The Go-To Sunday Reset Routine To Keep You Sane All Week.
If you are anything like me, you wake up on Sunday morning thinking about everything the week coming is going to entail. And you're already dreading it. Maybe it's just the mom in me, but the older I get, the Sunday Scaries seem to get worse and worse.
It took me years to figure out a good routine that makes the work week more bearable.
Reset Your Space (Not Just Your Brain)
Tidy the main areas for a clean slate
Ignore that spare bedroom that you just seem to throw all the stuff into that you don't know what else to do with. Don't waste your Sunday energy, that is a problem for another day. Focus on the main areas that you interact with everday. Bathroom, kitchen, bedroom..
Do a 15–30 minute family “power clean” with music or a timer
Set a timer or pick a playlist and see how much you are able to do in that amount of time. And start with the priorities! This is not the time to organize the pantries. Wipe the counters, vacuum, pick up the clothes off the floor. Clear the clutter and move on.
Empty the sink — no one needs a dish guilt hangover Monday morning
I know, I know. I physically HATE doing the dishes. I think it is the chore that I hate the most out of all of them but I do admit that it's a great feeling to go to with a clear sink and no ugly dishes staring at you in the sink Monday morning while your rushing around the house. Better yet, get a partner to do it for you. 😉
Restock + Refresh
Grocery list + Grocery run
Take away the midday panic of 'What are we going to do for dinner tonight?!' It takes a lot of stress from your week when you already know what is for dinner each night.
Meal Prep
Now you take those meals that you planned and you figure out what you can prep ahead of time. Sometimes you can make the entire meal ahead of time and then you can just warm it up when you are ready to eat it. Things like soups, stews, ect . . .
You can also try to prep any veggies or ingredients that you might need for the meals. It may save you 20 minutes but that could make or break your evenings during the week.
** Bonus points if you prep breakfast! It seems to be the hardest meal to get yourself to eat on a daily basis and it makes it waayyy easier to eat when things are already prepped.**
Laundry + Wardrobe Prep
Separate your Loads
It makes it more manageable to tackle the laundry mountain when you divide and conqur. Seperate the sheets, towels, whites, darks. . . . however makes sense for your systems and tackle it that way. Gone are the days that you do one load of your laundry, one of the kids, a random load of sheets with a few towels thrown in. It makes folding and putting away so much easier when everything is all together. Just trust me, try it. It's magical.
Totally cliche but they say it for a reason. Pick out your clothes ahead of time. I get all my clothes and accessories set out the night before so it's not even a thought in the morning.
Refill all the snacks
The granola bars, cheese sticks and crackers. All the things that your kiddos snacks on for breakfast before school or that you can quickly throw into the lunch bag and go. This goes right along with meal prep, you already know what you are doing for lunches for the week, you can just grab and go!
**Bonus tip- you can pack lunches the night before and put them in your bag so they are already to go. More on bag prep to come 😉 )
Bags Restock
Work Bag: Go through your routine things that you always need in your bag. Obviously, this will vary depending on your job but you will always have your go to's for what you need for your job. Make sure you have everything that you need to make your workday less stressful. A stress free work day creates a less stress free home life.
Pack the kid bag. Our daycare sends out a monthly calendar so I check that each week to see what I need to prepare for him that week. Sometimes they do special things that are extra messy, so I make sure to pack extra clothes, or they will do water day so I need to make sure to pack a swim suit and towel. When I can prepare those things ahead of time, it makes that morning so much easier. Not to mention you don't risk the chance of forgetting about it all together. We have all been there, no shame.
Conclusion
Everyone has their own Sunday routine that they follow to set themselves up for the week, some are more intricate than others.
The key to determine your pain points each morning, those moments that are the hardest or take the longest, and game plan a way to make that more efficient and what you can prep ahead of time to make it easier in the mornings. Being a working mama is hard enough, why make it harder on ourselves then it needs to be?
Did you gain some inspiration from this post to set your own Sunday reset routines?! I want to hear about it. Let me know your strategies or what you might need help with.
