5 Things to do on the weekend for a happy work week

My alarm clock goes off for the second time now. Its past 6 am on a chilled Monday morning. I reach out from my comfy, warm bed to stop the ringing.

Oh no! Is it Monday today already? I ask myself in half state of sleep.

I mentally run through the morning chores in my head, thinking—what will I pack for kids’ school lunch today? Should I just give them a lunch order? Oh! I forgot to buy salad ingredients over the weekend for my lunch today—the list goes on every Monday morning and the things I should have done or planned over the weekend.

To reduce these repetitive Monday morning blues, I came up with a simple, achievable and manageable list of 5 chores that I try to tick off every weekend to have a happier week and Monday mornings 😊. I am listing these below in case it helps other mums to set you up for a breezier work week. You could also make your own list of top 5 habits, based on your priorities.

1. Meal planning:

I cannot stress this one enough. This one simple step, which takes no more than 15 minutes over the weekend, has literally changed my life. Don’t under-estimate the importance of meal planning, because:

• It save us $1000 of dollars every month. About 15 minutes is all you need!
• It also allows for healthy, nutritious and yummy meals for the family.
• It ticks off the morning drudgery of what to give kids for their lunchbox
• It also ticks off snacks to give the kids after school. Knowing kids are eating healthy and yummy meals is a huge pressure lifted off my mind. We pop up our meal planner on the fridge so everyone knows what’s going to be for dinner that night.

2. Grocery Shopping:

Once you have planned your meals, doing groceries over the weekend while driving back from kids’ games or catch-ups with friends really helps during the week. We also do heaps of online groceries or, click and collect, to save us time, money and effort — win-win-win.

3. Me-time:

Needless to say, this is my favourite ‘chore’ of all, over the weekend. My top three me-time favourites are:

1. Cuddling up with my favourite book or a Netflix show with a steaming pot of chai;
2. Catching-up with friends over a meal or a drink; an excellent pick-me up; or
3. Going for a long, relaxed walk to clear my head. Walking does wonders, and I ALWAYS come back rejuvenated. Needless to say, it benefits your mind, body and soul!

Even a short amount of dedicated me-time energises me heaps and preps me for the week ahead. I feel like I am a better, mum, wife, friend, work colleague, person, if I have had some me-time on the weekend.

4. Quality-time with family:

Setting aside dedicated time to spend with family gives me a lot of satisfaction. That way during the week when we don’t have time to eat meals together or you miss out on spending times with kids due to a late meeting or a headache, you have the satisfaction of having spent some dedicated time over the weekend. Our favourite activities to spend time as a family are:

• Going to cafes – this is definitely our number one family favourite. The only problem is all four of us have different favourite cafes. So we now take turns every week; that way everyone’s choice is ticked off eventually.

• Board games – our absolute favourite go-to board game is Poleconomy. My parents first bought this game about 35 years ago from Canada, and my brother and I played it heaps with family and relatives. After, I got married and had kids, we were overjoyed to find this game on eBay. Although it’s a dice game, it’s a great one to introduce kids to the concept of elections, inflation, economy, financial profit and loss, etc. My son gets to be the banker while he still learns how to play the game. He likes the feeling of being all-important handling bank notes along with bonds, company and advertisement cards. Other board games we all enjoy playing are Carcassonne and Rummikub. Next one on our to-buy list is Ticket-to-Ride. Have heard amazing reviews about it! Have you tried it yet?

• There are heaps of other fun things to do together as family – think cooking together (a.k.a making a mess in the kitchen), watching a family movie (we love animated ones – Kung Fu Panda, Happy Feat, Bee movie, Lion King), cycling or walking together, or simply just chatting over a home-cooked meal on the dining table.

5. Bulk cook: even if it’s just one thing–that’s okay!

Whatever I am cooking for the family over the weekend, I make double the batch and freeze it for a mid-week meal. I absolutely hate cooking – so doing something (even the simplest) is better than doing nothing. It is a huge help during the week when I come back home tired, open the fridge to cook something and find frozen chole sitting there! Yay. Other examples of things to bulk cook are:

• Breakfast granola (pic above) for the next few weeks for the family; or
• Hari chatni (green chutney) in bulk and freeze in small containers (I do this when I am able to buy fresh coriander from the weekend markets in bulk). Hari chatni adds so much flavour to any meal during the week; or
• Cooking any curry in bulk – if I am cooking anyway, even once over the weekend, say rajma or paneer sabzi – I ALWAYS make extra portions and freeze.
• Atta dough to last atleast 2-3 meals – I always add veggies or left-over curries to my atta making machine when kneading dough. Not only does it avoid wastage of veggies and left-over curries, but it also makes for a nutritious dough and a happy gut.

 We would love to hear if you have any habits that make your life easier during the week?