Anonymous wrote:We go skiing every weekend. You just have to prioritize.

On Saturday, we left all the beds unmade, laundry undone, got a pizza for dinner, etc.

Nothing productive got done but that is ok.

+1

You need to realize you can’t see into your friends’ houses all the time.

When you visit, they’re super clean and tidy. But that doesn’t mean they are always so ship shape.

Sometimes you have to let things slide so you can have fun.

I think you have unrealistic expectations of yourself. You got good advice from pps already. Mine is get off social media and think small. Don’t aim for skiing weekends every week or even every month, If that’s more than you can handle at the life stage at which you are. Do playground outings, which, with a toddler may be easier to plan and more enjoyable for all involved.

I have a to-do list, but I also keep adding to it all the random stuff I do during the day and check it off.
It's pretty satisfying because it shows me that I am accomplishing a lot, regardless of if I do not get to all of it.
Every day I try to get to the time sensitive stuff and 1 more stuff. What was the agenda on Sunday? To get my kid for a class and make a dish DH requested. I ended up doing laundry, assembling some furniture, cleaning a shelf in the fridge.

We go skiing every weekend. You just have to prioritize.

On Saturday, we left all the beds unmade, laundry undone, got a pizza for dinner, etc.

Nothing productive got done but that is ok.

Anonymous wrote:I'm SUPER overwhelmed too. I have a 5 yr old and a 10 month old. I do drop off and pick up to school and daycare every day; i cook all the meals; i do all the laundry; I pay the bills and do our taxes; I handle all doctor's appointments and playdates. If I'm lucky, I carve out a few hours to go to the gym each week, but it's not enough. I can't afford to hire help right now. I love my government job, but I dream of going back into to the private sector so I could afford a nanny. I keep telling myself that it will get easier as the kids get older. I'm afraid I'm going to have a meltdown any day now. I just try to just think "one day at a time."

Do you have a partner to help with the load?

I'm SUPER overwhelmed too. I have a 5 yr old and a 10 month old. I do drop off and pick up to school and daycare every day; i cook all the meals; i do all the laundry; I pay the bills and do our taxes; I handle all doctor's appointments and playdates. If I'm lucky, I carve out a few hours to go to the gym each week, but it's not enough. I can't afford to hire help right now. I love my government job, but I dream of going back into to the private sector so I could afford a nanny. I keep telling myself that it will get easier as the kids get older. I'm afraid I'm going to have a meltdown any day now. I just try to just think "one day at a time."

Well if you don’t have the budget for a house cleaner you probably don’t have the budget to go skiing every weekend either... you really don’t know what goes on in other people’s houses. Maybe their homes are a mess and they cut their own hair. Maybe they can function on 4 hours of sleep. Maybe they are more efficient than you. Maybe (probably) they throw money at the problem. It doesn’t really matter what other people are doing so try not to get caught up in skiing pictures.

If you are cool with your life as long as you don’t go on instagram or Facebook then you can stop reading here and just stop going on those sites. If you are overwhelmed and want to get organized, read on.

Here’s how to be organized:

1. Get your house in order. Clean up, clear out. Have a place for everything. Take a PTO day or schedule a weekend for this. It’s important to start with a clean slate.
2. Be ruthless about what comes into your home. Don’t buy shit you don’t need, don’t get a new toy without getting rid of another one.
3. Spend time every day keeping things in order. No piles of unopened mail, it takes five minutes to go through every day. Tidy up and clean something every night. DH should do this too and kids as is age appropriate. Everything should be packed and ready the night before.
4. Schedule everything. Automate bills, schedule a time to get camps squared away, review finances once a month, schedule your haircut, etc. drop your dry cleaning off every Tuesday morning.
5. Don’t try to go it alone. Include the kids and your husband. Kids are great laundry folders, dusters, dish dryers... husbands can and should participate equally.

Good luck. Sorry if that sounds harsh but that’s how I talk to myself when I start comparing and it snaps me right out of it.

Anonymous wrote:We have people who clean the house twice a week, and a full time nanny despite our kids being in elementary school. We are willing to pay the nanny for full time for when school is out, kids are sick, and it's in our contract that the nanny will do house-stuff during the day (like ordering groceries and putting them away, managing repairmen who come by to fix the deck, etc.).

LOL- OP this is how some people do it- by being rich and outsourcing. Helpful response.

A lot of my working friends do camp registration and sports and stuff from work (yes during working hours) or over their lunch break.

Skiing is exercise. You don’t need to fit in both.

I don't think there's a magic trick to it, it's just modern life with two working parents and kids. We just muddle along.

If you see a post from me about going away for the weekend, it doesn't mean that the house is clean, and our to-do list is done. It just means we ditched it all and went away because if we waited until everything was done, we'd never get out!

My house is perpetually cluttered and I'm also overdue for a haircut, dentist appt and getting new work clothes. But we're healthy, fed, clean, kids do activities, kids doing well in school, bills get paid and taxes get filed.

Maybe my house will be nice and organized when the kids leave for college.

Anonymous wrote:Hi! I am a pretty organized person but I am still finding it hard to keep up with the long list of things to do. My husband and I both work. We have two kids. Elementary age and toddler. The last few months have just gotten to me and my pile of things to do just keeps getting longer. I literally took today off just to sit down and get some stuff done (mostly bills - but also a hair cut since it has been since last MAY that I've gotten one.)

I see on social media friends going skiing or whatever every weekend. How do they do it and keep the house clean, exercise, manage kids activities/homework, repairs, bills, signing kids up for activities, plan vacations . . . I would LOVE to take the family skiiing or whatever each weekend. We try to do something once a month as a family - but it stinks to think we spend all weekend most of the time recovering from the week. We will go the play ground or something fun for a few hours, but it is not the same.

We do not have house cleaners, not in the budget. I think I am pretty organized, but maybe not? My husband helps out around the house, but he is not a good planner, would never think to plan for summer camp or vacations or anything more than a few hours in advance. He will not do the taxes or deal with financial advisor.

What are we doing wrong? I wish I had more time to hang out with friends or go on adventures.

Have you tried auto bill pay? But otherwise, going skiing every weekend sounds excessive. Maybe they have house cleaners or they don't sleep.

-Bills are paid electronically. Takes seconds to set up a bill.

-Kids activities/camps are signed up for on the day registration opens; if it's a particularly "hot" activity I make sure to set a reminder for sign up day/time

-Taxes we do together in the evening during tax times.

- Pick up and clean up as we go, but we also have every other week house cleaners. It makes a difference for us.

-I try to meal plan dinners for the week on Sundays when I go grocery shopping. We also fill in with HelloFresh delivery if the menu looks good that week.

-Exercise is more hit or miss, but if I can't go to a class, I try to walk or run, or something movement wise.

Laundry is the nemesis. It's clean, but the putting away is the time suck. Thank goodness for a spare bedroom with a door to close.

We have people who clean the house twice a week, and a full time nanny despite our kids being in elementary school. We are willing to pay the nanny for full time for when school is out, kids are sick, and it's in our contract that the nanny will do house-stuff during the day (like ordering groceries and putting them away, managing repairmen who come by to fix the deck, etc.).

Hi! I am a pretty organized person but I am still finding it hard to keep up with the long list of things to do. My husband and I both work. We have two kids. Elementary age and toddler. The last few months have just gotten to me and my pile of things to do just keeps getting longer. I literally took today off just to sit down and get some stuff done (mostly bills - but also a hair cut since it has been since last MAY that I've gotten one.)

I see on social media friends going skiing or whatever every weekend. How do they do it and keep the house clean, exercise, manage kids activities/homework, repairs, bills, signing kids up for activities, plan vacations . . . I would LOVE to take the family skiiing or whatever each weekend. We try to do something once a month as a family - but it stinks to think we spend all weekend most of the time recovering from the week. We will go the play ground or something fun for a few hours, but it is not the same.

We do not have house cleaners, not in the budget. I think I am pretty organized, but maybe not? My husband helps out around the house, but he is not a good planner, would never think to plan for summer camp or vacations or anything more than a few hours in advance. He will not do the taxes or deal with financial advisor.

What are we doing wrong? I wish I had more time to hang out with friends or go on adventures.