Things to Do as a Stay at home Mom to Thrive

This post may contain affiliate links.

Best Tips for a Stay at Home Mom

When you leave behind that full-time job and become a stay-at-home parent, life changes in a major way. You may feel like you will have all this time to get the things done you couldn’t when you were working. But nothing could be further from the truth! Are you now home all day? Yes! But is it all free alone time with nothing else going on? No!

Your once carefree days are filled with taking care of a baby, a toddler, or both! They need you even more than you could imagine throughout a day and there are no breaks.

But there are certainly things to do as a stay at home mom that will help you thrive and be happy.

Have a Daily Routine – but also Go with the Flow

This sounds counter-intuitive right? Its certainly a new skill you pick up as a new mom. Make a plan for the day and try your best to stick to it. But if something comes up, such as your baby isn’t feeling well, or your toddler has a complete meltdown and will not cooperate, don’t be afraid to just go with the flow.

Knowing that every routine will need some flexibility is key. Kids are so unpredictable – even once you think you know and understand them. They can have an off day, something unexpected can pop up, or they start to change…..again!

Have a general plan for nap time and meal time to keep your children on a good schedule. The consistency helps them to understand what to expect during the day.

Encourage Independent Play

Independent play for children is so important. It teaches your child how to play on their own without having you there all the time. The best thing about it is it helps free up a little time for you to do those chores that add up – like switching over a load of laundry, doing a few dishes or picking up a few toys.

The younger the kids are, the less time the independent play may last but it’s always great to start somewhere. As they get older, this will be more and more helpful. It can also give you a much needed break during the day!

Get Some Daily Exercise

Taking care of the kids all day long is stressful! It can seem like days are never ending with no break. Getting a little exercise each day is a huge help to keep your cool.

While the days of your old workouts might be out the window, there are plenty of options as a new parent. If you have a child that is still in a stroller, go out for a walk. Or if it’s winter and tough to get out of the house, another good option is to grab a little stair stepper off Amazon or a small, collapsible treadmill and workout during nap time or while you give the kids lunch!

Daily exercise is so good for your mental health too. It may not seem like you have enough free time to do this for yourself, but to be the best mom you can be, this can be super important! You can set that endless to-do list aside to take this time for you! It will make you a better mom for sure!

Make Some Plans with Other Mom Friends

It may be tough to find mom friends, but they may be older friends who have also had kids or some new ones you find while playing at the park. If possible, one of the best ways to get through a hard day is to have some time with another mom friend. No one understands the struggles of being a mom like another mom.

Plus plans with mom friends mean a little adult interaction for you – which as a stay at home mom, can feel like few and far between. You can start to feel like the only people you speak to either don’t talk back or are under 3 ft. tall! Someone to complain with, laugh with about things kids do or just give you a little break from all kids all the time can help you get through the rest of the day.

Make a Plan for Household Chores

Let’s be honest – having a clean house all the time, even as a stay at home mom, is nearly impossible. For every toy you pick up, kids take out 3 more. It can feel like every time you take a step forward you take another few back. With kids home all the time, it can feel so difficult to keep things clean.

One thing I try to do is make a plan for the week. What do you need to do each day, and what can you get done during the week? For me, it was always dishes and laundry. Everyone needs clean clothes and clean dishes and utensils to eat with! Those were the most important thing for me.

It can be more difficult with young children, but if you have some older ones, try to get them to help! Make cleaning up toys a game. Put on some music or a timer and see if you can complete the chore by the time the song is done or timer went off.

Try Out Meal Planning

When you are a working mom, sometimes its just getting your best effort on the table for dinner. When you are staying at home, you can start dinner on your own schedule so meal planning is a great option for staying organized.

You can try out a new recipe, prep some stuff ahead of time while the kids are napping and make dinner time a lot less stressful! It’s a great way to feel organized during meal time and make a great use of your time at home!

Even with planning your day, finding enough time in the day to get it all done can seem daunting. It’s a good thing that tomorrow is another day! You should never feel guilty about not being able to get everything done in one day just because you have so much time.

Most of that time is taken up by taking care of your kids, which is your perfect job at that point in time. Everyday life is going to look different than it used to, but a great reason to not get everything done is your kids. You are making the best decisions for them and making sure they are taken care of is your number one priority.

Hopefully these things will help you be a happy and organized stay-at-home mom!

Enjoy this post? Save it for later!