going to share with you the 5 essentials that I use to make being a working Mom a little less chaotic. Before I dive in, I’ll share a little background on me, I’ve been married to my sweet husband for 10 years and we have 7-year-old twin girls that just started 1st grade this week, I also work part-time as a Sonographer and part-time as an assistant here at White Elm. So, life is B-U-S-Y, but I wouldn’t change it for the world! Here is what keeps me organized and running!
1 – My first HUGE essential is a consistent Routine and Schedule. Now that school is back in session, we make sure to prepare for the next day as much as possible the night before. We all pick out our clothes and lay them out for the next day, we make sure our bags and backpacks are packed and hung by the front door before we go to bed. I will even pack their lunches/school snacks as much as possible the night before. This starts our morning off on the right foot, with happy attitudes, less stress and a greater chance of getting out of the door and to school/work on time! I cannot stress enough what a huge difference this makes in the mornings, they go so much smoother, and with fewer seven-year-old dramatic breakdowns about what they are going to wear to school that day (cause ain’t no one got time for that, ha)! So, for sure, I am a huge advocate for having a good solid routine, I know that this may not work for everyone, but this is what works for my family and I don’t know how I would survive without it.
2 – My second essential is my Aquila Tote Bag, like; I’m not sure how I ever carried all my things around before I had this bag! It holds everything I need in it, and keeps it all separated and organized so I know just where things are when I need them! I am able to carry my laptop, notebooks and files I need for both jobs, calendars and papers I need for the girls school, my planner (see essential #3), my chargers, all my pens/highlighters/markers/etc, I carry my water and coffee cups in the exterior side pockets (see essential #4) and I’m even able to slip a smaller purse inside it to keep from carrying 2 bags. And, for those Mom’s out there with babies and toddlers, gosh, I wish I had this bag when my girls were little, you can imagine that we had ALL.The.Things x2 to carry around, and I could never fit it all in my diaper bag. BUT, with this bag, I could have easily fit it ALL, and it would have stayed organized and easy to find!
3 – My third essential is my Planner, I have used several different styles of planners over the years, and basically they all function pretty similarly, but I don’t know what I would have done without them. My Planner is my lifeline, it helps me stay organized with all the things, events, occasions, doctors' appointments, work schedules, school schedules, field trips, I could go on and on. Plus, I’ll be honest, the artsy side of me loves to write in my planner with pretty colors and put fancy stickers on birthdays and vacations, but that really is just a perk. Again, this kind of ties back in with my first essential, but organization is HUGE for me in order to keep everything in order and running smoothly.
4 – My fourth essential is my insulated tumbler cups! I have a 30 oz. one that I use for water because goodness knows I would never drink enough water if I didn’t carry this thing around with me all the time. I also have a 20 oz insulated tumbler for my coffee, I fill up my cup with this sweet sweet elixir that warms my soul every morning, but I rarely get to actually finish drinking this deliciousness until several hours later, so, if it wasn’t for this amazing cup, I’d literally NEVER get to drink HOT coffee. Also, did I mention that both of these cups fit in the exterior side pockets of my Aquila tote bag perfectly?! It’s a match made in heaven.
5 – My fifth and final essential to keeping tabs on this whole working Mom gig is Grocery Pick-up and/or delivery service. If you have not tried this incredible service before, you are missing out on the good life. I live in Round Rock, Texas, and the big grocery store in our area is HEB, so this is where I schedule my grocery pick-up from, but I know other places offer this service as well, such as Walmart, Target, Shipt and Instacart. I typically have my grocery website tab always open in the background on my laptop, and I just keep a running list of things I need for my next grocery trip and add to it throughout the week. I finalize my grocery list and ask the family for any last minute requests on Sunday evening, and then I schedule my pick-up for Monday afternoon. I do this every-single-week, and it works really well for my family. It also helps us to better stay within our grocery budget, as well as saves me time from having to actually go and walk the aisles at the grocery store, no doubt impulse buying all the sugary goodies I lay my eyes on. However, if you enjoy going to the grocery store, like it’s your excuse to get out of the house for a bit, that’s awesome, I remember feeling this way when my girls were little, you just enjoy your little mini grocery vacation. OR, If you’re more of a once a month shopper, grocery pick-up can be scheduled whenever you want, as frequent or infrequent as works for you. Most places also offer delivery, where they will actually deliver it directly to your front door, which I have yet to try, but sounds pretty amazing.
So, again, we are all so different and what works well for me and my family may not fit your needs or lifestyle, so make sure to stick with what works best for you! If nothing else, I hope and pray that you know that what you are doing as a Mom is priceless and valuable, no one else could do what you do day in and day out, and I am here to be your cheerleader! You are totally awesome and You’ve Got This!
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