At the well - motherhood

I have just read a guest post which you can find at the well, and decided to contribute with a comment.

i have two boys aged 7 and 5 who are both in full time school (9am till 3.15am), i am a stay at home mom with a husband that works full time, i am currently studying from home for my degree.
not so long ago i was a very stressful mom, when i got too stressed the counting to 10 thing never entered my head, i just lashed out and shouted, i hated doing this but once the words had spilled from my mouth it was too late to take it back and all i could do was apologise to my husband and children.
i have turned myself around now and do not get thse bouts of frustration so much because of one thing: having a routine, this is curcial for me to stop me from getting so stressed.
when my two boys decide to play up, i am alot calmer to defuse the situation and i think to myself, i am going to miss this when they are older and they leave the nest, and i want to enjoy the time i have with them now.

part of my routine involves this:

monday to friday i use my slowcooker (crockpot) for all the family meals, as soon as i get in from the school run i pop all the ingredients in the slow cooker then i dont have to worry about it all day.
the two boys have a bed time of 7.30pm, and i stick to this because if not they are tired and grumpy when they wake up and then the morning is just horrendous.
we get home from the school run about 3.30pm, they get changed into casual clothes and have a little snack before going out to play in the garden for about an hr. i use this time to wash their uniforms, set the table, and clear away any cluter left from the day.
when my husband returns home form work, we all eat dinner together and whilst i clear away the dishes and wash up the boys get on with their own thing. they both have a shower about 6pm, then we do homework and reading books after that then they watch a bit of tv, and bed time at 7.30pm.
we are a lot more relaxed on a weekend and spend alot of family time together.

because i have a routine and am now more organised things seem to flow easier and more smoothly and i feel happier and more in control and therefore less stressed, and as a result i am always prepared (normally!) for anyhing that life throws at me

kat
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