Hey, hey there awesome Mum!

Are you the receptacle for all things life and family admin? Things like birthdays, what night the bins go out, school fetes, sports and other extra curricular activities, bill paying, parent/teacher meetings, meal planning, appointments, family dinners, car service schedule and on and on and on and on it goes.

Having all this stuff ticking over in your mind constantly can become a real drag! But how do you share it without becoming a real nag?

Hey, I'm a poet and I didn't know it! Well, actually, I did come up with that daggy "drag/nag" rhyme ahead of time, LOLs! Anyway, back to the topic at hand...

Here are a few ways you can start sharing the mental load more equitably with your partner (or your kids if they are older teens/young adults):

Start a family planner/calendar

This can be an online Google calendar, an actual physical planner or a weekly whiteboard schedule that you can reset each week. All of the family appointments, events, chores, meetings and more can be recorded in there. Make sure everyone that has responsibilities also has access to the calendar/planner. You could choose to have a family check in every Sunday afternoon or evening to go over the week ahead and make sure everyone is across their responsibilities for the week.

Divide and conquer

Planners and diaries just not your thing? No worries! Sit down with your partner and have an open, honest and heartfelt discussion about all the life and family admin stuff that has landed on your lap. Talk through each thing and decide who will take ultimate responsibility for it. For example, if one of you is creative and loves organsing get togethers, that's the person to take on birthdays and the like. If one of you is a whiz with numbers and money, they would be the obvious choice for staying on top of bill payments. You get the idea!

Consider outside help

If your family finances allow it, consider if you can outsource some of the work around the house. Can you afford a cleaner once a fortnight? Or could you pay someone to mow the lawn and keep the yard neat and tidy? If you and your partner despise cooking every night of the week, can you look into a healthy meal delivery service? That then frees up some of your mental and physical energies for other family needs!

Sharing the mental load and the weight of family and life admin fairly is super important for your own wellbeing and the wellbeing of your relationship.

Take care,

Michelle

Flourish Mama