Here are some quick tips on how I keep my family organized:
I have 3 very active kids, and I also love to volunteer with various groups, my husband works crazy hours that are never set in stone...oh, and I work full time too. My kids are 7, 8, and 11. No one is old enough to drive, and they are still too young to be unsupervised. So managing my family is often a chore.
I keep a master electronic calendar. I prefer the electronic calendar (i use the one on my phone), because is automatically shows me where activities conflict. I usually start the name of the actiivty with the child(ren) or person's name that needs to be there. (i.e. Joe: Scouts or Girls: Ballet). This helps me determine when the random birthday party comes up, who is available.
When my kids are involved in an activity (i.e. sport or club), I always make it a point to find out who else is in the group and make friends with the parents of the other kids. My best tip really is to network with other parents. So when my activities do conflict, I know who to call for help. When you take the time to get to know the other parents, you learn who you can trust and who you can't.
Goals for my kids in the evenings are pretty simple. I want them to:
* finish their homework
*eat a good dinner
* go to bed a normal time
...but since we are involved with numerous activities, it can be hard to accomplish those tasks. So we have to multi-task. While one kid is at soccer, the others must be doing homework.
Sometimes we eat in shifts.
Thursdays the girls had Scouts from 6-7, and my son had scouts 7-8. So my son would eat during the girls meeting, and the girls would eat during my son's meeting. This would require some advance planning, and I won't lie, there are some Thursdays where my kids didn't eat, or if they did, it was McDonald's, but it can be done.
Another tip is when there are opportunities that other parents need help with their kids, like a ride to an activitity, or babysitting occassionally....say "Yes" when you can. It feels good to help someone else, and when you need help, you know who to call. Because when you have an active family, no one can do it by themselves. Its the whole..."Do unto others" deal. :)
And finally, when the kids want to join one more club, one more sport, it's okay to say No. Priorities are important. And family, school, nutrition, and rest, all need to be considered. And in my experience, when Mom is burned out, it's not good for anyone.
