Learn 20 great parenting tips and tricks to make the mom life so much easier!
Time for some real talk, ya’ll. As much as we love our offspring, raising children comes with its own set of unique challenges. It’s not just the noise, antics, pickiness, or messes—it’s the never-ending relentlessness of it all!
No matter how many meals you make, how many spills you clean up, how much laundry you do, how many bums you wipe, there’s always more (ok, so that last one does end eventually… or so I’m told). It’s enough to make any mom or dad go a little bit crazy!
As a stay at home homeschooling mama (also known as the mom-who-never-has-any-set-alone-time-ever), I can assure you—I get it! Over the years I’ve found a few sanity-saving parenting tips, advice, and tricks that help make this whole parenting business a bit more manageable.
With these simple parenting tips, your life with kids will become a breeze!
BAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!! You didn’t actually buy that, right?
Ok, ok, for reals now. I certainly am not claiming that I have everything always under control. Any parent who can back up a claim like that would be an overnight billionaire if they sold their magical solutions to the rest of us.
But these things do make my life as a mom a lot easier and I’m willing to bet they can help you, too.
Table of Contents
20 Parenting Tips You Need in Your Life!
Be a Strong, Independent Child!
Anything that helps your kids be independent is a HUGE asset for a busy parent! So the first few parenting tips I’m going to share involve creating an environment where small kids can take care of simple tasks on their own. Kids LOVE being able to do things on their own, so everyone wins with these tricks.
1. Toothpaste Dispenser
Toothpaste dispenser and holder combos are great for young kids who are just getting into the swing of brushing their own teeth! One simple push gives them the right amount of toothpaste, no one has to deal with a toothpaste covered cap, and it keeps all the teeth cleaning clutter off of the counter!
Plus this model comes with 4 cups, so everyone can have their own water cup within easy reach for rinsing after brushing or for a late-night drink of water (that the kids can get all by themselves!).
See it on Amazon here!
*Just a heads up, the mechanism you push to dispense the toothpaste does get drips of toothpaste on it sometimes (there’s no such thing as a completely clean toothpaste dispenser with kids, after all), but you can actually just pop those parts off (or the whole top part easily comes off, too) and rinse them off when that happens.
It may have taken a few weeks of me trying to wipe those little buggers off with a cloth before I realized they were easily removable… So I want to pass on that little nugget to you, so you don’t have the same struggles, haha.
2. Cereal Dispenser
Kids can get their own cereal in the mornings with these easy to use – not to mention ADORABLE—at home cereal dispensers. Each turn of the handle dispenses a small amount of cereal, so your kids don’t end up pouring half the box into their bowls (mine aren’t the only ones who do that, right?).
Check it out here!
Just do note that many of these at home cereal dispensers require fairly shallow bowls, so if you only have taller ones, you may want to pick up a pack of shallow bowls for the kiddos.
3. Small Milk Bottle
What use is getting their own cereal if the kids can’t get their own milk, too? Why not give them their own milk bottle that is just the right size! The kids can use it to pour in their cereal or in a cup to have with a snack all by themselves.
I found these adorable — and durable– milk bottles on Amazon. They’re the perfect size for my kiddos and are dishwasher safe, so everyone is happy, haha! My kids know that they get one bottle of milk a day to use whenever they want, so now I’m not constantly being asked for cups of milk all day. I seriously LOVE these! Check them out here!
4. Kid-Friendly Dish and Silverware Area
Be sure to have dishes and silverware for your kids in a place where they can easily reach them! This helps them with being independent at snack and meal times AND enables them to put their dishes away all by themselves once they’re clean. Double win!
5. Snack Shelf
While you’re at it, go ahead and make a snack shelf at the kids’ level so they can get their own snacks, too!
Now depending on your child, this one may take some training to help them know when they can access the snack shelf and how much is an appropriate amount for a snack. But if my children– who will eat everything in sight if given the opportunity– can learn to handle their own snack shelf, I’m confident your kid can, too! 😉
Remember those cereal dispensers we talked about earlier? You could also use them for small snacks (like goldfish crackers) to help with portion control in your snack area!
6. Kid-Friendly Snack Containers
Now with this parenting tip, by “kid-friendly snack containers” I don’t mean cutesy Tupperware with cartoons on them that the kids will like. I mean small food containers that enable the kids to prepare their on-the-go snacks all by themselves.
This doesn’t seem to be one that a lot of parents think about, but most food containers are hard for little kids to open and close properly on their own. So smaller containers with a simple twist lid or these awesome reusable zipper snack bags are perfect for little hands!
Check them out here!
I don’t know about you, but our schedule involves A TON of running all around—often during snack time. So having my kids able to pack their own snacks every day is such a time saver for me!
7. Prepackaged Snacks
While I don’t love prepackaged snacks for everyday use, I do keep some on hand for the days when we’re just too short on time to pack our own. Some days you just gotta cut yourself some slack and remember that good enough is still good enough!
Stock up here!
8. Wall Clock
I’m sure you’ve seen this parenting tip floating around Pinterest before, but I’m sharing it again because it really is genius! Get a simple wall clock and mark on it times that you want your kids to know ( See an example here). You know, the ones they’re always asking you about. Is it wake up time? Is it snack time? No more asking mom– look at your clock, kids!
Plus, it helps familiarize themselves with telling time, so it’s totally educational and stuff. 😉
Get a kid-friendly clock here!
9. Step Stool for the Kitchen
Now I know you probably have stool in the bathroom for your kids to reach the sink, but what about the kitchen?
My oldest has been making her own sandwiches for lunches since she was 4 years old (she’s currently 7). A couple of years later she learned how to use the microwave (with supervision, explaining what can and cannot go in a microwave first, and asking permission each time) so she can warm up leftovers on her own now, too.
With the way our kitchen is set up, she couldn’t do a lot of these things without a step stool to help her reach the counter. My husband got one for her like this a few years ago when I was out of town for about a week and he was taking care of the kids solo.
I admit, when he told me he got our daughter a step stool so she could use it in the kitchen, I thought it was overkill, haha. But boy was I wrong! Years later and my kids use that step stool several times every single day. And when they’re done, they just fold it back up and set it back by the side of the fridge.
Check it out here!
Now, I’ll be the first to admit that this won’t work for every kid. We’re still a ways off before my youngest daughter (currently 4) will be ready for the same step stool privileges as her older sister. She’s been a climber and jumper with no sense of danger since she was a baby, so even though she’s already 4, she’s just not ready to safely use a step stool in the kitchen.
Which is why when she makes her sandwiches or helps with cooking, she uses…
10. A Small Folding Table!
Yep, if you can’t bring the kid to the counter, take the counter to the kid!
I seriously love our kid-sized folding table—we use it ALL THE TIME! When the kids aren’t using it for preparing food, they’re using it for art projects or to play with playdough or having a tea party…
And then once the kids are in bed each night, my husband and I use it for our snacks and drinks while we watch TV, haha.
We have small kids and not a huge house—you can’t expect us to have an adult coffee table, too. 😉
Check it out here!
11. Mattress Stays
Kids can straighten a blanket on their bed when they’re just a few years old. But trying to fix a fitted sheet? Let’s just say that most adults still struggle with those dang things!
Our daughters kept accidentally pulling theirs off in their sleep for a while. And of course, they couldn’t get them back on properly by themselves.
Well, my husband got the idea to use shirt stays on the underside of the mattresses to hold the fitted sheets in place (he’s in the military, so shirt stays are the kind of thing we just have on hand, haha). And it works BEAUTIFULLY!
No matter how much my kiddos move around in their sleep, those suckers keep the sheet in place!
And I just recently found out that you don’t even have to use shirt stays for this—someone else had the same bright idea and has made mattress stays expressly for making your fitted sheets stay put!
Check them out here!
Now Tips Especially for the Parents
Ok, so that was a lot of parenting tips all about making everything easier for your kids (and, thus, you). But that’s not enough. Even with the kids taking care of a lot of things on their own, you’re still tackling the majority of literally everything. And it can still be overwhelming.
So here are my favorite things to specifically help make mom’s and dad’s life a little easier!
12. Grocery Delivery
We all just love grocery shopping as parents, right? Taking the kids to the store with us is the best!
Har, har, har.
Seriously, though, the getting the kids out the door (for some reason this always takes forever, right?), buckling them in their car seats (also takes forever…), driving to the store, getting the kids out of the car (add a third forever on there), and then finally starting the actual shopping.
I’ve got one kid who likes to ask for everything she sees and another who opts for efficiency and just grabs whatever she wants and puts it in the cart without asking. And then waiting in the check-out line, loading all the groceries and the kids in the car, driving back home, and then unloading everything/everyone again. And then you get to put everything away!
It makes me exhausted and simultaneously gives me a headache just thinking about it!
But you know what happened this past summer when I was visiting my sister in Utah? I told her I was going to go grocery shopping with the kids while she was at work, when she suggested that I use Instacart—a grocery delivery service that she just discovered. I admit, I was little hesitant, at first—I mean, groceries just aren’t something you buy online right?
But I gave it a go, and oh man—it was AMAZING! Within about an hour of submitting my order, someone showed up to my sister’s house with all of our food for the week! Just like that.
It was MAGICAL.
Even without kids, grocery delivery services can save you so much time, but especially if you usually have to bring the kids with you shopping? Forget about it!
As it turns out, Instacart services a ton of locations all over the U.S. and it offers same-day delivery (sometimes in just an hour!), which many other services don’t do. In fact, it’s one of Good Housekeeping’s top recommended grocery delivery services for 2020.
Without a membership, the delivery fees run around $4-$8, but members get FREE delivery on all orders over $35! Can you even spend less than that in a single grocery trip? I don’t think it’s even possible, haha!
Get a free 14 day trial of Instacart here or get FREE delivery on your first order by clicking below!
13. Bluetooth Headphones for the Kids
Wait what? I thought you said this section was for the parents?
Ok, yes, the headphones are for the kids. But the sweet, sweet silence that comes from the kids using them—that’s all for you, boo!
We don’t use them every time the kids want to listen to something, because compromise and sharing interests are part of being a family. But we do use them quite a bit!
Especially when it’s chore time and one kid wants to listen to her podcasts (Wow in the World is her current fave, if you’d like a recommendation) and one wants to listen to the Frozen 2 soundtrack. They both just get to pop on their headphones and happily empty the dishwasher or clean up the floor in glorious, glorious silence!
Can you tell I love kid headphones? Seriously, as a mom who is with her kids basically 24/7, these are definitely at the top of my personal “must-have” list! This mama NEEDS some quiet time!
Check them out here!
*Tip: Your old phones work great for listening to podcasts or music if your kids are like mine and don’t have their own devices.
14. Bluetooth Earphones for You
Bluetooth earphones are great for you, too! I use mine ALL THE TIME, haha! They’re great for listening to audiobooks, podcasts, or even watching a show on your laptop/tablet while doing dishes, folding laundry, or exercising. I love my mpow cheetah earphones for exercising especially.
Check them out here!
But for just around the house, I really like these earbuds because if I want I can just use one so I can hear what I’m listening too and still be able to hear if my kids need something with my other ear. Plus, the wireless charging is niiiiiiice.
And they’re waterproof! Which is actually the whole reason I got mine in the first place—sometimes shower time is the only quiet time I get to catch up on my audiobooks, haha.
As fellow busy parents, I’m sure you can relate. 😉
Check them out here!
15. Dry Erase Board Calendar
Ya’ll, I LOVE our dry erase board calendar! I think every homeschool family I know has one, haha. But they’re great for keeping the family schedule organized for any kind of family!
I especially love the empty space for notes on the side. I write our dinner menu for the upcoming week there every Sunday night, so I no longer have to answer “What’s for dinner?” when it’s inevitably asked 50 million times every day. I just tell them to check the board.
Check it out here!
*Tip: I also like these magnetic dry erase markers that I can leave right on the board. Plus they come in a bunch of colors, so I can use a different one for each family member’s activities.
16. Travel Mug
Sometimes you just don’t have time to get your morning cup of coffee before you have to run out and do errands with the kids. Or maybe you just like having an on hand pick-me-up when you have a crazy day ahead.
Or perhaps you want to sip on some cold lemonade by the pool and imagine you’re there to relax instead of for swim classes?
The point is, sometimes having a little something to help get you through all the running around we have to do with kids can make a big difference to your psyche. So grab a travel mug, fill it with whatever (non-alcoholic 😉) beverage that makes you happy and go seize that day!
As a bonus, this travel mug comes with a reusable metal straw and straw cleaning brush for all your sipping needs. 😉
Check it out here!
17. Sleep Mask with Headphones
I know, I know—headphones again? What can I say, they’re great, haha.
A friend of mine recommended this fancy shmancy Bluetooth sleep mask, and it is surprisingly enjoyable for such a simple thing!
It blocks out the light and you can play gentle music so you can fall asleep peacefully. And since nothing is actually in your ear, you can still hear if the kids wake up in the middle of the night!
I also find it helpful for when you need a quick reset in the middle of the day and want to do a short guided meditation—you can block out the background noises of the kids and get yourself re-centered before heading back out into the fray.
Check them out here!
18. Roomba
I know that when you’re thinking of parenting tips, a robotic vacuum seems kinda gimicky– trust me, I know. It wasn’t until a few friends of mine were talking about how much they loved theirs that I decided to try it out. That was five years ago, and…
I still LOVE my Roomba so much! Even without kids, it’s a super awesome time saver. But with kids, it’s priceless.
No matter how much you sweep, there always seems to be more crumbs or dirt or sand (hey, we live in Hawaii—sand is everywhere). But Roomba gets all of it! I honestly don’t even know how it works so much better than regular sweeping, but it does.
And the best part is that you don’t have to do the sweeping/vacuuming! You just push a button or tell Alexa to start Roomba before you go to bed (or whenever) and wake up to clean floors. Heavenly.
I got mine about 5 years ago, so I imagine that the newer models are even better. But I’m still perfectly happy with my older one, haha! So if you don’t want to pay for the newest model, I’d still recommend trying out one of the cheaper older models.
Check it out here!
*Update: While I haven’t tried it, a friend of mine was recently raving about her Eufy robot vacuum that currently has some models that are quite a bit cheaper than Roomba. See it here!
19. Amazon Prime
Ok, so this is one is so common that I almost didn’t include it on the list. But just in case there’s anyone out there who is on the fence about whether or not it’s worth it, I decided to include my 2 cents!
Everyone knows Amazon Prime is great for when you don’t want to go to a physical store. No more extra trips to the store for presents for friends’ birthdays or running to all the different craft stores trying to find just the right item for a project. Yada yada yada.
But I’ve honestly been surprised at how much we’ve used their video streaming since we got Prime! And specifically how much we’ve been able to use it for educational resources for the kids!
So far whenever I’ve wanted to find a video to further reinforce whatever I’m teaching my kids for school already, I’ve always been able to find something good.
Want to learn more about the country of Turkey? There’s a show for that! Is your kid into dinosaurs? Amazon Prime has you covered!
Just last week I started a unit on the water cycle/weather/cloud formations with my daughter. But then I got a mild concussion and had to take it extra easy for a while in order to recover. So instead of just skipping school, we went to Amazon for water and weather documentaries. So helpful!
You can also read unlimited books and magazines on your kindle (or with the kindle app on another device) for free every month! Which, for a family full of readers, is extra awesome.
There’s also music streaming and photo storage, which are both great. But the above-mentioned benefits are my personal favorites.
Get a free trial of Amazon Prime here!
20. Amazon Echo or Echo Dot
Going along with Amazon Prime, an Echo or Echo Dot (a smart speaker that works with Alexa, Amazon’s voice-activated assistant) is a great help for a busy family! And since it works with Alexa, even the kids can use it to play music or games.
*Tip: You don’t actually need to have Amazon Prime to still utilize many of Alexa’s features.
It may seem small, but I think one of my favorite features is the ability to verbally add things to your shopping list. Often I don’t realize we’re running low on an ingredient until I use the last of it in a recipe. And I rarely remember to add it to my shopping list once I’ve finished cooking.
But with Alexa, you can just verbally add whatever you need to your shopping list without stopping what you’re working on or risking forgetting to add it manually later!
Check out the Echo and Echo Dot here!
So many great parenting tips and tricks to help parents these days! It makes me feel bad for our parents who didn’t have most of these options, haha.
Which one of these parenting tips is your favorite? Or do you have other great parenting tips that you don’t see on this list? Share them in the comments!
