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I’m not unique or special when I say that I’m a working mom. There are so many women who carry that title every single day. Recently, I’ve been working on my tenure packet. After finishing a round of edits, I had the thought, “Here is my life’s work.” But almost instantly, I corrected myself: “No — this isn’t my life’s work. My life’s work is at home.”
My life’s work is the life I’ve built with Jared — my marriage, my children, and yes, also my career. I love what I do as an agricultural educator, and I love being a mom. But balancing the two roles can be challenging, and it’s something I’ve had to learn (and re-learn) grace with myself along the way.
The balancing act has led me down countless Google rabbit holes, books, podcasts, and even courses — all about being a better housekeeper, a better employee, and a better mom. What I’ve learned is this: there is no such thing as perfection. But there are ways to make life feel lighter and more enjoyable.
These are working mom tips that make life simpler that I use:
1. Wake Up Before the Kids: Game Changer as a Working Mom
Waking up before the kids sucks… at first. This is something I’m still working on, but when I do it, the tone of my whole day changes.
I usually head out to our garage gym with a wireless baby monitor and my pre-workout in my Hydrojug. My husband and I don’t have an extensive gym but we love using these weights. On rest days, I’ll make a warm cup of tea or do some meditative yoga on my favorite Pendelton yoga mat. Those quiet minutes feel like mine.
I love sleep, so waking up early is hard. But on the days I do, I don’t feel rushed, and I don’t start the day already behind.
2. Prioritize Sleep as a Working Mom
This ties directly into waking up earlier. Sleep matters — for mood, for decision-making, for your health, for everything. If you want to learn more, I highly recommend the book Why We Sleep.
When my babies were tiny, sleep felt impossible. And let’s be honest — “sleep when the baby sleeps” is a myth made up by someone who has never had children. During that phase, I simply went to bed early when I could, napped when the stars aligned, and (controversial topic alert) I sleep trained my kids when they were old enough. I am a better mom when I am rested, so it was worth it for us.
Now that my kids sleep through the night, we focus on:
- A consistent bedtime routine
- Not scrolling in bed
- Reading before sleep (I’m loving the Outlander series right now)
- A cool, dark room (blackout shades + bamboo sheets = life-changing)
Sleep is a huge priority — and it makes everything else easier, this is one of the best working mom tip.
3. Create a Morning Routine as a Working Mom
My morning routine sets the stage for the day. After my workout or stretching, I:
- Make the bed
- Start a load of laundry
- Unload the dishwasher
This really is a realistic morning for working moms. Ideally, this happens before the kids wake up. Once they’re up, the morning chaos begins — breakfast, hair, clothes, preschool bags, shoes (why are the shoes never where they should be?).
Your routine doesn’t need to look like mine. The goal is to create a rhythm that makes the rest of your day smoother.
4. Create an Evening Reset as a Working Mom
Just as the morning routine sets the tone, the evening routine closes the day. I clean the kitchen after dinner and start the dishwasher no matter what. My favorite tool for this job is my cordless vacuum. It gets used multiple times a day. I walk through, pick up clutter, and use baskets to collect random toys and “this moved downstairs when it shouldn’t have” items. I love this basket because it looks pretty, and it matches the aesthetic of our house.
My daughter helps pick up toys — just enough to learn responsibility, not perfection.
Waking up to a clean home helps my mindset more than anything.
5. Tackling the Mountain of Laundry
Laundry is my nemesis. I dread it. But what helps is this:
- Start a load every morning.
- Switch at lunch or after work.
- Fold and put away before bed (ideally while watching something with Jared).
To make it easier, I assign days:
- Monday: Mine and Jared’s clothes
- Tuesday: Whites
- Wednesday: Kids’ clothes
- Thursday: Towels
- Friday: Bedding/Delicates
- Saturday: Jeans + Cleaning rags
It’s not perfect, but it keeps things manageable.
I try to keep cleaning supplies with clean ingredients in our household. I have been using dryer balls for years, and I feel like out clothes dry so much faster because of it. Another tool that I use to manage laundry is hanging laundry bags. My mudroom/laundry room is small so these hanging laundry bags look nice, but they don’t clutter the floor.
6. Take Time to Actually Enjoy the Kids
This one took a mindset shift. I’m a to-do-list person, and I used to feel like a failure if I didn’t cross everything off.
But kids are not interruptions. They are the point.
Nap schedules change, tantrums happen, someone needs extra snuggles — and that’s okay. They are only little once. I want them to remember that I saw them and enjoyed them. This working mom tip has really saved my mental state.
7. Meal Planning for Working Moms
Meal planning keeps my week sane and reduces decision fatigue. Each Sunday, I plan dinners and place a grocery pickup order. It saves time, money, and mental energy. It also helps us eat heathier. I use a planner like this to make our meal plan and write out a grocery list. I know I can use my phone, but sometimes writing things out on paper helps me to remember what I planned for the week.
8. Toy Rotation for Working Moms
My husband thinks I’m crazy for toy rotation — but it works. It reduces clutter and actually helps the kids play better.
I use clear totes and rotate weekly. I make sure I label each tote so I know what is in them. I love my label maker for multiple things around the house.
For my daughter’s bin, I include:
- Learning toy (alphabet puzzle)
- Imaginative play toy (Montessori kitchen toys)
- Fine motor (bead kit)
- Creative (art or craft)
My daughter loves to draw and color so I make sure to keep art supplies out all the time. I have loved using this art organizations system and table so she can have her own space to do arts and crafts.
I do a similar system for my son.
9. Prioritize What Matters (and Let the Rest Go)
This is the most important working mom tips I’ve learned:
Your priorities can change daily.
Some days work comes first.
Some days the kids need more.
Some days you need more.
Some days the house wins.
Some days it doesn’t.
Give yourself permission to shift, to choose, and to let go.
Your happiness, your peace, your presence — those matter.
