It’s a miracle that we have not left a child at daycare by now. My husband and I are employed full-time raising two under the age of four. Our mornings start at 4:30am and our days end around 11pm. My job requires I travel, whether just for a long business day full of meetings or at times, up to a week for a photo shoot, leaving my husband to wear his super hero cape solo. Between the both of us we have managed to find short cuts and ways to make life smoother a little bit each day.
– Although it hurts when the alarm goes off, we set it for 4:30 each morning. Our kids are naturally early risers so if we can get a head start in getting ready, it helps get us off to a good start. Note that when I travel, my dear hubby wakes up at 4:00am! Yikes!
– Shared calendars – we have two shared calendars. One is a physical dry erase board in our closet and the other is digital so we can quickly send meeting invites to each other as reminders. Our physical calendar is a dry-erase board with each person being color coded. It’s also a great way to keep up with upcoming birthdays and holidays (aka school closings!) Our shared calendar is great since it has reminders that will pop up on our phone. Whenever I’m going out of town, I’ll send my husband an invite with a reminder that says “Pick up kiddos”. It’s super convenient!
– I rarely have time to indulge in clothes shopping solo anymore. I even long for the days when my kids were babies and they would just sleep through the mall. Now they are unbuckling themselves and crawling out of the stroller, while grabbing anything and everything they can touch. Recently, I signed up for Stitch Fix. It’s a fun online shopping site where you select your styles, budget and sizes and a stylist will pick five items and send it to you to try. If you like it, you pay for it and keep it. If you don’t, just ship it back. You can give comments on your selections and give pointers for your next shipment. You can schedule them as frequently as you like. It’s a great way to try new clothes in the convenience of your own home. Get your friends to try it and refer you and you get a credit, too!
– Grocery shopping is another long lost adventure. I miss the days of strolling through the aisles and leisurely shopping for my weekly groceries. With two toddlers, I go in with a list, strap them into the car carts and make it a mad dash through the store like I’m playing Supermarket Sweep! I’m going to revisit the convenience of online shopping and picking up curbside. Most Harris Teeter grocery stores offers this. I did this when I was on maternity leave and it was a life changer. For those hectic weeks I’m going to bring back the online grocery shopping.
– If you’re interested in just getting a meal on the table, check out Blue Apron. Farm-fresh ingredients, pre-portioned along with amazing seasonal recipes come delivered to your doorstep. A nice addition to Blue Apron is wine – allowing you to have wine delivered with your meal.
– Whenever I do get out, I’ll often times reference my Retail Me Not They also have a friendly website that provides coupons and discount codes for shopping, services and eating out. It’s my way of saving a little here and there without toting around a ton of clipped coupons.
– The last shortcut I use is my Bank of America More banks offer the convenience of online bill pay these days. It has definitely been my saving grace to make ensure I keep on top of my bills. I use alerts to help remind me of upcoming payments and account information, and can schedule payments accordingly. They also offer a “deals” section that offers a percentage back for participating retailers when you purchase with them. It’s an added perk!
Smarties on the run, how do you keep your family running smoothly? Let’s help each other out and share tips!
