Eat-Poop-Sleep

Eat-Poop-Sleep: One mother’s guide to successfully getting out the door in the morning

Sometimes the victory is in the small things.

You’ll perhaps never know just how triumphant you could really feel until you’ve maneuvered through the tangled obstacle course that is your living room and nursery on an early morning. Add that you maybe slept three hours the night before, and you’ve almost qualified for a season of CBS Survivor! I’m being humorous of course, but the truth is, it’s hard to get going in the mornings when you have appointments and places to be, along with little ones tugging at your leg and begging for attention. You try and try as you might to remember all the necessary items to pack for the outing and inevitably end up on one end of the spectrum or the other. You overpack, or you forget something. Here is my answer to this common mommy dilemma:

Eat.
Poop.
Sleep.

As a novice to motherhood life, you feel like you have to remember everything: the swaddler, the special lotions, etc. There’s a long list to sift through. I’ve always been a bit of a minimalist, so the idea of carrying around a luggage full of items has never appealed to me. Instead, I developed a system that begins with asking myself, “What do the kids actually need?” If I stick to that, I don’t have to remember all the excess stuff. It just occurred to me: what do babies do? They eat, they poop, they sleep. Kids are not as complex as we make them out to be. They are baby humans with basic requirements.

What will the kids need to eat?
If we’re out and they get hungry, do I have what I need? There’s no need to fuss in the morning with all the special bowls and spoons and various kid-friendly culinary devices. If I know my kid is happy with kale, mango and a pouch, I ensure I have it in the bag. If the baby drinks from a bottle, I pack the bottles. It’s as simple as that.

What will the kids need if they poop?
This is an easy one. I have mastered the art of the easy cleanup, and I’ll talk more about what’s needed for that in another blog. The long story short? I make sure I have a changing pad, wipes, and any other simple thing to make bathroom time stress-free. I have never found the need for a bag full of unnecessary stuff for diaper changes!

What will the kids need if they fall asleep?
I have true Venice Beach kids! We spend a lot of time outside, visiting neighbors, on the beach. We go out to eat a lot, and the boys are always with me. Anyone with kids knows that even as you attempt to adhere to a schedule, children often fall asleep…anywhere. So, I always make sure I have the necessities: do we need pj’s? do we need binkies? And so on.

The really great part of this is that as the kids age or go through phases, their preferences will change; however, the fundamental needs will not. Right now your toddler might need a pacifier to sleep; next year, he might require his favorite stuffed animal. You might have a baby who is drinking milk from a bottle, and eventually that will change to a sippy cup.

Though the specifics will change, the Eat, Sleep, Poop part will not. You don’t have to keep changing the mindset or the list. Asking yourself what your kid needs as you’re preparing to leave will always trigger the right items with which to travel, ensuring you’ll be primed for great day.

Simplify where possible, mama!