I’ve been asked how I balance/juggle life and in experiencing it day to day, I feel like I am drowning with my arms in the air most of the time, but my shit looks good online. So I’ve been thinking, what exactly do I do to manage things and what can I share that can really help and that is realistic. Well here it goes, 20 things I do to juggle life and you can tell me if this is at all helpful, or if you think it is BS. I’m a realist, I don’t have the answers but I like to share what I can!
Queen Dress (other Alice & Olivia dresses) | My boots are a steal at $60 (other cute booties)
1.} Shower the night before. I shower at night after my kids go to bed because I’m a horrible morning person. This way I wake up and just have to straighten or curl my hair (less than 10 min) and I give myself another 10 for makeup.
2} Make Lists. I write a lot of lists and I cross each item off when done – this is done EVERYDAY. Can you tell I like lists? Even this blog post and others I’ve written list things out like they are chores.
3} Use a calendar. My calendar is my life, I look at it for today, this week, next week and I plan months ahead. This is how I get everything done at the right time, meet deadlines, figure out my kids’ schedules and plan nights out with my friends. I literally make plans with friends week in advance and I rarely cancel. When it is set on my calendar, it’s done and I hate people who cancel last minute so I don’t. Tip: Don’t be that person that is late or cancels all the time or people will treat you the same. My friends all show up and rarely cancel as I never do.
4} Set alarms/reminders. My phone is like my right hand, so I set alarms on it to remind me to do everything. It can be a pain, but with my mom brain, it helps remind me to do things and at the right time.
5} Take time to relax. I book a facial with Leah once or twice a month (she is a dear friend so you must see her, get 30% off by mentioning my blog). This is the one time I take 45 minutes to truly relax and have her work on my anxiety aging skin. I don’t meditate (yet) so I consider this mental relaxation time. This time can certainly be a bath, meditate in a room yourself, or stretching. Something where you aren’t on your phone or computer and have at least 30 minutes to block things out.
Queen Dress (other Alice & Olivia dresses) | My boots are a steal at $60 (other cute booties)
6} Treat yourself. I buy myself flowers once or twice a month. Sounds cheesy but I love flowers and they make me happy. They brighten me up in my home.
7} Enjoy some downtime. Once a week, I burn a candle and watch my reality TV (Kardashians and Real Housewives are my vices). I don’t watch much anymore as I pretty much work every night (as I write this blog post)
8} Create routines. With kids, having a set schedule is a life changer. My weekday routine is getting ready, get the kids breakfast, drop them off at school, check email, meetings in the afternoon, Instagram at 3 pm and 9 pm, etc. I follow it pretty much day to day so I can get it all done.
9} Plan in advance. I look a month ahead and make sure I have something special planned for my kids. So this month is Halloween. Our annual visit to the pumpkin farm has been planned. November is my birthday month but a visit to my family for Thanksgiving is planned. December a visit to Santa (the best one at the Swisshotel) is on my list.
10} Take help where you can. I know you’ve heard this one but Home Chef has been the best thing I’ve partnered with. These meal kits are a huge help to me as we eat out WAY too much so they cut down on that, enable me to cook in 30 minutes and spend great quality time with my boys. Check out my full review here.
11} Talk to loved ones. I talk to my close friend(s) at least once a week, typically at night after the kids go to bed. If you have a hubby or boyfriend – make time for real conversation or date night. It really helps with having someone on your side to feel the pain of anxiety or imbalance.
12} Take time without your kids. Have at least one babysitter or friend who can help as a backup. If you can’t afford help, swap with a close friend to help each other out. You need this time to regenerate or connect with your relationships.
13} Organize your daily chores. Laundry, washing dishes, cleaning, organizing. All the things we have to do. On a daily basis, I try to organize, but man, my apartment is nowhere close to where it needs to be but it’s ok. Choosing a specific day that you do certain chores makes it easier to keep up with. I wash dishes after each meal (I hate dirty dishes), I do laundry once a week on Friday’s, and vacuum after my kids eat (every other day). Boys can be so messy! But I make my boys put away the toys at the end of the day and if you clean up after each thing, it is actually easier than waiting until it piles up.
14} Use your time wisely. If you have to commute to and from work, use that time to catch up with friends/hubby/boyfriend as mentioned in #11. Text or call if you can. There may be little windows of time in your day you can use to accomplish some of these things on your to-do list and lighten the load.
15} Unplug. The reality of it for me (and I am sure most can relate) is that I don’t have much downtime during the work week. If you want it all to get done, it’s almost impossible to have hours/days off. But do spend the weekend with your family and build sacred times where you aren’t working and can unplug. I give myself between 5-8pm on weekdays and then when I have my boys on the weekends I try hard to only share on stories and not be on my computer or check emails. I actually do go hours without checking it. I had to do this as I was driving myself crazy. We all struggle, I do ALL the time, I have anxiety, stress, and don’t sleep. Just being honest, but I’m ok with it.
16} Get ready in the morning. So I get asked how I manage to put on makeup, get dressed up and get to school. Well, it’s cause I care about it (probably too much) but I love that part of the morning. Which is also part of why I love blogging. I LOVE what I do and style and fashion is a HUGE part of me. My kids know mom gets ready, they are used to it. When I did wear sweats out for the first time, my oldest was so embarrassed, he kept saying I was wearing pajamas out. My norm doesn’t have to be yours, so get dressed up if you love it, if not, don’t pressure yourself too. Whether you get dressed and put makeup on or simply just wash your face in the morning, do that thing that makes you feel ready to take on your day.
17} Pamper yourself. I put on a mask every night and I’m in love with Image Skincare Power Quench Duo. Been using it every night and you can go to bed in the mask! My skin is buttery and soft and I’ve seen an improvement in two weeks.
18} Get (more) rest. I go to bed at midnight and wake up at 7 am every day. I should sleep more but I can’t.
19} Indulge in moderation. I let myself have wine on Thursday or Friday or Saturday and just enjoy my one night of no working and TV binge. Let’s get real if I could enjoy a glass of wine more often I would, but lately, it becomes a bottle and than I’m slow the next day :). So now I let it be for one night unless I’m traveling than let’s get a partying.
20} Do something to recharge. If you have the budget to do so, get a housekeeper to help once a month, get a manicure, haircut, massage, or take an overnight trip somewhere. These are some of my go to’s if I can to feel more balanced and recharge. Asking for help, or taking a moment for yourself is a recurring theme in this post but it helps me stop feeling anxiety and calm down to take one step at a time. Breathe, see the now, move forward and repeat.
Queen Dress (other Alice & Olivia dresses) | My boots are a steal at $60 (other cute booties)
I’ve been told this, “Don’t be so hard on yourself” and we should all give ourselves a break. I do a ton of fun stuff these days, but I’m pretty exhausted. My blog posts have been all written super late at night and during the days it is filled with emails, negotiations, meetings, photo shoots, and more meetings. The reality is, we are all juggling life. But we got to let some stuff go and remember, it can get done another day! Number #1 rule – remember yourself and to take care of yourself. I hope some of these tips helped and I’m off to a fun/work/blogger trip this weekend!! xoxo Keep up on Instagram and soon to be recapped on here.
Loved this post!!! Thanks for sharing, this is something I needed. I’ve been struggling to get in the best routine to balance everything. Loved all your tips!!