How I Save Time as a Parent & Shopping at Meijer

I partnered with Meijer for this sponsored post.

Being a parent of three children can be overwhelming at times, heck parenting just one child isn’t easy. Now though that my oldest is 8 years old I have come up with some timesaving parenting tips and tricks that have given me a few extra minutes here and there. There are days when just 5 more minutes would make all the difference and create a lot less stressful situation.

Here are my timesaving parenting tips and tricks:

Use mornings efficiently. While waiting for kids to go off to school I get dishes done, laundry thrown in, items picked up from around the house.

Pack lunches and backpacks the night before. Or at least have everything ready for the morning. This is great especially if something happens in the morning that is un-expected and your running behind.

Cook more meals at home. Heading out to dinner is great once in awhile but takes up time a lot of time that could be used for other tasks. We go out to eat once a week as a family and it usually takes about two hours which on a school night is precious time.

Read a bedtime story to more than one kid at a time. My boys share a room so this works for us but sometimes we have my daughter come in and read one story to all three kids. We still tuck each one in and have a bedtime talk with each, but it is a lot quicker than trying to read three seperate stories, especially if one of us is parenting alone that night.

Keep a box or bag ready for donations. By cleaning up and ridding your house of non-essentials it will make finding whatever you  need a lot  easier and therefore less time is wasted. I keep a bag in my front coat closet and drop it off whenever its full.

Run errands wisely. I try to run my errands while I’m out in the area and only when I absolutely need to. I actually try to limit my errands to one day a week when I can do them all in one shot.

Shop online for as much as I can. Buy shopping online I not only spend less money since I can’t really browse aisles like I would at a store, but I also save time by not driving to the various stores.

Shop where you can do one-stop shopping like at Meijer. Meijer has basically a little of everything, from housewares to clothes to groceries and if I need lightbulbs, socks and milk I can buy them all from one store. One-stop shopping means less stress of rushing through stores and wasting time driving to them. Meijer also has affordable prices so its not like you are paying more for the connivence of everything under one roof.

Like sweepstakes? Meijer’s is hosting a “Make More Time for Mom” sweepstakes where users will submit photos via Instagram using the hashtag #MMT4M. Everyone who participates has the opportunity to win a $250 Meijer gift card.

Want to see how I “Make More Time for Mom”?

WIN IT: (1) US winner will receive a $25 Meijer Gift Card and P&G Prize Pack

• $25 Meijer gift card
• Tide to Go Stain Stick
• Tide PODS
• Pantene 2-in-1 Shampoo/Conditioner
• Bounty with Dawn
• Pampers Wipes

GIVEAWAY ENTRY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This Giveaway Ends November 23, 2015.