Organizing my Expected Chaos

GFrom what I have heard from many moms, being orderly and tidy are the most they struggle with. So when I became one, I have already expected it. Little did I know that it would be really difficult to keep up with everything I need to accomplish inside the house.

The Christmas season was no exception. On Christmas day itself, I struggled with preparing our little Raphael before going to mass. Since he already started crawling around and is now attempting to walk, it has become a chore to change his clothes and diapers. Not to mention that we were expecting snow to come that day. To make matters worse, the house was a mess since we just opened our gifts that morning plus the fact that I needed to cook breakfast. All in all, it was overwhelming and at the same time frustrating.

I needed to think of ways on how to resolve my problem. Here are the things I've thought of.


1. Ask for help

I didn't want that experience to ruin my Christmas so I went to my husband and asked for help. I'm not saying that my husband is not doing anything in the house. He does a lot but when it comes to the baby, I need to be particular with him.

I asked him what he can do to help me on weekends to reduce the number of chores I have to accomplish. He was nice enough to volunteer to cook breakfast on weekends.

2. Make a checklist

As I've mentioned from my older blog, I bring two bags when we go out. One I keep in the car, one I bring with me all the time. Before we leave the house, I usually check what needs to be replenished. Everything is from memory. So, for my husband to be able to help me, the checklist can come in handy.

3. Time Management

Cooking, cleaning the house, doing the laundry, ironing clothes and taking care of a baby are not easy tasks. Being a stay at home mom is hardwork. So I came up with this routine for myself to follow.

I do the laundry on weekends while Ryan watches the baby. Ironing is done after Raphael's bedtime since it takes so much time. I only do this once to twice a week.

Food preparation is quite easy. I make enough at night for our dinner and the rest goes to my husband's packed lunch. I also prepare his lunchbox at night so that in the morning, he would just grab it and go.

Cleaning up the day's mess is also done after Raphael's bedtime.

4. "Chill"

This simply means "don't sweat the small stuff" or else I would go crazy just thinking how to keep our house in its pristine state. I need to accept that it comes with having a baby. Besides, I know in my heart that this wouldn't last and this same mess will likely to be the thing I will be missing the most when my little baby is all grown up.