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Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Coping with 4 kids under 6 - How I survive the busy part of the day

In my last post in the 'Coping with 4 kids under 6' series, I wrote about a typical day in our house which you can find here.

In today's post, I will be sharing some things I do in order to survive the busy part of the day with the kids on my own. That is, dinner, bath and bed.

At this point in time, we have no extracurricular activities to attend, so our afternoons are pretty much the same.

Homework
Originally homework was done on a Monday (Hubby's day off), but they have increased the amount of homework and have worked it in a way so it has to be done on set days. For eg. Thursdays homework is to write a structured overview of their new guided reading book, but they don't get the new book til Thursdays, so it can't be done any earlier. So now we do what we can on a Monday and just do little bits throughout the week. This is still a working progress as the extra homework was only recently introduced.

Dinner

  • I usually start dinner prep from 4:30 (depending what's on the menu, sometimes later) to have it on the table no later than 6.
  • I plan our dinners based on our days - busy day, easy meal. Hubby home, harder meal.
  • I sometimes bulk cook and freeze things like spaghetti bol and chili con carne.
  • Wednesday's are usually leftovers night, toast or something easy. This is the night Missy stays at Nanny's, and Hubby's work puts on a big feed, so I only need to cook for the boys and I.
Baths
  • The kids usually bath together
  • Sometimes I top and tail the lot of them.
  • I used to bath bubs every other night, but will be every night now that he's crawling around.
  • Sometimes I fill the kitchen sink and bath them in there one by one. I actually find this easier as I don't have 3 wet little bodies doing the noody run at once. They love it and have so much fun. It's also better for my back.
  • And some days if we're too tired they go to bed as is.
Bed
  • The 2 older boys share a room and are in bed by 7:30. 
  • Missy's bedtime is 8:30 
  • Bubs bedtime is usually between 8 and 8:30. 
  • They all get story time and cuddles before they go to bed.
Chores
  • They all help. Missy loves to set the table (decorations and all), Mr4 loves being in charge of the shoe rack and homeless shoes, Mr 2.5 'helps' unload the dishwasher and loves to take the clothes to the laundry.
  • They are responsible for their belongings and have to pack away their things before dinner, bath, bed or moving onto another activity.
What are your mummy tips? I'd love to hear them :)





Linking up with the lovely Jess at  Diary of a SAHM for IBOT :)

16 comments:

  1. You are organised. I only have two and have a neat routine. It would be a lot harder with 4. Rachel x

    #TeamIBOT

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    1. I was far less organised with 2 than I am with the 4, I think the more there are the more organised we have to be :)

      Thanks for commenting :)

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  2. That's some impressive organisation. I need to take a leaf out of your book. Our routine is fairly haphazard to say the least!

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    1. Thankyou Catherine :)

      Our routine is still a loose one, so not all days run as smoothly as others, but it does help because the kids usually know what's expected and when :)

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  3. Very impressive! I'm a big fan of having the kids help with the chores, you have to teach them young! And also agree on the bathing them together, it's all about the time management :)
    Slow cooker meals are good for that too, leaves the afternoon free to get other things organised,

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    1. You're right, it is all about time management :) Slow cookers are a god send.. problem is I always forget to get things ready on time lol

      Thanks for commenting :)

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  4. Very impressive!! My best tip is how to get a toddler and a baby in and out of a car on a busy road. Trick is to have the older child's car seat on the road side, then first get the baby out and into the stroller. Undo toddlers seatbelt so she can climb out over the baby's car seat onto the kerb and i'm there to grab her hand. Getting them in is the reverse . Sounds simple and obvious but took me a while (and a friends's near miss) to figure out :) Sue x

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    1. Thanks for the tip Sue :) Sometimes it is the simple things which takes us a while to figure out. I actually hadn't noticed how I get them out of the car on busy roads.. I guess I avoid taking them all out on my own.. I usually go when hubbys home or walk :) I'll be sure to remember this :)

      Thanks for commenting :)

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  5. That is a pretty tight ship you run there. I am in the same boat as Catherine, haphazard to say the least

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    1. I can relate Rhianna, it wasn't that long ago we were in that position... Some days we still are :D

      Thanks for commenting :)

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  6. I think routine is the only way to survive with a big big family, our ship is fairl structured as well and it's a relief.

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    1. Yep I agree. I remember what it was like before we got a routine happening... it was not fun :)

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  7. wow, that is tiring to read :) I have my hands full with just one!

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    1. Thanks for commenting Bossy Mummy :) Lol it's amazing how something so small can run us off our feet :)

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  8. Wonderful tips! I have 4 under 6 as well life can get busy especially if you don't have a schedule. Sounds like you do!

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    1. Thanks HLF :) I'll be sure to check out your blog, it's good to know how other families cope with young kids close in age :)

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