Organized SAHM: Part I

I have no idea what I'm doing

My friend J., sweet and caring person she is, sent me and a few other of her mommy friends an email titled "Hey Organized Mamas!"

Let's all pause to laugh at this silly assumption: I have a friend, who knows intimate details of my life, who thinks I am organized. We should assume I'm a stellar actress.

See? Happy children. So happy they won't smile for their mama.

She continues that she wanted to email a few of her friends who "are organized and appear (at least to me) to have it together." I might appear to have it together, but those cohesive moments are rare, and very, very fleeting - and never strung together. Since I have been a SAHM for some time, I'm going to give a bit of advice for other moms joining the gang.

SAHM background

When I started this SAHM gig, it was so I could spend time with my kids. It was so I was not a zombie working all day (as a high school English teacher), grading papers all night, and mothering in-between. Some moms zip from work to home and to daycare and "appear" to have it together. At least their hair is combed. I don't know how people do it. I was a danger to myself, and probably others when I drove. I was that tired. Cutting back on bills and writing on the side, I started staying at home with Ty and Za, and along the way C.J. joined the group.

I started this blog so I wouldn't lose my mind, so I could reflect on my parenting, because that is what I did as a teacher. I also missed teaching and writing was an outlet for that.

Learning with eggs. I will find a way my kids learn with Easter eggs, and I will write about it. :)

I also wrote this information because I found none when I started. Three years ago I google-ed "sahm life" and "sahm schedule." I found nothing but moms squabbling on chat boards about who was a better mama - those at home or those who worked and balanced life. That didn't interest me, and I don't engage in that conversation here. I've been a working (outside the home) and working (inside the home) mom and both are grueling.

You must have learned something

I've created schedules and modified them. I've written lesson plans for my kids and discarded them - completely. I've made considered writing a household schedule.

Organized I'm not, but I do have some ideas that can make a SAHM life easier. I'll try writing them out the next few days, not only for J. but for other beginning SAHM. I'll share what I've learned and I hope it helps someone. I needed help when I started.

I cannot promise organizational bliss. I can't even promise you how many posts will be in this series, but I can tell you I will try. Being a SAHM (or dad!) is deathly hard. They paycheck is not for years to come.

Let me close with this. I did my master's research on organization. Yep, that's right. I studied organization in fifteen year olds. I developed a plan to organize them in a classroom, implemented that plan, and it worked. I have attempted to organize my home and my children. Comparing the success I felt with my teenage students to the success I feel with my toddlers I have learned:

I have no idea what I'm doing.

Part II in this SAHM Organizational Series is up!
So is Part III!