7 Tips to Improve Your Daily Routine as a Stay at Home Mom (SAHM)

If you’ve been wondering how to revamp your days as a Stay at Home mom, these seven tips are for you!

I remember before deciding to leave my business (you can read more on that here) I would ask my friends who were stay at home moms what types of things they actually did each day. I learned pretty quickly that every mom is SO very different in how they run their lives. I knew I needed to design what a perfect day would look like based on my own interests, and my kids.

Daily Routine as a Stay at Home Mom

I have found that a “perfect day” as a stay at home mom, is one that balances my own self care with my kids activities. Brendon Burchard, one of my favorite self help/business motivational speakers once said something along the lines of “Touch the dream daily”. If you were to say that “living the dream” means every day you get to be in your garden, read books, and travel, what if you were able to do micro doses of that daily? What’s stopping you from having a little garden now? Don’t have space outdoors to create a garden bed? Get an indoor mini counter hydroponics garden system that you can find on Amazon for like $60 bucks. Read a chapter a day before bed. Can’t travel overseas right now? Plan a little weekend getaway with the family.

My point is, if you have dreams of what a great life looks like, break that down into the actual things and activities you would be doing when you are “living the dream” and be intentional about your time right now. With a little bit of planning, you can find yourself “living the dream” now! Once I let that thought settle in it was like a little epiphany, and also a “duh” moment. It fully changed my daily habits, and completely transformed the way I do life. I no longer put off “living a good life” to some far away day in the future, I chose daily to do the things that I know will bring me joy & good health. And I do a few of those things daily.

So for ME, these are the 7 things I consider when I’m intentionally designing the “perfect day”. After all, when you have a good day, and then a good week, and then a good month, over time, that translates into a pretty good life!

  1. Establish a Consistent Routine: Children thrive on predictability, and in some ways, so do I! Setting regular times for meals, naps, and activities provides structure and security for them, but it also gives me an idea of when I can do my workout, read, garden, or work on my blog. This consistency helps in managing expectations and reduces potential stress for both you and your children. You can actually check out this post here where I talk about having various ‘windows’ throughout the day. As noted in an article from The Guardian, replicating school routines at home can also provide beneficial structure during holidays, or for kids that are not in school yet, it can prepare them for it.
  2. Incorporate Physical Activity: Engaging in daily exercise benefits both you and your children. Activities like family walks, dance sessions, or kid friendly workout videos can boost mood and energy levels. My kids and I LOVE dancing and moving to Danny Go! on You Tube I incorporate some workout moves that I normally do, and my kids follow along with the video. Seriously it’s a great workout!!
  3. Eating a Healthy Breakfast: This one is so important for maintaining good sugar levels throughout the day. I make cheesy eggs which are basically scrambled eggs – eggs, milk, shredded cheese, chopped ham or turkey sand-which meat, and then some of our favorite seasonings and herbs. So good and simple. We also will have sausages and pancakes. I find that if skip meals, I will not be level-headed and calm, a big part of mothering is regulating your own emotions so that you can help your kids do the same. Making sure I get enough protein throughout the day, is one way I keep calm!
  4. Prioritize Self-Care: Taking time for yourself is crucial. Whether it’s reading, deep breathing & stretching, taking a hot bath, or pursuing a hobby, dedicating moments to self-care can prevent burnout. A blog post on “That Millennial Momma” emphasizes the importance of finding activities that challenge you as an individual, not just as a mom, to avoid burnout. I usually plan my self care time when the kids are napping, or when my husband is free from work.
  5. Reach Out to a Friend or Family Member: I am VERY intentional about this for several reasons. First; fear, negativity, doubts and insecurity thrive in your isolation, but love, light, trust building, and faith thrive in community. I make sure to plan at least a few outings with friends every week. AND I am sure to text or call someone daily and see how they are doing. The more I can make my day less about me, and check in with others, the better I feel. It’s also setting an example for your kids and teaches them to be social! This study from Piedmont health shares how being with friends and family actually helps cope with stress!
  6. Accomplish a Task or Project: Before I became a stay at home mom, I LIVED by my calendar and to-do list. I think I was addicted to getting things done, I was the task master! In fact, if I completed something before writing it down, I would still write the task down just so that I could have the satisfaction of crossing it off! I try to give my self that same dopamine hit, by giving myself projects and tasks to accomplish during the day. These days it’s simple things, like post one more article to the blog, or organize the kids room. A study from the Harvard Business Review found that your brain releases dopamine when you achieve goals. And since dopamine improves attention, memory, and motivation, even achieving a small goal can result in a positive feedback loop that makes you more motivated to work harder going forward.
  7. Hug Your Kids & Tell Them You Love Them: Your kids are only little for so long! I try and have moments with them throughout the day to hug them, tell them I love them, and pour affirming words over them. Stopping the cycle of negativity with your kids, and whatever odd bickering that can happen is so important. I start the day with hugs and affirming words, and I end the day with reading, hugs, prayer, and affirming words.

These 7 things are what work for me! What helped me was taking time to write and reflect on what activities bring me a sense of joy and health, and really defining what it means to be “living the dream”. What specific things do you do to design a beautiful day, I’d love to hear!

Is the Wonder Wagon worth it? Or should I stick with my UppaBaby travel System?
byu/homeremediesok inMotherhoodMedley