When you’re a stay-at-home-mom, you have a lot of things on your plate. You’re making meals, keeping up with a house, tripping over toys, and making sure you’re kids are well-loved and taken care of. You might think that being bored as a stay-at-home mom shouldn’t even be a thing!
You have so.many.things.going.on.
So, how is it that you end up getting bored?
Don’t feel guilty, it happens to the best of us and it’s totally normal!
When my first child was born, all I wanted was to stay at home with her. I crunched numbers to see if we could swing it financially, and I had several conversations with my husband about becoming a stay-at-home-mom.
I thought I had planned for everything.
What I didn’t plan for, however, was being bored.
The monotony of each day, plus the lack of adult interaction, was the perfect recipe for a bored mama.
I love my kids fiercely, but going from career to stay-at-home mom was tough.
Maybe for you, it’s also a combination of different things that just leave you feeling blah at the end of the day.
So, how do you combat being bored when you are a stay-at-home mom? It isn’t easy, but if you’re intentional, you can bust boredom and thrive each day.
Ways to bust stay-at-home-mom boredom
| 1 | Get a hobby (or a side hustle!).
When I first became a stay-at-home-mom, my daughter was a toddler. She still took naps and I could fit in a lot of me time when she was asleep.
As she got older, and as I added more kiddos to our family, my hobby time got pretty slim.
I finally decided that I needed to do something to keep my brain active, so I started blogging. I finally had a creative outlet that I was passionate about.
If you are feeling bored, think about something that you love to do. You might not be able to do it daily, but try to do it often enough that you are fulfilling your needs.
Here are 100 hobbies for moms that you can browse through to get some ideas!
Having a hobby has been the life-saver of my sanity.
I love my kids and would never change my decision to stay at home with them, but having my own little something to do has given me my own purpose each day.
Related Post: Symptoms of Stay at Home Mom Depression
| 2 | Plan things throughout the week for you and your kids to look forward to.
Get your calendar out, and get to planning. I know it’s tough when your kids are little, but if you can squeak out some plans each week with your kids, you will kick boredom in its teeth.
I admit that I do not like to plan things very often. I like to see where the wind will blow us, most days.
However, if we sit at home day-in and day-out, I go stir crazy and my kids do, too.
I really DO NOT advocate for filling up your schedule with an unreasonable amount of things to do, but I think that if you keep it simple and intentional, you can be active and not overwhelmed.
You can grab the INTENTIONAL TIME PLANNER PACK FOR MOMS to help you plan your time with your kids!
We enjoy slow days at our local park, children’s museum and spending time with our family. Those are simple things we can look forward to, that aren’t super expensive or need a lot of prep.
Check out these 99 Fun Activities to Do With Kids that are either cheap or FREE!
When you plan things for you and your kids to do, keep in mind that they don’t have to be extravagant.
We have a whiteboard where my kids and I write down our ideas of things to do and make, and we choose from those lists.
Our lists have included things like baking together (check out this fun, monthly subscription box for baking with kids– Baketivity) , crafting things we’ve found on Pinterest, going to our neighborhood pond, and building a dog obstacle course.
We also love going on nature walks, and if you do too, check out this collection of 25 Simple and Fun Nature Walk Activities for Kids.
Related Post: How to Budget to Become a Stay at Home Mom
| 3 | Plan something for yourself.
Don’t laugh at me, quite yet. As a stay-at-home mom, you HAVE to do something for yourself, or you will burn right out, trust me.
When you have something on the calendar that you can do for yourself, you have something to look forward to when the going gets tough.
I used to scoff at the idea of “needing” time to myself. Then my kids got older, dropped naps and suddenly I was looking forward to moments of peace and quiet.
It took time for me to realize that when I planned something for myself, even as simple as a late-night grocery shopping trip, I was a better person and a better mom.
Moms, you need time to decompress. If you’re anything like me, you need time to be with your own thoughts and not be running in a million different directions, as most of us do.
When I set aside a few hours of time for me, it motivates me to keep truckin’ through the days. It helps me keep my momentum.
Related Post: An Open Letter to the Stay-at-Home Mom Who Doesn’t Think She is Enough
| 4 | Seek out inspiration.
I don’t know about you, but I NEED to feel inspired on a weekly, if not daily, basis. I need to feel alive and awakened in order to not fall into the dark side of being a stay-at-home mom.
I know that sounds gloomy, but if I’m being honest, being a stay-at-home mom can take its toll and leave you feeling not only bored, but also emotionally drained.
My kids are amazing people. We live a great life, and yet I still need a pick-me-up as often as possible.
One of my favorite things to do for inspiration is to reflect on my mom life. This means I take a few minutes to myself to slow down and see how I am doing.
This literally takes a few minutes each day, or week, if you prefer.
You can use this handy journal I created, and the best part is… It’s totally FREE!
Other ways I find inspiration are:
- Talking to and hanging out with like-minded moms
- Reading positive stories about parenting (You can check out my favorite parenting books HERE).
- Reading my Bible and reflecting on my spiritual life (I love this version of the Bible).
- Planning for my future— long-term and short-term goals that are personal and professional.
- Thinking about my kids’ future and the positive impact I am having by staying at home with them.
Whatever inspires you, do it. The ability to stay inspired will kick stay-at-home mom boredom to the curb.
Related Post: How to Be a Successful Stay-at-Home Mom
| 5 |Add a little structure to your day.
When your kids are babies and toddlers, structure comes pretty naturally. You can easily form a loose schedule surrounding meal times and naps.
Once your child stops taking naps, though, you lose that cornerstone of your schedule.
We are unschoolers, so we don’t have a rigid structure in our homeschool days. We do, however, have a little bit of a rhythm that helps us manage our days and weeks.
Knowing what to expect throughout the day helps you to break up the monotony of the day.
Things like meal times, playtime, arts and crafts, screen time and errands, are simple, yet powerful things that you can use to break up your days so you aren’t battling boredom.
Kids thrive on structure, but it’s also important to allow PLENTY of unstructured playtime.
Related Post: Finding Your Inner Peace as a Mom
| 6 | Keep in touch with friends.
We can all agree that keeping in touch with friends is difficult once you become a mom.
We are busy and most of the time, our kids are on completely different schedules.
But, if you can carve out time to talk to your friends, or better yet, see them, you will have something to look forward to.
Even quick texts are helpful when you are too busy to see each other.
If a girls’ weekend is your thing, then try to plan one every so often.
It’s important to stay connected with other adults so you don’t feel bored and start resenting the awesome job of being a stay-at-home mom!
| 7 | Find a local moms’ group and attend playdates.
As an introverted mom, I almost feel hypocritical suggesting this one. However, I have found that when I get outside of my comfort zone and go meet new people, I feel refreshed.
We don’t attend our homeschooling group every single week, but we do it when it fits our schedule.
Being with other moms really helps me feel connected to the “outside world” and not feel so alone in my mothering journey.
Not only will play dates shake up your days a little bit, but your kids will also benefit from them.
| 8 | Plan date nights with your significant other.
When I plan a date night with my husband, I automatically feel like I can take on the days. I look forward to getting the opportunity to gush about our kids, or just talk about life in general, when we go out.
It wasn’t always easy for us to get out by ourselves. Our kids were NEVER okay with us going out on dates.
I still get anxious thinking about their meltdowns.
As they have gotten older, it’s easier to go out, but we still don’t do it enough.
But, when we make the time and plan a date, I find that my boredom is less likely to creep in.
Again, having something on the calendar gives you something to look forward to, and your cup is filled by spending time with your significant other.
Final thoughts on being bored as a stay-at-home mom
Don’t feel guilty if you are bored as a stay-at-home mom. Our job is demanding and we can easily fall into a bored and resentful mindset.
I absolutely adore my kids and put my everything into our days. This doesn’t mean that I am immune to becoming bored, though.
If you think about what excites you and keeps you motivated, you are much less likely to be bored as a stay-at-home mom.
Take the time to figure out what makes you tick, and help you and your family thrive!
*If you want to findan additionalsource of income as a stay-at-home mom, check out the work-from-home job listings onJooble.
