Slightly Unhinged Mom Hacks That Make My House Run Smoother
Updated: 4 hours ago
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I am a person who craves order and organization but also has raging ADHD that seems to get worse every human I add to take care of (we're on number four so that's all i'll say about that). I’ve built a lot of little systems so my brain doesn’t have to carry everything. Some of them are normal. Some are a little unhinged. Alllllllll of them work.
Here’s what’s keeping my house running right now.
1. I built an app for all of it (no, really)
Everything below, plus the stuff that used to live in my head, is going into the Home on Purpose app. Meal planning, grocery lists, cleaning, seasonal home maintenance, and a gentle nudge for the things you forget until the washing machine smells like a swamp.
It’s built for busy moms and brains that need things simple. No guilt, no 47-step routines. There’s a free version with my plan ready to go, and you can customize it to make it yours.
It launches January 1, and the waitlist gets first access and a founding member price.
2. Meal planning that eliminates decision fatigue
Deciding what’s for dinner is the part that wears me out, not the cooking. Meal Planning Made
Simple gives me a rotation so I’m not starting from scratch every week.
3. Motorized shades everywhere (seasonal depression girlies this one's for you)
I have learned that I will not remember to open my shades all day unless theres a button and dopamine, and then I will be (more) sad. I also notice that my great room feels like a furnace and i'm not as nice of a mom, so installed motorized solar shades that keep the whole great room noticeably cooler (and me noticeably less overstimulated). I orderd them all from Select Blinds and love them all so much.
One remote for every lamp, no Wi-Fi
All my lamps are on a remote that doesn’t use Wi-Fi, so there’s no app, no connection drama, and literally NO SET UP. I push one button and the lamps come on. It’s the simplest upgrade in my house and maybe my favorite ever.
5. Room reset checklist cards for the whole family
These are simple cards, one per room, that anyone can follow. My kids can pick one up and know exactly what “clean the bathroom” means. I laminated them so we can check everythign off with dry erase markers as we go.
6. Music to cue everyone to calm the heck down
Usually when i'm trying to make dinner and about to lose my mind, I put on Chopin and Chill. In the mornings if we are feeling overwhelmed I play JJ Heller's "Calm" album, and at night her original "I dream of You". I have a closing duties playlist, and let the kids puck craxy music for our 15 minute random roundup after dinner. It's a powerful cue for me to calm my nervous system and music changes the whole mood.
7. $25 motion sensor lights under the cabinets
I put these under my laundry room cabinets (where we have our coffee bar), and now they turn on automatically when I walk in. I make my morning coffee without flipping on the big light and waking up the whole house, and they also automatically turn on when i'm trying to fidn a breast milk bag at 1am to dump my hakaa. I bought the normal white ones first and it felt so blue and cool (not in a good way), and then ended up getting the "warm white" instead and love it.
I have realized that the less I have to think about, the more I have left to give everyone, and the more emotionally regulated I am. I'd love to hear in the comments what your unhinged mom hacks are!
PS- If you want ALL the decisions and brain power behind running a household in one place, the app is where I’m putting it. Join the waitlist here!
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