23 Life Hacks For Frantic Parents With Little Kids (Ages 1-6)

Use these fun tips to elevate your parenting skills, gain more peace of mind and connect authentically with your kids.

1. Whisk your Kids Anywhere Without a Fuss

Diana Choksey

My kids never wanted to leave their day care. They would take even longer to get into the car. Bribes and threats did not work, and I felt miserable giving them. By the time I strapped them in and sat at the wheel, I’d feel drained. One day we left some library books in the car. While strapping my 15-month-old in, he pointed at a board book from the little pile. I gave it to him. To my pleasant surprise, he stopped fussing, calmed down and didn’t resist getting strapped in. My preschooler was also quite happy to be strapped in when provided with a book. Now I keep a few books in the car, providing them a variety to keep it interesting for them each day.

2. Use Routine Charts to Remind Kids of What They Need to Do

Diana Choksey

Routine charts are a way to help your child learn the sequence of tasks they need to do as part of a routine. A chart help instill independence, cooperation, confidence, and self-discipline. It also provides children with structure. For little kids, so much of their experience is outside their realm of control. Too many unknowns in a child’s day can be stressful and can contribute to anxiety and outbursts. Keeping a routine establishes consistency and predictability which allows children to feel calm and secure. They can focus on learning and growing because they know expect next. My preschooler and I made our own morning and bedtime routine charts using Microsoft Power Point and pictures from the internet. We divided the chart into 4-5 vertical sections, each with a different task. We stuck a pocket across the bottom of the chart and put a sticker on a popsicle in the pocket. My preschooler moves the popsicle ‘guy’ along the different columns as he completes the tasks.

3. Get your Kids to Love Cleanup

Diana Choksey

In our family, cleanup was fraught with tears and strife. Toys strew across the living room floor became safety hazards. I would gingerly make my way over a couple of trucks only to step on a spikey dinosaur and wail in agony. We had tried to get a handle on clean up, but it eluded us for so long, until we discovered that being silly and making it into a game was the only way to win. The sillier the game the better! “Oooh,” I say, “These toys are biting. We need to put them to rest in their boxes.” “Are they biting you too?” I say, in feigned horror. “No, you don’t get to bite me Mr. Truck,” I say. “I’m going to put you in your box now.” We gather everything in a bucket before sorting it into its drawer. To enliven things more I say, “Let’s call the Toy Manager.” I pretend to talk to the manager about the toys misbehaving and then ask my preschooler if he has anything to say to the manager. He usually does. I say something like, “The manager says we need to put all the train tracks back in the box because the trains are rough housing” And generally, after some laughter and dialogue my preschooler cooperates. Once we have a clean room I ask, “Show me the spots where you got toy bites so I can kiss them.” We do a round of kisses to end cleanup. The game worked so well that one morning my preschooler asked me we could do clean up! Making it fun for them is so crucial if you want them to be internally motivated. Playing a cleanup song that they like will also go a long way towards making it fun.

4. What to do When Meltdowns Happen at the Store

Chirag Rathod, CC BY-SA 2.0 / Via Flickr: chirag

Generally, I try going to the store alone to shop. However, the weekend often necessitates a trip to the grocery store with my kids. Managing the two of them can be a daunting task and I feel I am being pulled in two directions. If they want an item, I follow the recommendations from the book “How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen and Listen So Little Kids Will Talk.” I trying giving them in fantasy what they can’t have in reality. If they want popsicles and I’m not getting any, I will say, “Wouldn’t it be nice it we could buy so many popsicles that we’d have them for breakfast, lunch and dinner?” “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could fill and eighteen-wheeler with popsicles and drive it home?” The more impractical the fantasy, the better. It will distract them and get them to come up with something wild.

To keep them busy and avoid drama, enlist the child’s help. Give your child a few things from the list to remind you of while shopping. Then ask “Hmm… What fruit was it that I needed?” They can then remind you. “Oh, Apples! We need Apples!” Get them to help getting things off the shelf and into the cart. They can also helping put things on the conveyer belt at the check-out. Another tip a friend gave me was giving the child a calculator. Older kids especially, can type in the numbers they are seeing or help you keep track of your total. Kids love this tool!

5. Bond with your Child through Storytelling

Diana Choksey

At mealtimes and at bedtime, I found it hard to relax and connect with my older kid. Questions soliciting information about their day oftentimes hung in the air. When we started telling stories at the dinner table and before bedtime, we discovered we could have actual conversations with our preschooler. At mealtime, for example, we have an ongoing story about the adventures of rogue chickens on a construction site. The rule is that with every bite the child takes, the story moves forward. At bedtime, we have a Twyla story. Twyla is a unicorn character my kid and I made up together. Every night my kid gets to pick the adventures Twyla goes on. For example, he recently said he wanted a story about Twyla going to outer space. Story telling can be kept simple, say whatever comes to mind. The idea is not to have a complicated plot line or a moral or anything but to open the imagination. Keep the words coming. Soon you will find that your kid will want to add twists and turns to the story. Whatever they say, you can respond with, “Yes and..” before continuing the story. This improvisational approach will encourage your child to co-create with you. With bedtime stories, my rule is that they must share three awesome things about their day before we begin—okay, maybe one.

6. Getting them to Wear Their Shoes

Diana Choksey

When your child can put their own shoes on, it’s wonderful. It frees up a lot of your physical energy to focus on other things before you leave. The problem comes when they do not want to put on their shoes and a power struggle ensues. Soon you are left dragging a terribly upset kid out the door. Try making it a race and let them win. When I tell myself we’re going to race, he becomes super speedy, moving like a cheetah on his prey. I give him a little extra time to beat me by going slower. Races are everything—getting dressed, cleaning up, brushing teeth are all so much more fun with a race!

7. Plan your Meals at the Beginning of the Weekend

Diana Choksey

Meal planning on the weekend gives you several advantages. You can go over the plan with your spouse. If you share cooking responsibilities, it allows her/him to give input on the plan. By the end of the week, your fridge and pantry are mostly empty, so it allows you to see to see what staples and perishables you need to stock up on. My go to template for meal planning is this printable meal chart from the web site Two Peas and their Pod. It allows me to quickly see what we are making for the week and add any ingredients to the grocery list in the adjacent “What to Buy” column. I have my meal chart laminated up on the fridge and so I erase and re-use it every week with dry erase markers.

8. Access, Share and Update your Grocery Lists in Real Time

Diana Choksey

Going to the grocery store, especially with little kids, is a minefield. There is so much to prepare before leaving, it can be daunting! You need to have a way to keep it together. Lists are necessary but digital lists are life changing. Because they are in a light-weight mobile app they are easy to use and frustration free. After you planned your meal and listed out the ingredients you need, take time to enter them into a shared shopping list on Google Keep. You can share the list with your spouse and make sections for the items you want to buy at different grocery stores. For example, our list has sections for Costco, Safeway, Trader Joes, and other places where we shop. The list can be shared with your spouse so that while you are in the store you can divide and conquer, picking up different items to speed things up. As you check items off, your Google Keep list updates in real time ensuring you and your spouse don’t end up replicating each other’s efforts.

I recommend Google Keep Lists for all occasions. Other lists that we keep include packing lists for camping and traveling and lists of things we want to remember like our favorite chocolates or movies or kid’s books or the first 50 words our kid spoke. We can quickly pull these digital lists to reference or share with others. Make it your goal to always have a shopping list. You can always be spontaneous and buy something on the spur of the moment but forgetting something that you meant to buy will cost you a return trip and precious time. Lists also help when avoiding impulse buying.

9. Use Irwin Bar Clamps to Secure Devices and Much More

Diana Choksey

Babies, toddlers and young kids love to play with electronics. They will actively move to spots where cell phones and other devices are placed. As a result, it’s very hard to get them to engage on a video call and it’s very tough to make a call when they’re around. We used Irwin Bar Clamps to clamp our devices to cabinets, cabinet doors or any surface to keep them out of reach for our kids. When at the dining table, we used these clamps to prop up a cell phone for video calls with the grandparents. We even used them as tripods to take videos.

10. Enable Kids to Reach Counter Tops and Sinks with Collapsible Step Stools

Diana Choksey

If step stools at sinks and counters drive you crazy, consider investing in a folding or collapsible step stool. Most of them are lightweight and come in different heights and are easy to fold as well. They can be stacked conveniently behind doors or hung up on hooks when not in use. Kids love the satisfaction of doing things themselves and these stools enable them to reach up to sinks, counter tops and more without getting in the way. They are inexpensive and space-efficient so you can get a couple of different stools to distribute across different rooms in your house. Kids can also take them from one room to another as they need and fold them up once they are done. The stools we have are 8½ inches and 15 inches in height.

11. Digitize your Child’s Art Work

Diana Choksey

Kids come home from daycare with such sweet creations, it breaks my heart and racks me up with guilt to get rid of them. However, this artwork can quickly become clutter and face it: your kid is not going to hate you for getting rid of his scribbles when he becomes an adult. If you really like something they’ve made keep it, but don’t let their artwork dominate the house. If your kid is older than four you can ask him to decide if he wants to save it and hang it up or recycle it. Chances are that he will make the right decision and will also be learning and practicing organizational skills. Another option is to digitize all his work using a scanning app like Adobe Scan. To free up space on your phone and share from a centralized location back it up on the cloud with Google Photos.

12. Give Your Kids a Teddy or a Soft Toy

Diana Choksey

When my first son was two months old, he was gifted a teddy bear. We started putting it into his crib only after he turned one as per the CDC’s Safe Sleep guidelines. It was such a blessing for him and for us. He would cuddle his bear and fall asleep without fanfare. We would also take his teddy on our domestic and international travels, and this gave him tremendous comfort. My younger son has also taken to this routine. At 15 months, he enjoys sleeping with his teddy. We are very accepting of our kids' teddy bears. We print pictures of their bears, celebrate their bears’ birthdays, and support our sons’ connections with their bears. Soft toys have immense sentimental value for kids. They provide emotional comfort and can be used as allies to help kids talk about their emotions, puzzle out solutions and resolve disagreements. The security, companionship, and autonomy that Teddies and other soft toys provide make them indispensable for a happy, well developed child. If your child gets attached to a particular soft toy, get a back-up one. Switch them out for cleaning and care. Then if something unfortunate happens to one, you have a back up ready.

13. Resources to help you Plan Activities for your Child

Keeping your kids engaged and entertained is a monumental task. If you don’t have time to plan or research activities for the kids, parent magazines make it easy by collating all sort of fun things to do and events that are age appropriate for children. Check out publications local to your area. For example, Parent Map, a publication local to Seattle and the Puget Sound area, is full of fun events, activities to do, reviews of playgrounds and much more. It provides a rich resource for planning outings for kids. Kids museums, libraries, theatre production companies, local festivals, Aquariums and Zoos also provide great opportunities for learning and exploration and may have their own special events. Stores like The Home Depot and Michaels also offer free activities for kids.

14. Buy Nothing Groups

Diana Choksey

We all know that little kids are expensive. They outgrow stuff so fast, be it toys, clothes or personal care items. I have received so much from my local Buy Nothing Group on Facebook. The charter of these groups is to “Give, receive, lend, share, and show gratitude in hyper-local gift economies, where the true wealth is the connections between real neighbors.” At first it can seem a little scary to put yourself out there on a group full of strangers, but remember, these groups consist of people who are from your local community. You reach out and ask for something and if they have it and don’t need it, they will offer it to you. Search for your local neighborhood’s buy nothing group. You must live in the area to be admitted into the group.

15. Purge the Excess Stuff

Diana Choksey

Quite literally, kids come with a lot of extra baggage. If you are not vigilant you can end up acquiring duplicates or even multiples of everything (especially if you have more than one kid). Prompt purging of the excess makes for a calm and orderly environment which helps create tranquility in the house. Goodwill or Salvation Army are great places to donate clothes, toys and even strollers, but they will not accept cribs, car seats or walkers. We found a local organization called Kids Corner (in the area) that would accept our crib. Additionally, Walmart and Target do yearly car seat trade-ins and offer coupons towards new car seats. Trade-ins are a great option especially if your car seat has expired. Often the car seats are recycled through Terra Cycle which is a much more environmentally friendly option than throwing them in the trash. Buy, Sell, Trade Groups or Buy Nothing Groups on Facebook are also a great way to get rid of items no longer in use and foster relationships in the community.

16. Save Carboard Boxes

Diana Choksey

Cardboard boxes are an instant hit with kids and provide hours and hours of entertainment. Use them to make robots by cutting holes for the head and hands, painting them and sticking on different shapes made with construction paper. Let the kid sit inside a box and color or create an art board out of a flat sheet of cardboard. Use the artboard every time you want a surface on which to create a mess. There are some very cool things you can do with cardboard boxes that will keep your kids occupied. Find a comprehensive list of ideas using cardboard with kids on Pintrest.

17. Make your own Cheap, Safe and Eco-Friendly Cleaning products

Diana Choksey

Many household cleaning products contain harmful chemicals that are linked to serious illnesses. It is mind-boggling keeping track of which products are safe for little children. Making your own cleaning products can be as simple as getting a couple of spray bottles and mixing three or more ingredients. For example, a general-purpose cleaner which can be used for cleaning the kids’ food tray, counter tops or floors can be made using 2¾ cups water, 4½ Tbsps. vinegar and ¾ Tbsp. castile soap. This cleaner is effective, non-toxic, and very pleasant especially if you use a Lavender or Rose scented Castile Soap. It is also very inexpensive to make, costing $0.50 a bottle. Write the recipe on your bottle to make refills easier.

18. Carry Bags for all occasions

Diana Choksey

You never know when you will need a bag to stuff a pair of dirty clothes, wet shoes, groceries or any number of things kids give parents to keep. You want a bag handy and compact so you have it with you at all times. These Chico Totes are said to replace over a thousand plastic bags through the course of their lives. They can be conveniently stuffed into the built-in storage pouch and fit easily into a handbag. They come with a carabiner which can be clipped onto a handbag or anything with a loop making them hard to lose. They are machine washable and the handles sling easily over the shoulder to free up your hands for holding your kid or whatever else is necessary.

19. Use White Toothpaste for All Oil Stains

Diana Choksey

With kids, stains are inevitable. They have total disregard for clothes. Complicated recipes for removing stains exist but they seem to elude me when I need them, or I do not have all the ingredients on hand. To treat heavy oil stains, get some white toothpaste and apply it to the stain. Let it dry before scrubbing it lightly off. This trick has saved me more times than I can think.

20. Comfort and Soothe your Child with Essential Oils

Diana Choksey

Essential Oils are great for a wide variety of reasons. They activate the olfactory system which is directly associated with specific organs and with the brain’s limbic region. The limbic region is responsible for emotion, behavior, and long-term memory. Essential oils like lavender, chamomile and sweet orange can be used to alleviate anxiety and uplift a child’s mood. Peppermint (only for children who are over 2½ years), ginger and mandarin can ease feelings of nausea and fatigue. Basil and Citronella can be used as insecticides for kids over 6 months. Lavender can help with insomnia and peppermint oil can help with headaches (for kids over 2½ years). Dilute appropriately when applying essential oil to the skin a 0.25% dilution is advised, which is one drop of essential oil to every four tsp. of carrier oil. Essential oil diffusers and inhaler sticks are also gentle ways to use essential oils.

21. Skip the Mess at Mealtimes Nature’s Little Squeeze

Diana Choksey

Mealtime is such a hassle with little kids. They throw food, rub it in their hair and generally get their dirty little digits all over their chairs. They may also reach out to touch you with their messy hands! If your toddler is like mine, he wants to feed himself. Nature’s Little Squeeze pouches are the ideal solution. Fill them with yogurt, purees, smoothies, dals or soups and watch your toddler eat without making a mess. These are easy to clean and dishwasher and freezer safe. Take a frozen smoothie for your toddler to have on-the-go. A bonus is that these pouches are good for the environment, since they replace all those single use food pouches.

22. To Go Ware Utensils for Eating on the Go

Diana Choksey

Children can generate a lot of waste and as parents it can be hard to come by guilt free alternatives. These To-Go Ware bamboo utensils come in their own recycled PET case which has a little carabiner that can be used to clip the utensil set onto anything making it easy to track and transport. These are so convenient and can be rinsed or wiped after use and packed up. Kids love eating with them because they are unique and lightweight. They are a great alternative to plastic and can be conveniently carried in a backpack or purse. If you want to teach your kids to eat with chopsticks, the adult sets come with them.

23. Label Items to Avoid Redundant Purchasing

Diana Choksey

Do you buy the same thing you already own only to have it show up right after you bought it? We used to buy toothpaste, lotion, soap etc. in bulk only to realize that we had previously purchased the same items and stashed them away in the garage or a closet. When you buy something in bulk that you’re going to be reusing for a while, unpack it and put a label on the bottle or the item that says how many of its kind exist. For example, I use a sharpie to label my tooth paste tubes with “1 of 3,” “2 of 3” and “3 of 3.” This helps me remember that I still have more of the same item.