Organisation and Toddlers. Yes, Really.

At one point I had three children under four and the only way I could cope with it was to be organised. Actually most days, I probably didn’t cope very well, but having a schedule helped me feel I had some control over the whole thing!

Every family does it differently, but I do know that with lots of small children to entertain and feed and clothe, it helped me greatly if I did some basic planning.

Simple ways to help ensure the days ran smoothly was to try and have at least one outing or activity a day. I don’t know about you, but being stuck inside four walls with three small, demanding people is often a recipe for disaster. So whether it was a trip to the local library to listen to storytime, or to playgroup, we’d get out. Sometimes it would end in tears (often mine) and we’d have to leave early, or a nappy would be filled, or whatever. But just getting out made such a difference.

I’d menu plan. I don’t know if you’ve met The Planning Queen. Her blog is AWESOME. She has a menu planner I now use, which I find incredibly helpful when it comes to mapping out the week ahead. My husband often works away, so I have to make sure the weekly shop covers as much as possible. It’s no fun having to shop with small children in tow.

We had charts. My kids have had charts since they were very small. Nothing huge on them, but it gave them a nice little structure and a sense of achievement from very early on. I used to put little pictures beside the words, so even if they couldn’t read them they could work out what was next. So a toothbrush beside the words “brush your teeth” and a pair of pajamas beside “put pajamas under pillow.” That kind of thing. They’d mark them off each day and get a sticker at the end of the week.

How do you organise yourself? Any tips for other mums?