Disclaimer: I believe each mama has her own pursuit of happiness. This article represents my personal thoughts only.
I'm not an OCD person (no bias!). I'm definitely not. However, I could not resist living in an unorganized environment, where things can't be found when I'm in desperate need, mind went blur if I want to keep track. I will be anxious if art was missing from my life, simply I need to appreciate its beauty every day.
Here are some self-rescuing tips that I've come about by myself through the life as a new mama. If it helps a tiny bit, please do help me to spread the words to other mamas!
Rescuing tip 1: Label baby stuff
I was once very confident about my memory, until I realized that my CPU is much slower than the expansion of baby stock.
Don't laugh at me! I was totally lost when I faced the baby things for the first, second and third time. These tiny bottles, they look so similar but are all of different uses. Baby shampoo, baby lotion, baby scrub, baby balm, baby powder, baby oil...even now I could still pick up one incorrectly.
We got a 5-layer closet from Japan Home, and then I started creating the tags. What do you need? A pack of label stickers, some colored magnetic papers (you will know the trick later) and a double sided tape. All can be found in DAISO.
Now, label as many baby items as you need! The trick is to cut out the same shape of a label sticker from the magnetic sheet, paste it onto the back of the small label, and add the double sided tape at the back of the magnetic part. In short, make a sandwich like tag from "label sticker-magnetic sheet-double sided tape". I found that this actually makes the tags easily removable without leaving any sticky stains.
Here's how Bobo's closet looks like after labeling! I can find things easily through a scan. Remember, baby things change very fast, so don't over-stock. You can simply update the catalog by pasting a new labeling sticker onto the top of existing one.
Rescuing tip 2: Articulate your life as a mama
One mama friend told me, "I am so sad because my life seems to stay the same everyday." We are all human beings. Mamas are humans, too. We like surprises. We don't want to wake up knowing exactly what will happen the next (most of the times, right?)
Creating things gets us happier. It's based on scientific results. Why not making something new for yourself every day? Get a bunch of flowers from a nearby supermarket, write an interesting note to record a funny moment of your baby, play some music with chopsticks and plates, sing out a rhythm that flows across your mind...anything, that can make the most beautiful smile appear on mama's face.
I spent an hour on drawing the following picture during my baby's nap time. It's now hanging right in front of my working desk. Whenever I pull out my head from my laptop, I can smile at it for few minutes. If I can, any mama can do it as well!
Rescuing tip 3: Track baby growth on whiteboard
Maybe because I was once a Mandarin tutor, I could not live without a white board. I got this white board sticker from Taobao and it has been on our bedroom's wall since baby's birth.
We used it to record Bobo's feeding time, weight and height, body temperature, new patterns, learning and takeaways (seriously!) during our nursing practices. I personally think it's more useful than smartphone APPs as we see things directly from our wall. It's easily wiped and updated as well.
Again, these are the tips that make I myself feel less burdened during my parenthood. Please feel free to share yours with me by sending a message via my homepage. It's my first blog article and your support is needed! Moreover, please stay toned for my next update.
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