Updated on April 9th, 2019
Before you became a stay-at-home parent, you may have felt that caring for your kids at home would be a fulfilling and enriching life. As true as that maybe now that you are with your children full-time, you may also find that life as a stay-at-home parent can also be chaotic, unpredictable, and even stressful. It’s common for expectations of what it means to be a stay-at-home parent to not always match up with reality.
Like with any job, being a stay-at-home parent has its ups and its downs. One of the most effective and efficient ways to sustain those ups is to optimize your home for healthy, happy parenting. That means not just setting up a home that supports your kids with entertainment and education, but supports you — the parent — as well. In this guide, you will discover how to optimize your home and, as a result, save your sanity by:
- Waking up before the kids
- Getting the day organized
- Encouraging your kids to help with tasks
- Getting some R&R for yourself
- Working from home
Getting up on your own schedule, as opposed to being woken up by your children, can help you start a day that is more productive, even if that just means enjoying a cup of coffee on your back porch listening to the birds sing. Taking time to situate your personal needs, like showering, sending emails, or doing some yoga, before the kids start to rise will help you find some peace before the chaos begins.