What are your short cuts?

With DH returning to work next week, I am thinking I am going to need to make my life easy. I am thinking what do you ladies do to help yourself maintain your sanity?

Is there anythings that you do that helps cut corners and be more efficient with the LOs?

Thanks,
Jenn

 

I always have my diaper bag stocked and ready to go. I used to even keep two bottles w/water in them and formula in a portable container so I always had a bottle with me. I also have diaper changing stations in the living room (aka playroom), their bedroom, and our bathroom (where I bathe them). I started keeping the pj's in our bathroom too so I didn't have to run around looking for them after bath. I also had laundry baskets in all of those locations so I could save one more step. As young as your's still are, I napped when they napped and my DH knew the house would not be perfect for a few months. I did what I could housework wise, but I let a lot of things that really aren't that important slide.

 

I make up formula for the day, have their bibs ready by the high chair so its just change and sit and eat. Take a nap. and do house chores as you can....I usually just made sure dishes were done and laundry was kept up...the rest still rarely gets done!

 

I *try* to get up 15 minutes or so before my LOs do so I can pee in peace, make my coffee, fill their milk cups and get ready for the day.
We baby proofed our home as much as possible so that I dont have to watch them every second and there are plenty of areas they can play in safely.
I try to have activities for them where ever I may be.
in the kitchen, they have their own tupperware cupboard and fridge magnets, in the laundry room they have their own brooms and dustpans.
I let them play in the tub while I shower even though we bathe them at night. They just like to play in the water.
If we need to go somehwhere I allow way more time than I think I need and if Im late- Oh well!

 

I second the having a safe babyproof area... free from pets... if you have any. keeps their toys clean and such.

we put PJs on in the play area and do a last feeding in our area, so I put a basket for PJs near it. I also keep burps & bibs etc. in multiple places in the house - little baskets make it so that it seems like they are supposed to be there and makes me think I'm being neat.

As they grow, and now that we are eating... I find it much saner if I can just clean the highchairs immediately after they use them... instead of waiting to do it when I want to put them in... (somehow that concept hasn't worked out in my life with ironing... I've never been one to iron my clothing until I want to wear it... ah maybe I should start that too).

good luck.

 

We keep two of these: http://www.sterilite.com/ProductDetail.htm...Section=Storage side by side under the coffee table in the living room [playroom] area and keep jammies in one [since we get ready for bed out there] and in the other we keep bib's, wash cloths, and a little bag with their lotions, creams, etc in it.

I also make about 4 feedings worth of bottles at a time in the fridge.

We have a little basket that has diapers in it [that now is put up on the kitchen counter cause they can reach EVERYWHERE] for easy access [cause we change 'and do pretty much everything' in the living room].

Have stations [activity areas] like PP suggested in case they get bored while you're trying to get something done.

 

Great topic!!

First and foremost to keeping this mama sane: taking her meds and eating! Then mommy can cope!

Heres some of my short cuts.

I snap their clothes together when they go in the dirty clothes. That way I have less sorting to do, and I only have to pull one thing out of their drawers in the morning. I also roll their pants together in pairs like socks because they don't have snaps, and speaking of socks when I do use them I roll up two pairs in one big bundle so I know each foot will get a sock (This was after only being able to find 3 baby socks at a time!)

We have small emergency diaper bags that I hooked to their car seat (they started out as harness bags for our climbing harnesses. They're mesh bags with a zipper and a little loop.) so if I forget something when we go out it's in the car or if we have to leave in a hurry I was glad I'd done that today when we were getting them into the car and I realized I'd forgotten toys for Bob and didn't want to run back into the house. I got this whole idea from someone saying they keep a back up diaper bag in their car.

When we go to church we each take a baby and our own diaper bag. That way neither of us are overwhelmed.

I tend to rely on Flylady.net for tips around the house and routines and such. It's been a lifesaver for us! I love the whole concept that it's ok not to be perfect at house work and any you manage to do still blesses your family. I sometimes even get the dishes done now!

One other thing is if I come up with some wild and crazy idea (like camping with 3 month old twins, or flying with just me and the twins to stay in Alabama with my bro for two months so he can have a live in babysitter) which happens a lot, I have someone I can call to talk me out of it. Sometime the bubble needs to burst!

 

at that age my survival technique involved finding one room of the house (the living room) and making that our camp for the day. i had the PNP in there to use for naps and changing diapers and i had a spare diaper champ for disposal. i kept their bouncy chairs and swings and activity mat and boppy in there and basically called that room home so everything would be easier.

 

QUOTE(Vivian @ May 31 2009, 01:29 PM) [snapback]1335278[/snapback]
I tend to rely on Flylady.net for tips around the house and routines and such. It's been a lifesaver for us! I love the whole concept that it's ok not to be perfect at house work and any you manage to do still blesses your family. I sometimes even get the dishes done now!


Funny you mention fly lady. I have a woman who comes 1x a week to help me with housework. She comes for 3 hours and I pay her 10.00 an hour. Its all "light" stuff like put away our laundry, dust, sweep the floors etc. she LOVES fly lady and is always bringing new things to try at my house
Investing in help everynow and then is a great 'shortcut" if you can afford it.

 

QUOTE(E&Msmom @ May 31 2009, 02:59 PM) [snapback]1335157[/snapback]
I *try* to get up 15 minutes or so before my LOs do so I can pee in peace, make my coffee, fill their milk cups and get ready for the day.
We baby proofed our home as much as possible so that I dont have to watch them every second and there are plenty of areas they can play in safely.
I try to have activities for them where ever I may be.
in the kitchen, they have their own tupperware cupboard and fridge magnets, in the laundry room they have their own brooms and dustpans.
I let them play in the tub while I shower even though we bathe them at night. They just like to play in the water.
If we need to go somehwhere I allow way more time than I think I need and if Im late- Oh well!



So smart...I lay in bed when they wake up and listen to them chatter for 5-10 minutes because I'm the type that needs to press snooze - but then I'm practically dancing while I change their diapers because I haven't gone to the bathroom yet! I should get up up 15 minutes earlier, too!

When you let them play in the bath tub, is it the same one that you're showering in or do you have a nice big bathroom with a separate bath/shower? Just curious b/c mine love water, too, but I can't imagine all three of us fitting! I usually shower when they are napping, but one day last week DD woke up early and we had to go out so I actually squeezed her into her bouncy :blush: so she could sit in the bathroom without destroying the toilet paper or crawling behind the toilet! She actually loved being in the bouncy again - I put them away months ago!!!

 

I make up a jug of formula for the day in the evening before, when dh is home to help with the babes. I fill 6 bottles at a time to stick in the door of the fridge so I can easily grab them.

I have a "formula only" station in the kitchen with all my bottles, nipples, lids, formula and jugs to mix it in all right there, makes mixing it easier.

I throw nipples as I use them into a big bowl filled with soapy water (which of course gets cold during the day), that way I just use the nipple brushes quickly when I mix formula and rinse and the nipples are clean. I rinse the bottles with water when I empty them (I use drop ins so the bottles don't even touch the formula).

My loveseat is "the baby zone". I have several blankets and burp cloths on it, it's a very wide couch so I can lay them side by side (heads to the back and feet to the open side) when I need to. I also keep burp cloths on both mine and dh's side of the bed, and both couches so I always have one handy.

I have a baby changing station set up in my bedroom on my dresser. I use baskets for diapers, bathing stuff (wash and lotion), and medicines (gripe water, tylenol, mylicon...etc) right on my dresser. I also have a basket with wash cloths and towels in the bathroom beside the tub.

When we get home from somewhere, first thing I do is pack the diaper bag. 1 extra outfit each, 4-5 diapers each, a bag of wipes, two bottles with formula powder in them and a bottle of water, extra paci's, tylenol, mylicon, baggies. I make sure all is filled and ready to go so when we leave I don't have to try to repack it. I also have an emergency bag in the truck with an outfit and a couple diapers each, with a small thing of wipes. Just in case.

I have storage drawers set up in my room with their clothes. One drawer of "neutral's" that they can both wear, one drawer with their onesies (pink on one side, blue on the other) and they each have a drawer of sleepers. They have clear fronts so I can see if I am running low and need to wash their cloths.

I put two sets of sheets/waterproof sheets on the crib at a time, so if a nighttime sheet change is needed I can just take the top set off. I also put small waterproof pads underneath their swaddles where they sleep so even less sheet changing is needed. And if they get a little sick at night under their cheek, I use a receiving blanket folded once and laid out flat to cover the spot so I don't have to strip the bed at 3am.

 

You've gotten some good tips and probably most of what I have done.

I have always gotten up 15-20 minutes before the kiddos so I can get up/dressed/coffee in peace.

After going out with the diaper bag, I always restock it that evening...you never know when you have to make a quick trip out or to the doc and you don't want to forget something in the diaper bag (I keep a bottle, bottle of water, premeasured formula, tylenol and a change of clothes...in addition to the other things).

I keep spare diapers and wipes in the car.

I didn't make up bottles ahead of time but I always set out the bottles for the day and used one of those formula containers and premeasured the amounts so all I had to do was fill the bottle with warm water and add the premeasured amount of formula which I would do the night before after they went to bed (this is when I'm at home...daycare rules following).

I had enough bottles to get through two days so that way I could wash bottles at the end of day (while making up bottles for daycare the next day...I used ebm and formula).

I keep wipes everywhere in the house (they are handy for wiping up snot, messes, highchair trays, etc). I also kept a burp cloth in every room in the house, just in case.

We had a designated baby/play/hang out room when they were that young so we didn't have to move around the house alot.

I did dishes/laundry/light housekeeping during naps, except one nap of the day was designated as my nap time too.

 

QUOTE(Danibell @ May 31 2009, 11:15 PM) [snapback]1335722[/snapback]
I put two sets of sheets/waterproof sheets on the crib at a time, so if a nighttime sheet change is needed I can just take the top set off. I also put small waterproof pads underneath their swaddles where they sleep so even less sheet changing is needed. And if they get a little sick at night under their cheek, I use a receiving blanket folded once and laid out flat to cover the spot so I don't have to strip the bed at 3am.

Oh yea...this too...middle of the night crib sheet changes suck...definitely put two sets on with the water proof pads.

 

Lots of good tips here. I've only got a few more.

When folding clean laundry, I resnap up the legs of their sleepers so when it's time to get them on a wiggly baby I can just slide their legs in.

I got my girls used to taking their bottles in their bouncy seats. Mid-day bottles, I will let them watch Baby Einstein while they eat. They are so active, this helps them calm down and eat better. And I can get something done while they eat.

I have enough bottles to last a whole day. At night, everything goes in the dishwasher and gets run whether it's full or not. It's usually full. I use Dr. Browns and I just put everything in the top rack except the beige inner plug thingys that go in the silverware basket. I press the nipples out of the base a little so they are off center and then hang them on a free tine.

I make the girls leave their lovey's and paci's in the crib when they wake up so they are there when we need them next time and I don't have to go searching. I think this is a good habit in general since I don't want them on paci's when they are older.

I use disposable bibs.

 

Seems like most others covered my "shortcuts." I mix a pitcher of formula in the morning and make bottles for the day and then before going to bed make another pitcher and make the ones for first thing in the morning so those are ready to go when we feed them at 6:30. We feed them simultaneously with me sitting in the middle of them and one on each side in a boppy. I keep a stocked diaper bag in both of our cars and in the house. We got them used to "playing" on their own and now don't expect to be held - they are either in the swing, jumperoo, bouncer seat or now in our little playmat area and having a safe place that they can play contentedly really helps you get things done!