Taking the children to school, arriving at the office on time, grocery shopping, extracurricular activities, doing the laundry, preparing dinner, reading a story before bed. Was today the meeting with the teacher? We need to make the carnival costume! Running, running, and running. Is life as parents really a hurdle race? How many hours should a day have? We know there should be many more than it has. And it’s exhausting, because in addition to the endless succession of tasks, there’s the mental load of everything still left to do.

The solution? The truth is, there’s no magic formula, but organization and good time management can help you live each day with less stress.

In the following article, we share some recommendations that can help you build effective family organization and simplify your life.

1. Create a menu of lunches and dinners

Although it may seem hard to believe, one of the most important steps to improve a family’s time management is weekly meal planning for lunch and dinner because it significantly reduces the time spent. It can be helpful to have a template that you can adjust each week to avoid monotony. Besides saving time, this also has other great benefits:

• Improves health. Planning instead of improvising meals will help you cook more at home, think through your dishes, and focus on making them healthy.

• Save money. Yes, you read that right. Planning ahead can help you save significantly because you’re less likely to rely on last-minute pre-cooked meals or takeout. It also helps you shop more thoughtfully and avoid food waste.

• Avoid stress. With everything you have to do throughout the day, the last thing you need is to figure out what to prepare for lunch and dinner.

2. Learn to delegate

It’s important to learn to delegate certain routine tasks to others. Older children can take on various responsibilities, such as emptying the dishwasher, making the bed, or putting away their clothes. And, of course, you and your partner, if you have one, should share the responsibilities of daily life: shopping, cooking, doing laundry, taking the children to school, cleaning the house... Do you enjoy organizing the weekly menus? Then maybe your partner can take care of the laundry or the shopping. Sharing is living! If you have family nearby, they can likely lend a hand as well. Asking others for help can feel difficult, but it’s essential for maintaining healthy time management.

3. Use a planner

There are so many things to do throughout the day that it’s easy to overlook something. Having a planner to jot down important tasks, medical appointments, school meetings... on a weekly basis can be very helpful. As always, organization is key to good time management. Ideally, you should plan the week before it begins. That way, you can see everything important at a glance. You might make it your last task on Friday or set aside some time on Sunday. A planner can also help you recognize what’s important versus what’s urgent, what you can delegate, and which tasks you could do without...

4. Prioritize

Do you find it difficult to prioritize? Many people say they don’t have time, but in reality, there’s often room to improve time management. First, you need to distinguish between what is non-negotiable (taking the children to school, preparing lunches and dinners, attending medical appointments…) and what is optional. The latter will depend on your family’s needs and your expectations. How many time-wasters fill your days? Analyzing this may surprise you. It’s also essential to learn to say no to others when you feel you can’t make it, can’t do it, or simply don’t feel like it. This isn’t easy at all, but it’s important if you want to achieve good time management.

5. Free yourself from the mental load

Emma Clit, illustrator and author of The mental load , said in one interview that mental load has always existed because someone has to be responsible for planning household chores and family life. This responsibility often falls on women’s shoulders. “What is not normal is that this mental load is unevenly distributed, and that comes from our education and our society, because we put girls in this role from a very early age and not boys,” she said. Household management, domestic chores, work, caregiving... Many families, especially mothers, carry an enormous mental load. To avoid this, it’s essential to distribute household and family tasks equally within the couple. Each person should commit to taking on certain responsibilities to improve efficiency. You might consider setting up a calendar or a planning system where you divide tasks, time, and resources.

6. Take care of yourself so you can take care of others

Taking time for yourself when you have children can feel like an impossible mission, but it’s essential to care for yourself in order to care for others. Often, you prioritize family life, work, and household organization to the point of forgetting your own needs. However, you and your partner need time, both individually and together, to recharge. It should be time you enjoy, spent doing something you like—or simply doing nothing. Remember: good time management goes hand in hand with your well-being.

7. Turn technology into an ally in time management

Earlier we talked about how a planner can help you improve your time management, but there are also countless online applications that can help you plan your day in advance and keep track of your tasks. Who hasn’t used an online notepad to remember something? And it’s not just for jotting things down and planning—there are also applications that let you shop online , saving you travel time. To lighten your list of things to think about, you can also receive our LILLYDOO diapers and wipes at your home . The practical and flexible monthly diaper box will help you free up time for what really matters!

8. Don’t let household chores consume you

Household chores can become a real burden. The solution? Keep as much order as possible—something we all know isn’t always easy with children—and establish a daily cleaning routine that best optimizes your time. If you do small things every day, the weekend will be much easier. There’s nothing better than having more free time on weekends to dedicate to the children and yourself!

9. Involve all household members in daily chores

Depending on their age and abilities, children can also help with household chores. Some are ready as early as age three for tasks such as putting away their toys, clearing the table, or folding clothes. Encourage your little adventurer to do small things little by little, and praise their effort. This is more important than it seems because, in addition to helping them feel like an essential part of the family’s daily life, it teaches responsibility. The project offers many ideas to involve children in household chores.

10. Be realistic

Finally, be realistic about the time you have and what you can do with it. Sometimes you want to fit far more into a day than the hours allow. Realistically assessing your time will save you a lot of stress.