I just want to give a big shout out to all the blogs that tell me it’s okay I’m not always a perfect mom. I wake up every day with the best of intentions and I try and always fail at something. And then I remind myself – WAIT – all those blogs told me that it’s okay to try and fail and not be the perfect Pinterest/IG/Facebook mom.
And between them and my awesome/supportive husband and family and friends – sometimes I DO feel like a Rockstar at this mom gig! I always try. And sometimes I fail. But sometimes, I SUCCEED! And at the end of the day, my kids love me and they are healthy and happy and fun. And that feels like a huge success to me.
And because I know I’m not perfect – I cut myself some slack. I let some things slide. Not big things like feeding my children daily (ok, I TRY to feed them daily, but, do toddlers even eat? I don’t know when my 2 year old ate last, but I swear I tried!)
But sometimes I cut corners just to make my life easier. At first I thought that I was just being a lazy mom. But the blogs! The blogs have made me realize — maybe I’m actually a genius!
So, crazy, lazy or genius? Call it what you want, but these are my best parenting hacks that I want to share with you! Try them out if you want. Or not. Either way, I bet you’re a Rockstar mom too!
Bed-Sharing — Sleep training was just so much work. 3 weeks of putting my two year old back in his room at 11 pm, then 3 am, then he wanted to wake up for the day at 5 am! Yeah – NOPE! The easiest thing was to put him back in our bed and let him sleep with us. Well, now he’s 5 and his sister is 2 and we’ve tried to get them in their own beds. But every time they just end up in our bed. And rather then fight it, make them cry, make me tired — we bed-share. It works for us. We are all happier, a little cramped, but happy!
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PB & J — When one of my friends told me that she makes peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for her boys for lunch every single day, I was like — WE CAN DO THAT? Why am I making my life so hard? Here I am following lunch ideas on Pinterest and Instagram, trying to think of something new and different every day. When they don’t even eat it anyway!!! Yup, not anymore. Keep it simple, pb & j for the win!
Food pouches — I serve the veggies – and they ignore the veggies. One won’t eat carrots and the other hates broccoli and I still can’t understand how anyone can eat brussel sprouts (yes I’ve tried it cooked that way, still gross). So I cheat and still serve veggies in those food pouches made for babies. 2 servings of veggies per pouch, everyone wins!
No toys in the bathtub — When I read about how dirty those toys get – I threw them all away. Give them a cup and they still have the time of their life making a mess and getting me soaked. Cup goes in the dishwasher after bath, I don’t have to sort bath toys out of my dishware.
Late bedtimes — Kids don’t turn into pumpkins at 7 pm. Especially mine. We do bedtime at 9 or 10 pm. They get a full 11 hours per night. And on the weekends, we get to sleep in until 9 am! We couldn’t do this if we didn’t home-school. But we do. And late bedtimes work great for us.
iPads at restaurants — Controversial? Yes. A great way to enjoy a meal in peace? YES! Limiting screen time is important to me too, I swear. Sometimes I just save that screen time for the restaurant. And sometimes I forget the iPad make them behave. But really, with all the educational apps out there, who can judge if they are on a device/learning something while we wait for our meal?
Bribes — I’m not above them. There, I said it. Sometimes I bribe with a “surprise” that turns out to be Gatorade. Sometimes I bribe with a Dum-Dum sucker. But you know what, my kids are good. They don’t expect a toy when we go to the store. They only whine for candy in the checkout line for a second. So I don’t feel bad about bribing when I really need to; not even a little!
I realize some of these might seem more lazy/crazy then others. And some you might find genius! But this parenting thing is hard. So please remember – I am a good mom! And so are you!!
What are your genius parenting hacks? I could probably use some more!
Loved this post! Also, I think I could eat pb&j every day myself. They’re so good!
Great post! Although, the majority of us have to have our elementary-aged kiddos to school by 7:30am, so bedtime can’t flex. Plus good ol’ pb&j has apparently been banned in every public place now. So if there any more hacks for those, I’m listening 🙂