4 Weekday Time-Savers for Working Parents

Single working parents, this school year let’s get rid of that overwhelmed feeling. These 4 week day time-savers come from real single working parents we talked to, and we think they’re brilliant. We hope they make your parenting schedule a little easier to handle.

J World “Corey” Lunchbox

Meal Planning

Putting meals on the table is a grind every working parent has to face. Mornings are tough enough as is; don’t make them tougher by adding the extra task of packing lunch. Instead, pack lunches the night before – they don’t have to be stellar, just nutritious and edible. It doesn’t hurt to have a well-constructed lunch pack that does the organizing for you.

Puma “Stacker” Insulated Lunchbox

Meal planning can come in many forms. Large, refrigerated meals are helpful for dinner, as are one-pot meals (minimal cleanup!). And, on those weeks where you’re drowning in your own workload, there’s nothing wrong with buying some healthy pre-prepared lunches (and dinners) from your favorite market.

Oh, Laundry!

For some families, laundry means procrastination. Our advice is, when the laundry basket is full, do a load. Try doing it no matter what day it is, or if it’s morning or night. That way, laundry time doesn’t become a marathon event, more of an everyday task. Having spoken to a few single working dads, this simple strategy came highly recommended.

Carter’s Baby Girls’ 2-Piece Outfit

Coordinated Outfits

Pick out clothes the night before – for yourself and your little one. Keep in mind, you can’t dress your boo if you haven’t figured out how you’re going to dress yourself, so have your work outfits grouped together and organized in your closet.

Quad Seven Baby Boys’ 2-Piece Outfit

Let It Go: TGIF!

Lastly, it helps to have a realistic attitude about just how much you can optimize the family schedule. You might never feel totally organized – and that’s okay. Don’t expect perfection of yourself. Let go of the guilt. Let go of the matching tableware and folded linens. Scientific studies show that if you stress out forever, you’ll completely overload your working memory, and the neurons in your prefrontal cortex will be so taxed… THEY’LL EXPLODE. Well, not really, but you get the idea.

How to let go? Look at your calendar for a few minutes each Friday, and find three tasks you can avoid, shorten, or pass off. And do it. You deserve a break at least one day a week, and reasonable shortcuts are a path to staying sane.