5 Evening Routine Ideas I Use to Make Life More Simple

A few weeks ago I kept finding myself so frustrated that I couldn’t keep up!

Our evenings were busier than usual and it just felt like every day I was waking up to chaos.

I’d spend 30-40 minutes picking up the house and then by the end of the day it would all just blow up again. It was driving me crazy.

Then I figured it out!

I wasn’t doing our usual evening routines.

I’ve written a lot about my mornings and my habit for keeping a clean house during the day, but I’ve never shared what I do at night to make life easier.

As I realized last week, it actually DOES make a big difference to end the day well.

If you’re feeling like you can’t keep up and sometimes dread getting out of bed to face the chaos of the day, TRY these evening routines! They really do make my life so much more simple.

Ready? Here’s what I do…

Shiny Sink - 5 Evening Routine Ideas I Use to Make Life More Simple

#1 Shiny Sink

Remember Flylady? She listed it as one of the first baby steps to an orderly home years ago and I sort of ignored it at first. But over the last few years I’ve been doing it and it works!

Even if the last thing you want to do after dinner is wash dishes, make yourself (or your kids) get it done. It literally only takes 3-5 minutes. After the dishes are clean, sprinkle some baking soda, essential oils, or just a squirt of dish soap and scrub any mess off. Rinse and dry.

If you do it every night, things don’t get stuck on or pile up, and it really does feel great to wake up to that sight. If my sink is clean, the house feels much less chaotic.

Deal With Clothes - 5 Evening Routine Ideas I Use to Make Life More Simple

#2 Deal With Clothes

I fold and hang up laundry while watching a show in bed at night as fast as humanly possible. Then after the show is over, I have to put them away in order to go to bed so it helps me actually deal with the piles.

Digging for clothes in the morning is the bane of my existence. The item I really need is usually lost in the mix or there’s never a matching pair of socks.

If everything is put away or ready at night, we can just grab what we need and go in the morning. No running around.

Clutter Basket - 5 Evening Routine Ideas I Use to Make Life More Simple

#3 Clutter Basket

After the clothes are put away, I’m usually left with an empty laundry basket. I then take this basket around the house and put everything in it that doesn’t belong.

It’s such a fast way to pick up toys, trash, shoes and other random clutter. Then I just go room by room to return it all at once. If you get everything you can off the floor and clear all the surfaces, you won’t have to trip over things in the morning.

8 Fit Workout - 5 Evening Routine Ideas I Use to Make Life More Simple

#4 App Workouts

I love working out at night with music in my headphones turned up loud.

I try to do a 15-30 minute workout on the 8fit or Nike App while Stephen is reading to the kids or while they’re taking baths and showers.

Doing it in the evening is a brilliant time for me because I’m usually dying for some alone time and it gives me an extra energy boost so I don’t just crash early.

Asana Task List - 5 Evening Routine Ideas I Use to Make Life More Simple

#5 Tomorrow’s Task List

I love Asana and use it like crazy to stay on top of all the things. One thing I do at the end of the day is quick glance at tomorrow’s task list in Asana on my phone before I go to sleep. I add any remaining tasks, set deadlines and also give myself a refresher on what tomorrow will look like.

This does two things - 1) I’m not caught off guard in the mornings and can mentally prepare for the day, and 2) I can rest easy and put tasks totally out of my mind at night because i know they’re going to be dealt with tomorrow.

It only takes a few minutes but can make all the difference!

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