When I googled modern homemaking, I got a bunch of results about wanting simpler lives and sites using the term homemaking interchangeably with Stay at Home Mom. While I think there is truly a space for a traditional sense of homemaking in the 2000s, that is not the life I and most of my inner circle live.
With the current inflation of literally everything known to man, it would never be a viable option that I could only do the full-time job of being a mom and homemaker. Even more of a reason it doesn’t work for everyone is that lots of women are earning considerable salaries in the workforce.
And just to add to that, some people like their job! I know I do. I love the things I work on and bringing in my own earned income.
With that being said, some form of homemaking still has to happen. You still want a clean house, good food, and well-cared-for kids.
Modern homemaking heavily relies on labor partnership. Both parents are working, cleaning, cooking, and picking up each other’s slack when things come up. The goal is to have a thriving home that is manageable AND brings you joy!
These are some of the things we do to approach making our home!
Getting Organized
Organization is the number one goal for managing your busy home. When your space or you tasks are all over the place, so are you.
Declutter everywhere – Decluttering your closet is one thing, but think about all the expired food your holding on to in the pantry. Or the Bath products you’ll likely never use again. Doing semi-annual edits on your home helps tremendously in avoiding being bogged down by stuff.
Invest in Useful Apps – There are plenty of apps that can help you sort out your life. I use the Huckleberry app to assist in tracking my child’s growth and schedules. We also use apps to track expenses like Minted.
Create Routines That Make Sense – Routines REALLY help with staying organized. Try not to make them super strenuous. I like to get up before my kid to have coffee/breakfast, shower, and unload the dishwasher. It starts my day rolling and I know that throughout the day when we use dishes, I can pop them into the dishwasher without them pilling up in the sink.
Keeping it Clean
Daily Power Hour – Commit 30 mins a day to cleaning. That’s it. 30 minutes. My husband and I each commit 30 mins each day that totals an hour. He’ll pick up around our room, take out the trash, and run a load in the washing machine while I wipe down the counters, pick up toys, and vacuum. We do what we can in that 30 minutes and then spend the rest of the day focusing on spending time with the family.
Everything has a Place – It took me a while to really live by this but everything has to have a place. Knowing where something goes and putting it right back after use cuts down on the amount of coming behind yourself and putting things away.
Hire Help – This is my favorite tip and if you can afford it, DO IT! You will not regret having someone else come in an clean your whole home in an hour and a half instead of the four hours it usually takes you. We have house cleaning as a line item in our budget and the team comes out every two weeks.
Feeding the Fam
Meal Planning – At the beginning of every week, we make a list of dinners. It’s the only way to stay on top of what to make and how to shop. We designate who’s going to cook what, and on which day.
Double it – Cook with leftovers in mind. If you can, try to make more than your family will eat in one sitting. That way, you can have lunch ready without needing to make something separate or you can run it back and eat leftovers the following night.
Freezer Prepping – Stocking your freezer with snacks, dinners, and desserts is a MAJOR help along the way. I’m not talking crockpot meals (although those are good to), I’m talking thaw-and-bake cookie dough, banana bread, biscuits, and soups. I like to keep things like this in the fridge because you’ll absolutely have days when you just don’t feel like it.
This is what Millneal homemaking sounds like in action. Taking shortcuts when you can and creating systems that allow things to keep on turning!
Let me know if you have in tips on modern homemaking!
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