COUSIN MOMS â—½ TIPS
Mom of Three
​
If I’m being honest, date nights – going out – are few and far between. We were in a season for a long while where we really didn’t want to leave the kids, because free nights were few, and we wanted to include them. Date nights are definitely important, but there is also a balance. For us, we do a good job of connecting on a daily basis – at night when the kids are asleep we chat and talk. Other times, we get a random night when kids are at a sports practice or with grandparents. This past season, while the kids were in school, my husband and I had lunch together because we both work at home! I do know that having time with him, dating him, is important. But only “date night” connections every so often is not enough, and we also have a budget, but day-to-day connections work as well.
It’s the day to day connections where we chat and spend time over coffee, or even a ride in the car to pick up the kids, that works for us! Our date nights don’t have to be big or fancy or every week. They can be a simple lunch or a shopping excursion to pick out wood floors for the house!
​
When we do have a designated date night, we often stay in (to save money). We watch a show we enjoy together, and have dinner at home, and make it cozy. If we do go out, it’s a coffee date for sure – and sometimes bowling! Our love language is coffee, and we sometimes play a game. We don’t visit the theater a lot, because we watch enough shows at home. We like to go somewhere that we can talk and do something, or even just walk around!
​
Sometimes we plan our dates nights together, or sometimes we surprise each other – especially on birthdays.
​
So both – date nights out and daily connections – are a great balance for us! I’ve been so grateful for this season. Finding time with toddlers is hard, but now that the kids are in school we have more time. We also love to serve together, and call that connection, because we are super compatible that way!
THREE MOMS â—½ TIPS
It’s that time of year when we all clean up, don’t we? Well, moms are always cleaning up, but possibly in March, when the kids are on break, the entire family says, “Enough is enough!” And it’s then that things get a refresh. Items out of place find a home. And donations are made. We asked the cousin moms to share their organization and cleanup tips with their kids, and they have some great ideas!
​
Kamrin
​
When it comes to organizing and cleaning, it’s so vital that everything has a place. One thing I’ve learned that if that doesn’t happen things end up on our island and that becomes a “catch all.” So I’ve learned that during spring cleaning time, we clean cabinets and drawers. And if there are things stacked our island, it’s usually because we don’t have a place for it! This happens during the spring, right before school starts, and right after Christmas with all the new things.
​
During spring, we clean out what we don’t use, and we make space for all the new things.
​
One thing we do is clean our closets. A good rule I’ve learned and teach the kids – if you haven’t worn in six months or it doesn’t fit – toss it.
​
Rule! Look at all the stuff on counters of surfaces and put it away. If there’s no space for it, make a space, and get rid of stuff!
Next, we have designated spots for the kids.
​
-
Our craft or catchall closet in the hall
-
Our walls in the kitchen for backpack for jackets and backpacks.
-
Our pantry.
In our closet, there are three baskets – one for each kid. Crafts and colors and markers, slime ingredients, sketching and play dough – this worked for them each to have a basket that was labeled. If it was too full, we got rid of things. Each kid also has a craft mat they use on our island that they keep clean and put away.
​
Our wall we just re-did, with a digital calendar. There are mementos of our family as décor, and now we added double hooks – two for each kid. One for backpack and one for jacket. This works better than one hook for both! We love it in the center of the house for easy accessibility and for packing lunches. The kids know where their packs and jackets go – easy!
​
Our pantry (always reorganizing this!) Each of us has our own basket for snacks. Treats or snacks go in their own baskets, which is also helpful in packing lunches. No arguing on whose snacks belong to who! It always helps me with shopping. My husband and I also have our own baskets! Again, when it gets too full, we clean it out! I do better with buying groceries because I can see what’s there or not!
​
Spring cleaning also includes getting ready for summer!
​
Rule! Bins and baskets are awesome – each one having their own!
Charissa
​
We just moved into our new home and I’m still trying to find creative spaces of organization and all of that! We definitely decluttered before moving. But there are a few areas where we keep things organized, with the kids.
​
First, we did build in a mud room nook and bench, and it has three baskets underneath the bench and several hooks above. This area organizes the jackets and backpacks every day. This way everything is ready to go each morning! Underneath the bench in the baskets, one belongs to each of our girls. If I see items on the floor I place in the girls’ baskets. Once a week, the girls have to empty and put the things where they belong. If it’s not put away, we get to give it away – because it’s not important enough to keep! We are trying to teach them to place their items away, not on the floor.
Secondly, we have a pantry for the first time! We have built-in shelves and some great organizers. One of the lower shelves has plastic containers for the girls’ snacks. This way, there’s not, “Mommy, can you get me this?” because they can grab their own snacks there, and from the fridge. This helps the girls become more self-sufficient. There is also a cabinet for their dishes and silverware that is their height. This helps me greatly!
Thirdly, the girls have lots of toys and small items, Barbie accessories and dolls. I have found that baskets are a huge help in hiding the clutter, as well as bookshelves. Some baskets are full of puzzles, others are full of Barbie clothes, and another is Playdough. Each basket can be pulled out to play with specific toys.
The last thing I’d like to add is with young kids, we have a lot of things that fall on the floor like mud, food, and “stuff” – and we were always sweeping so much! We invested in a robot vacuum that we send out, and it vacuums our home. This has been worth every penny! It keeps our house so tidy! So, if you don’t have a dog to lick up the crumbs, get a robot!
