Homemaker Archives - The Motherly Heap https://themotherlyheap.com/tag/homemaker/ On Motherhood and Extras Wed, 30 Jun 2021 19:09:05 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://i0.wp.com/themotherlyheap.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/cropped-TMH-Logo.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 Homemaker Archives - The Motherly Heap https://themotherlyheap.com/tag/homemaker/ 32 32 190800540 Homemaking – The Ultimate Overview for Today’s New Homemakers https://themotherlyheap.com/the-ultimate-overview-in-todays-homemaking/ https://themotherlyheap.com/the-ultimate-overview-in-todays-homemaking/#respond Tue, 13 Apr 2021 05:26:13 +0000 https://themotherlyheap.com/?p=600 Homemaking is truly an art. It’s a skill that involves housekeeping and making a home for your family. All across centuries, mothers have been the family’s anchors as homemakers. In the past, mothers manage their households, raise their kids, make time with their spouse, and keep it all together. I’m awed, and I truly commend them for paving the way for us present mothers. Modern mothers can be anything and everywhere. Homemakers can be a working, a work-from-home, or a stay-at-home mom. And we’ve all heard the phrase “mommy wars” before. Uniquely, we are all mothers, and each of our life circumstances is diverse. Whether you stay at home or work – you are a homemaker. The goal is to make sure that the children are thriving great, the family is supported, and the phases in life are well-balanced and fully lived. Let no hindrance stop you from achieving what you’ve dreamed of. Despite the noticeable continuing of these mommy wars, there is no point in fueling this grudge between mothers. Every choice a mother/parents make for their children is scrutinized. Without even understanding the reasons why such a choice was made. Much had been debated on this matter, and it all boils down to what makes a family flourish. Aren’t we supposed to be a supportive society? I was a full-time working mom before the covid pandemic hit. As a nurse, I love my calling and still proud to be one. The two things that working outside the home taught me: appreciating the time spent with family and being present in the moment. Now that I stay at home, I realized as well as being a shift working mom with young children and a homemaker for years combined was one of the hardest times of my life. Through those experiences, I’ve grown resilient, practical, and became goal-driven. In short, the change widened my view on the heart of being a homemaker. Even after a year of being a stay-at-home – homemaker, I’m still adjusting, and it’s going to be a steady heap of learning. It didn’t come as second nature to me. My pursuit of happy homemaking demands immense effort and dedication. Managing a household is not all fun and dandy. It requires a lot of patience and chaos management. Homemaking can be stressful, but having a system in place can make it manageable enough. The good thing these days – technological advancements are continuous and can make home management simplified and convenient. Invest in quality equipment and items that will make your housekeeping better. You can also pick multi-function gadgets so as not to crowd storage space. The options are endless and what matters is your preference and their practical contributions to your home. Without a doubt, homemaking and technology combined make you appreciative of this modern-day era. Well, General Housekeeping includes organizing, routines, meal planning, cooking, cleaning, budgeting, and repairs/maintenance. Also, keeping a positive and safe home environment for the family is what completes homemaking. What can you do to make homemaking manageable? Why don’t we take a closer look at the general list we got. Routines (Daily/Weekly) Homemakers do strive on schedules and different routines. This area can be divided into two sections as follows: Daily Routines – includes tasks that you normally do daily to create a rhythm in everyday home management; Weekly Routines – these are tasks that you can schedule in each day to accomplish. Obviously, batching your tasks under each category can assist you in completing them. You do include in your household schedule: appointments, cleaning schedules, schooling, your kids’ wake up/bedtime routines, your own morning routine, family events, and special dates, and many more. Cleaning Routines assigned into WEEKLY TASKS. Examples would be: Sunday – Quick Declutter/Rest Day Monday – Living Room Tuesday – Kitchen/Fridge Purge and Trash day. Wednesday – Bathrooms Thursday – Laundry/Recycle day Friday – Fold/Closet Organizing Saturday – Bedrooms Have the necessary cleaning supplies: e-cloth, multi-surface cleaners, vacuums, mops, carpet cleaner and etc. Labeling your household items, pantry, and other home supplies is a great way to get organized. READ POST: Cleaning Supplies Checklist You’ll Need In Your Home When scheduling daily, blocking time for each task would be included accordingly. Moreover, this schedule will be tuned to your family’s routines. An example for a Daily Schedule: Wake-up time/Hygiene Routines Breakfast School for kids (distance learning, homeschooling, or in-person) this block depends on where your kids belong. Kitchen clean-up/Update grocery list “The Weekly Task” assigned block from above Lunch/Clean-up School for kids (distance learning, homeschooling, or in-person) if you are homeschooling then this block is taken. Playtime outside/Wash-up Free Hour (quiet time) books/devices for kids; billing/emails/others tasks for parents Dinner/Clean-up Family Time Bedtime Routines Organizations The key is to get started. Do it today. Find an area where you can give 5-10 minutes of your time to declutter and organize. As my husband always says, “Everything has a home.” Get a bin and start with the most visible clutter. As you continue along, place items back to where they belong. However, if things needed to be thrown away, grab a trash bag along the way. Evidently, countertops, tables, and floors are the worst clutter areas when you have little kids. Have your kids help out in putting things back where they should be, especially their own toys. Then, tackle each room weekly. You know which tasks need to be done first. If you haven’t completed an area in a day- don’t over-stress. It’s not about doing it perfectly, but starting it is sufficient enough for now. Set aside a week or two to sort out stuff to donate and keep in each room. This process might take you longer, especially if you’re like me that holds on to everything. You know what I mean. Don’t rush it. Do take your time. Significantly, having an organized and uncluttered home changes your attitude towards the positive. Your mind shifts to calmness and peace. Haven’t you felt that before? You are already running on low most days, and being around a kept home makes the difference. Make your home a sanctuary of tranquility. Budgeting as part of homemaking Financial cash flow is unique to every home. Budgeting and concrete planning fosters strong financial security for the family. Allocating money can be a joint effort or just yours. Either way, whatever you decide with your spouse. Specifically, keep an open discussion of the family’s income spending and saving between you and your spouse. What works for your family might not be the way for others. As a one-income household, determine what keeps your family afloat and minimize unnecessary spending. Save as much as you can to secure your family’s future and be economical. Being the homemaker, you are adept at cash flow within the home. List down your daily, weekly, monthly expenses. Not to mention, recheck your saving habits. Stay within the budget, spend within your means, monitor it closely, and look for ways to save. Grocery Shopping You can do grocery runs once-twice a week or every two weeks. It all depends on how much your family consumes. And check what’s in the pantry/fridge first. You can put up a to-buy list, and update it regularly once the current supply is getting low. You can do bulk buying to save gas and time. Use up all the available produce first. This way less is being thrown away as waste. Now, this part might be just an addition to you but buy for your Disaster Food Kit. When nature decides to turn wild on us, our access to the store for food and other necessities will be limited or blocked. It’s good to have a supply of non-perishable food on hand and other stock of essentials. Being prepared doesn’t make you a survival extremist. Your peace of mind is important, knowing that you have what your family needs in case of disasters. Meal Planning This one saves a lot of time and effort. Yes, when you do the meal planning, it does seem complicated at first. The main ingredients prepping can be done ahead of time and can be used once needed in a recipe. The type of meals you plan will be based on your family’s preference. Blank Template for Weekly Meal Plan. Reserve a day or two in your week to do all meal planning and batch cooking the meals. This way, you aren’t overwhelmed about feeding your family and be rushing every single day. “Mom, what’s for lunch?”; or “What are we having for dinner?” You are all familiar with these phrases in your home. Cooking every day is time-consuming; with small kids, it can be impractical. Therefore, batch cooking can help you cut down the time spent every time you cook. It can also help you reach your family’s goals of eating more wholesome nutritious meals. One more advantage of batch cooking is that it can save you money. When the budget is tight, meals can take the biggest cut from the budget if you are not paying attention. With meals already cooked, you will have meals ready in containers to reheat and enjoy at any time. You don’t have to call for food delivery or to go, and that all adds up pretty hefty. These can be a life-saver if you or one of your loved ones is sick. The rest of the family can easily take what’s prepared and reheat it themselves. Imagine being a newly postpartum mom and juggling the household and cooking for everyone. House Maintenance/Quick Repairs Honestly, I rely upon my husband in this area. I can do the small repairs that affect the daily operation at home. Maintaining a home means you have to sustain the upkeep. Make sure you have the proper tools and repair gadgets. As a homemaker, you have to be willing to put an effort into keeping your whole household maintained. Subsequently, be mindful when broken items needed fixing, don’t wait for it to get worse. Make sure to replace all batteries in your household alarms twice a year. As a result, it will keep your whole family safe and protected when everything is working as it should be. Homemaking Basic Skills (Sewing, Baking/Cooking) As far as I can remember, during my elementary days – we had a home economics class. The class course involved cooking, sewing, baking, food canning, crocheting, gardening, etc. So even in my younger years, homemaking was already introduced to me. I didn’t see it like that before and thought that was a fun class to break from the strict classroom setting. That made me looked forward to it. Sewing my very first apron, house dress, and pillowcases, I sweetly recall and being so proud about it when I got home from school. I didn’t pick up the sewing skill back up again until my daughter was born. Once you’ve learned skill like sewing, you never forget it. It’s like riding a bike. You always know how to do it. Now sewing is my therapy, my me-time, my outlet. I sew different stuff, clothes for my kids/family, and repair/hem clothes for everyone in the family. I’ve sewn masks when the pandemic hit and have given them to families. You don’t have to sew extensively if you aren’t into it. Even just knowing the basics of hand sewing can take you farther in repairing what is needed. Investing in a good sewing machine is a must, especially if you’re thinking of selling home-sewn products for extra income. Homemakers make Cooking and Baking fused in one category. This takes measuring precisely, and getting ingredients prepped makes the task rather easy. Set up your cooking equipment: multi-function instant pot, rice cooker, knife set with cutting board, and baking gadgets: stand-mixer, nonstick baking pans, mixing bowls and cake decorating set. Try a variety of recipes, and adjust them to your liking. The wonder of cooking is experimenting and finding the right taste for you and your family...

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