Aww. Don’t beat yourself up when you don’t get it perfect. Every mom who works toward doing a little better each day is an awesome mom!

Jennifer, I know thar feeling, too!! Not sure we can kick it out 100%, but maybe in small, baby step kinds of ways, we can at least do better! Maybe our kids can learn to cook or sew with us to feel “grown up”. Maybe we help them write letters to friends or help them help an elderly neighbor or even go talk to one! And just having snuggles or doing two activities side by side. They really just want to have some of our time. I will pray for you as well when I am mindful of this area in my own life. You have lots to show them and you were chosen for them by God, so dont compare yourself to others or even this article. Mommy guilt is the worst and keeps us defeated. Best wishes and gentle hugs. 🙂

If you meal plan, you can do things like looking forward for the next three days and, as long as you have the cutting board and knife out for dinner today, cut all the onions you need at once. Now you’ve saved yourself “I have to cook dinner right now” moments, AND the money for takeout because you decided not to, AND the time it would have taken to wash the knife and cutting board three times instead of just once. TELL your kids when you do it, too! This teaches them good habits for school! It teaches them to focus not just on today, but on your tasks for the days to come too. It teaches them that when you can find ways to save money and time, those can be put to better use–like playing soccer in the yard for the ten minutes you saved tomorrow by already having dinner prepped.

I’m saying you can do things as simple as buying a rice cooker so that the rice doesn’t require attention. Mom, play soccer with me! Okay, give me three minutes and I’ll meet you outside. Why don’t you clear our soccer field of other toys while I get rice cooking? — Now you’ve taught them the value of both taking care of your responsibilities first, and being true to your word when you promise to do things Later and actually do it. Honesty and trustworthiness are important character traits we can teach!

Re-arrange your time to get more out of it. There are slow times of the week, and busy times. For the most part, you know what they are and you can plan for them. It’s okay to teach your kids to schedule in fun time! Front-loading kids with pro-active efforts on your part to read the books and play the games means that when you legitimately don’t have time, you can be honest: Now is not a great time for that, but I’m really looking forward to our book at bedtime! Mom can’t play monopoly right now because Mom is driving you to school, but we’re going to have fun at our family game night on Friday, aren’t we? — Bonus, these are opportunities to help our kids learn to manage disappointment.

If you’re finding that you’re saying no to the same thing over and over, maybe you need to either find time to schedule it in, or find another adult that WANTS to do it. Mom doesn’t enjoy playing dolls, but I bet Auntie would LOVE to come over one day to play dolls with you, and she might even bring her Big Barbie Dreamhouse to share! Let’s make a date with her right now. Maybe we can even make it a regular play date. –now you’ve taught the value of choosing people for jobs and activities that consider their skills and desires instead of just your own. Win/Win/Winning.

This is a very good point. I think the balance point is in doing the things that keep your family healthy & safe, and doing the things that actually give you MORE time. Folding the clothes right away saves time because you don’t have to spend 10-20 minutes multiple times looking for something to wear–you can spend 10 minutes doing it once and be done with it. THOSE kinds of things, it’s best to get on and do it already. Scrubbing the tub often enough that you aren’t worried about bacteria during bathtime, but not every day. If NOT doing it will cause harm or more time later, do it. If it won’t hurt to wait, let it go by. And if you can turn it into a learning opportunity, even better!

Aww, I’m glad it was an encouragement!

I’ve never read this poem and I love it! Thanks for sharing!

There is definitely a balance to it all! Many moms lean one too hard in one direction or the other, and we all need to recognize where we’ve gotten too far from a good middle ground. I’m glad you saw in your own home what needed to change because I agree, making life all about your child’s happiness and never teaching them that there is work to be done isn’t doing them any favors either.