Mummascribbles – Managing life as a working mummy – Mummascribbles

I have been back at work now for almost two and a half years. I’m not exactly sure where that time has gone but it has. I therefore like to think that sometimes I can give those of you who are returning to the workplace, or who are struggling a little, some advice. There is no doubt that I juggle a lot of balls and I can sometimes feel a bit overwhelmed by life and work. So here are my top tips (that I really need to take note of myself) about how to make juggling work, your children and your home a little easier.

Prepare everything the night before

It goes without saying that if you were to leave everything to be dealt with in the morning, you will simply not get out of the house. There are nights when I think, oh I’ll do that in the morning. Major error! There is simply not enough time in the mornings and it leaves me being late for work.

On a Sunday night, I get everything ready for Zach’s three days at my mum’s. All of the food he will need throughout the week that doesn’t have to stay in the fridge or freezer is packed in the bag. The food that does need to stay in the fridge or freezer is packed into a carrier bag for easy grabbing. If something is in the freezer, I write myself a big note on the fridge door to remind myself to pack it. In the morning, all of the food is grabbable to shove in the car. His bag is also packed with books for them to read and games for them to play. All of that stuff stays with my mum for the week. The only thing that returns home are his clothes and these are replenished the next time he goes.

With nursery, I make sure his bag is packed the night before and placed by the front door along with his coat, shoes and bag. Make sure your work bag is ready too with whatever you need . Your purse, keys, book, diary. Whatever you take with you, have you bag ready to grab. The only thing I have to add to my bag in the morning is my phone. Also make your lunch to store in the fridge overnight. It will be just as fresh the next day I promise.

Hi ho, hi ho, it’s off to nursery we go!

Choose a nursery that does breakfast!

Zach has brekkie at mum’s and at nursery all week. If we had to feed him at home in the morning, there is absolutely no way we would get to work. He also has his dinner and tea before he comes home.

Send them in their pj’s

Ok, this wont work if your child goes to nursery every day but if they go to family, send them in their pyjamas. My mum gets Zach dressed and teeth brushed for me in the mornings and sends him back home ready for bed which is key since he keeps falling asleep in the car. The reason I started asking her to get him ready for bed was because of the tantrums that used to occur when we’d get home and he’d be too tired to participate in the getting ready process!

Regularly asleep on the return from mum’s

Don’t worry about bathing them every night

Unless you absolutely have to (i.e. they’ve been painting at nursery or playing with flour), try and bath them every other night instead of every night. We mainly started doing this because the bath was flaring Zach’s eczema up but it now works out that he is bathed after nursery on a Tuesday and a Thursday when he gets home a bit earlier. He then usually has a bath on a Sunday night unless he’s got himself messy on the Saturday.

Bulk cook

Ok, I have only just started doing this but I now have pots of homemade lasagne and shepherds pie in the freezer to give Zach after nursery. Mixed with stuff like beans on toast and sandwiches, it gives him a selection of things to eat. Even though they eat at nursery, they come home hungry!

After nursery munchies

Know key timings for making it to work on time

I know that if I leave the house on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday after 7.05am I am going to be late for work. Equally on a Tuesday and Thursday I know that if I haven’t got out of nursery by 7.40, there is a chance I may miss my train. Have those timings in your head so you know exactly what you are aiming for.

Know the very latest you can leave the office

Just like the above, you need to know the exact latest time that you can leave the office. I have a little bit more flexibility on mum days but I know that on nursery days, if I don’t leave at 4.30 on the dot, I’ll miss the early train. Equally, if I decide to catch the later train, I have to be out by 4.40 to make sure I don’t miss that one. Because if I do, those late fees will start kicking in!

Do your grocery shopping online

​This changed our lives. No more trawling round the supermarket on a Saturday morning. No more whinging from the three year old about being stuck in a trolley. All of our shopping is delivered on a Friday night while he is tucked up in bed. It’s brilliant and means the weekends are completely ours!

It used to be an easy task!

Hire a cleaner

I don’t have one. It is the one thing I wish I did have. It is so hard to find time to clean when you both have a full time job, a three year old and an hour and a half commute each way (mine is inclusive of the dropping and picking up of Zach). Equally, the last thing you want to do when you’ve finally got the kids to bed is clean. If I could have a cleaner in, even every couple of weeks to do a full clean so that I can just keep on top of it, I absolutely would.

If you can’t hire a cleaner?

Try not to fret too much. If you can do bits here and there during the week then great but if not, an hour at the weekend will be sufficient. We find ourselves having an hours power clean. It’s good for your children to see you cleaning so don’t feel guilty about having to do it while they are around. Even better, get them to help – even if they are using their toy hoover rather than the real one! The thing that really saved our evenings is a dishwasher. If you don’t have one but have space for one then get one. They really are magic!

Don’t start a blog!

Ok, ignore this one! Starting this blog is definitely one of the best decisions I have made. It does take up a lot of the spare time that I do have but is totally worth it!

So there you go. There are my top tips for how to cope with being a working mum. Try to remember that you are not superwoman. If your house has to be a little bit untidy in order to have that hour of sitting down of an evening then so be it. Don’t punish yourself for not managing it all. Even that person who you think is superwoman really isn’t. She’s just running around like a headless chicken…just like you!

Do you have any tips that you’d add in here? I’d love to know!