Homeschooling and Housekeeping. It’s a lot—a huge responsibility.
As homeschoolers, our homes are the central hub of our life. And much of our life happens there.
If you are like you are tired of feeling like you are constantly running behind. That’s why when I encourage homeschool moms, I talk about the importance of routines.
With routines, I know that whatever I miss one day will come back around in the cycle. So they create a sense of predictability and security that way.
Homeschooling and Housekeeping Routines
We can create routines for different areas in our homes to create a clean and organized environment for our kids.
When I encourage homeschool moms, I always talk about the importance of routines. Having a cycle means you can rest easy in knowing that whatever you have to skip, it will come back around without you having to stress over it.
Kitchen Routines
These include meal prep, cleaning, and putting away groceries.
Meal Routines and Prep
I offer my kids food about every 2 hours. Between that time, the kitchen is closed except for water.
This keeps me from feeling like I am constantly feeding someone. It also gives me an easy starting point for planning our meals for the week.
Our day through our eating habits looks something like this:
Breakfast Snack Lunch Snack Dinner Snack Bed
And what I offer at each meal is pretty predictable. That’s what makes it a routine.
Breakfast is always cold cereal. The kids love it, and it’s so low effort in the morning.
For each snack, I offer the kids 2 things. They choose what they eat. For one snack, I offer dairy foods like yogurt or cheese. For another, I may offer a protein like eggs or a peanut butter sandwich. The last I may offer complex carbs like oatmeal, fruit, or veggies.
I often cook breakfast food, pizza, sandwiches, hot dogs, or frozen convenience foods for lunch.
Dinner is always something that takes a little more effort and love. And sometimes take out.
Meal prep is that secret sauce to making me feel like I have some control of my day.
Taking some time out each week or month to assemble sandwiches or cook a box of pancake mix can really make a big difference in my homeschooling day.
Things you can prep without cooking anything:
- Wash and cut fruit
- Make sandwiches
- Peanut Butter with Jam, jelly, honey, or vanilla fluff
- Meat & Cheese
- Breakfast Sandwiches (buy all precooked ingredients)
- Nutella
- Cut veggies
- Cut cheese
- Trailmix
- Meat/Cheese/Crackers
- Salads
Easy Food to Cook and Store for Lunch:
- Pancakes (buy a box mix)
- Pasta Dishes like spaghetti
- Rice Dishes like Jambalaya or Stirfry
- Baked Goods like Muffins and Bread
Things Kids Can Help Do
- Assemble and put sandwiches into the bag
- Wash and Cut Fruits/Veggies
- Mix Things
This was a very brief overview of the idea of meal prep. My point is to encourage you to schedule a time in your routine to help your days run smoother by limiting time spent cooking.
You can do a lot more than this!
Meal Prep Links:
How to Meal Prep 101 by Savory and Savvy
Meal Prep Tips for Homeschool Moms by Thrive at Home Central
Monthly Meal Planning for Moms by Life with Less Mess
12 Kid-Friendly Make-Ahead Meals by the Kim Six Fix
Cheap But Filling Breakfasts For Kids by Homegrown Hillary
Kitchen Cleaning Routines
If we allow them, our kitchens can quickly become out of control and wreak havoc on our day and happiness.
So it’s essential to take steps to make sure you can stay on top of the dishes.
I have seen people do this 3 ways:
- Use paper dishes and towels.
- Color code dishes and keep only 1 set per kid. That way, you immediately know who didn’t put away their utensils. Then, you have each child wash their own dishes.
- Run the dishwasher often. Rotate through the kids on who loads the dishes after each meal.
Putting Away Groceries
I am pretty specific about where things go.
Keeping things in the same places means I don’t have to search for a snack only to discover they are all gone. Also, it makes it easier to make a list without buying double.
All our children help carry in the groceries down to my toddlers.
Laundry Routines
My best advice for keeping up with laundry is to minimize it and do it every day. It’s the only way I can keep up with mine.
I have a capsule wardrobe for all of us. This basically means everyone has a small number of outfits, between 8-10. My kids are hard on their clothes, so your family may be able to get away with less.
I can go from no clean clothes to completely caught up in like 2 diligent days with so few outfits.
Creative Laundry Routines:
- Do 1-2 loads every day.
- Assign each person a day.
- Keep a family closet arranged by size.
Here are more resources about laundry routines:
Laundry Routine from Life with Less Mess
Creating a Laundry System from The Kitchen Chalkboard
Laundry Routine Tips by Back Road Bloom
Homeschooling and Housekeeping: Cleaning Routines
Even with the kids helping, my house is messy. We have 7 people living here with tasks, toys, and projects going on. So the best I can do is make sure that the mess is continuously rotating, so our things don’t become dirt and grime.
Always include your kids in the cleaning. First, you shouldn’t have to shoulder the burden alone. Second, they will learn valuable skills, including practical skills like how to load a dishwasher and skills like time management and work ethic.
Every house and family is different, so I can’t tell you exactly how to create a cleaning routine. Instead, you will have to examine your needs and go from there.
But below, I have cultivated some links that will give you creative ideas to work with.
15 Hacks to Keep a Clean Home with Kids from Mom Hacks 101
Printable Cleaning Schedule from Healthy and Lovin It
Easy Weekly Cleaning Schedule for Moms from Budgeting for Bliss
Cleaning Schedule for Working Moms from Already Tired Tomorrow
Simple Cleaning Routine from Katie’s Kottage
Conclusion
Balancing homeschooling and housekeeping isn’t easy. But we can do with planning and follow-through.
Please share with me any tips for routines and housekeeping you have! I’d love to hear from you!
