Family sharing a joyful conversation on the couch.
When parents are pushed to the limit (which, let’s face it, is pretty much all the time) the last thing they need is some newfangled, overly complicated way of doing things, no matter how life changing others claim it is.
Luckily, making our lives a little smoother isn’t contingent on a complete overhaul of our current routines. In truth, it’s the smallest, simplest tweaks that often have the biggest impact. Just ask the parents who implemented them.
Over on Reddit’s parenting forum, a mom going through what she called her “simplify everything” era shared how just doing a little breakfast prep the night before and switching up screen-time rules made the “whole week feel lighter.”
It made her curious about what was working similarly well for other families, so she posed the question: “What’s a small change that’s made a big difference for you as a parent lately?” and the answers did not disappoint.
From scheduling tweaks to go-to bedtime practices to helpful pieces of self-talk (not to mention a whoooooole lotta laundry hacks) it’s easy to see how these tweaks could add back some much needed peace in the day. And when parents are often just trying to get through the day, any bit helps.
Check out the answers below:
“Shared family calendar app. This helps eliminate some of the mental load it takes with planning appointments, family plans, etc. My husband sees when I schedule things in real time and vice versa, which helps reduce the “what are we doing today” type of questions. 😅We also divide and conquer during morning and evening routines. For example, one of us will help get the kids ready while the other sets up breakfast, coffee and whatever else is needed to get us out of the house on time.”
“Replaced all the kids socks with plain white whites so I don’t have to worry when one goes missing (bc we seem to lose a sock a week!) and keep them in a bin next to our shoe bin downstairs. Super simple to do and somehow has saved my sanity.”
Colorful knitted socks hanging on display.Photo credit: Canva
“I’m a therapist and there’s a motto in the field — ‘the slower you go, the faster you get there.’ I’ve been applying this to my time with my two year old. Any hurrying, frenetic energy just ultimately slows down the process. Slowing down and prioritizing connection makes a world of difference.”
“I have stopped folding her clothes because she digs through the drawers and destroys the folds anyway.”
“Setting alarms for EVERYTHING.”
“My elementary kids are in a bunch of after school activities. I basically have a big kid diaper bag in the car - snacks, extra water bottles, first aid kid, headphones, coloring books, hair ties, etc. I try to replenish the night before and it makes 2-5pm go much smoother.”
“We try to always have a container of chopped veggies in the fridge. Sometimes with hummus sometimes a favorite dressing sometimes nothing additional. When they ask to have something to eat, they go there first. If I’m prepping dinner I pull that out and put it on the table. They don’t pester me about when time dinner will be ready. If I’m making something my son doesn’t like as much, he fills up mostly on raw veggies and only has a little bit of dinner. It’s so easy to do and it’s is awesome I can’t complain that they’re eating veg.”
Little one enjoying a crunchy carrot snack! 🥕Photo credit: Canva
“We keep our home simple and minimalist, it gives the kids more space to play and fewer things to break or turn into hazards.”
“Squatting/sitting on the floor with my almost 2yo twins instead of picking them up when they want me.”
“This might be controversial but we don't do pajamas. Meaning we have no distinction between daytime and night time clothing. Kids are 4 and 1. Before bed, I change them into clean clothes and those are the clothes they wear the next day. They don't have any clothes that would be uncomfortable to sleep in. Poor kids have a whole life ahead of them to wear hard pants, why introduce it now.”
“I just started making my bed everyday after purchasing a nice comforter to make my bed look nice and it really helps me feel like I’m having a productive start to the day!”
“Cutting my hair short.”
Fresh haircut underway in the salon.Photo credit: Canva
“Setting up an activity for my 3 year old at night, so it's ready when he wakes up. It gives him something to play with when he's awake but still a little cranky, and it's usually an independent activity he can do while we get breakfast ready.”
“One thing that I find helpful both at home and work is to say either out loud to a coworker or my partner or other parent, or inside my head, is ‘the noise is better than quiet, this is part of development.’"
“Trying to leave 10 minutes before we actually need to.”
“I ask myself, ‘is it dangerous or inconvenient?’ before answering a question. I find myself saying no because I don’t want to deal with the mess, which is still totally valid sometimes but not all the time. I want to say yes when it’s possible so that my no holds more value.”
“Honestly? Lightening the f**k up. I have a 4 year old and a 4 month old, it's easy to get wrapped up in sticking to a schedule I've made up. Lately though I've been reminding myself to lighten the f**k up. My 4YO wants to dress herself? Fine. She wants to ‘wash dishes’ after taking her breakfast bowl to the sink? Whatever. I've worked more time into our routines so that I don't feel so rushed.”
Joyful laughter under the sun.Photo credit: Canva
“Honestly I just say out loud to my kids ‘today is going to be a great day!!!’ as we’re getting ready in the morning chaos and somehow that seems to help keep my brain on track and positive, something I struggle with.”
It should go without saying that none of these hacks would work for every single family. But a major common denominator among all of them is that they began from a mindset shift of working within certain limitations rather than forcing things to be drastically different. Which is a great lesson for parents and non-parents alike, honestly.
Perhaps the biggest takeaway of all, even if you do none of these things, is to find what simple change is doable for your family, right here, right now. What you can do in between the soccer drop-offs and that 47th load of dishes…that sort of thing. Even incorporating a different motto can reclaim a sense of peace.