Is Parenthood Stressing You Out?

Ready to breathe a sigh of relief? Keep reading.

1.  Consolidate Chores.  When my older two kids were young, I used to not only wash their clothes separately, but I would sort the colors/whites.  It was so overwhelming and time-consuming!  Now I limit the amount of white clothing I buy (kids are dirt magnets…this might be the best piece of parenting advice I ever give: Don’t put them in white!), and just toss everything into the wash on COLD.  It saves time, energy, sanity, and you’ll notice a difference on utility bills, too.

2.  Plan your meals.  Nothing is worse than wondering what’s for dinner, feeling too tired to make something, and end up eating unhealthy food.  This is a double whammy, since when we eat low-nutrition-high calorie food, it has a direct effect on our mood.  There are some fantastic online tools to use to plan weekly menus with shopping lists included, or do it the old-fashioned way, like I do!  Whatever method you choose, it will help reduce the stress of yet another chore.

I'm all-for taking shortcuts with the laundry. I do it all the time. I stopped buying light colors altogether. Most of my son's clothes are now gray, navy, and black. I separate my clothes and my son's from my husband's work clothes and that's it. Talk about easy.

You can read the rest of what she has to say about easing the stress of parenthood over on her blog. When you're done, leave us a comment and let us know how you ease the stress of parenthood.