The Commodores, Faith No More and even Lionel Ritchie have had hits with the song “Easy like Sunday morning”, but your whole week can be easy too, with a little Sunday strategy.
Boy scouts around the world made famous the motto “Be Prepared” and there’s nothing more salient for families when it comes to Sundays. This is especially the case for working parents with kindy- and school-aged children. Here at Edge Early Learning, we know there’s a direct inverse correlation between the amount of preparation you put into your week on a Sunday, and the family stress levels throughout that ensuing week. Sunday prep = blissful, smooth-sailing week. Easy.
Here is a list of the Top 5 things you can do on a Sunday to keep your week on track:
Sunday is the day you want to make sure you’ve considered all things food for the week. We all know what happens when ‘hanger’ strikes! And having some healthy snacks prepped and ready in the fridge means that you and the kids won’t seek out the easy, less-healthy, processed food options. Meal planning is key. Some like to have their plans written out and stuck to the fridge while others might like to just make a mental note – whichever way you do it, considering your meals ahead of time will make for easy-breezy 5pm witching hours!
Once your meal plan is set, make sure you’ve shopped for groceries before Sunday night. There’s nothing more satisfying than a full fridge and pantry on a Sunday. And if you want to take your food preparation next level, you could even meal prep. Peel and cut up your carrots and celery into snack-sized sticks. Prep the dinner veggies. Portion your mince, leaving some in the fridge for early-week dinners and freezing the remainder. You get the drift.
Also, there are so many relevant apps available for smartphones and iPads these days. We like ‘Plan Buy Cook’ for its ability to help with meal planning and generating shopping lists, while providing recipes and also storing your family-favourite recipes. A one-stop shop for food prep.
Just like having a full pantry and fridge, there’s something immensely satisfying about having the laundry cleared on a Sunday night (even if it is just for 30 minutes!).
Process all your washing throughout the weekend and host a ‘folding party’ with all your family members on a Sunday night – remember, more hands make light work and, whatever age your kids are, there will be some type of folding they can do to help. Making sure the kids’ kindy clothes and/or school uniforms are ready for the week ahead is key. Take your Sunday laundry preparation next level and leave out the kids’ Monday morning clothes/uniforms to help combat any Mondayitis. We all know it can be the most sluggish morning of the week.
This one is for the kids but provides benefits for the whole family. Set the kids up with a Sunday routine of sorting their rooms out. Whether or not they have bombsite bedrooms or keep their rooms in some semblance of order, Sunday is the day they need to sort their spaces out. If they do it early enough in the day, you can have any stray dirty washing in the laundry to process, as above.
Is your family admin up to date? Sunday is a great day to dip into your diary and check the week ahead. Do you have any school notes that need to be filled out and returned? What bills need to be paid this week? Do you need to organise birthday presents this week before the onslaught of weekend kiddie birthday parties? What extra-curricular activities have you got on your family’s schedule this week? Is there anything special/different happening at kindy/school this week, like excursions or classroom activities? Have your kids got their homework etc ready to hand in on the Monday, as is the case in many schools. Have you factored in down time, for everyone?
Sunday night dinner tends to be a great time for you to go over the family’s plans for your week with all members. You’ll have a captive audience over that delicious Sunday night roast you’ve prepared and, with all heads in the game, you’re less likely to miss something. And, of course, any shared family dinner is a brilliant opportunity to authentically connect with each other. Tell the kids what’s in the family diary for that week. Make plans with your partner for any non-standard school pick-up or drop-off requirements. Ask the kids what they’d like to do with their downtime.
And, having said all that, don’t forget to treat yourself as well on Sundays. See if you can score a sleep-in or even squeeze in an afternoon nap. That will also help YOU get ready, physically, for the week ahead. Remember, it’s all about being prepared – just like a boy scout.
