Managing mornings for flat-out families

February 8th, 2012

Appliance Talk Kitchen Laundry Small Appliances

The school year is back on again, meaning a shift in the everyday routines of what politicians like to call working families.  While it can be a relief for parents to have the kids out of the house for much of the day, getting them ready and out the door in the first place can be stressful and a real organisational challenge.

So today Appliances Online asks the question: how can you save time when getting your family ready in the morning?

Here are a few ideas we came up with.  Be sure to send us your own!

Breakfast

Working in bulk generally lets you prepare a whole family’s food at once.  A multi slice toaster can be handy for getting the job done en masse.

Cooking up a big pot of porridge on an induction cooktop is not just efficient, but safer for when kids are underfoot and sometimes have curious hands.

You can also save time by combining multiple serves of fruit using a juicer – using different fruit combinations each day will keep fussy family members from getting bored.

School lunches

One way to save time in the morning organising school lunches is to not prepare them in the morning at all.

No, that doesn’t mean letting your kids fend for themselves like a pack of hungry wolves with Dora the Explorer bags – try preparing the lunch sandwiches the night before and keeping them in the fridge. If you’re really organised, you can prepare a whole week’s worth in advance, and keep them frozen until the time is right.

Fresh fruits and vegetables are healthy additions to most school lunches, but chopping them up for easy transport and consumption can be time consuming.  A light blast in a food processor can transform raw fruits and vegetables into a nutritious salad that can be easy to eat by itself, or be added to sandwiches.  Mixing up the vegetables like this can also make it harder for picky eaters to pull out items they don’t want – no more finding single lettuce leaves leftover!

Last-minute laundry

If you need to get a bunch of school uniforms clean in a hurry, or are the lucky parent to be rostered on to clean the footy jerseys this week, you’ll need a washing machine that can quickly and efficiently handle big loads.

A washing machine with a hefty capacity (around 7kg or above) plus an express wash or quick wash option would be a good fit.  Plus, a dryer is always a good investment for when you don’t have time to wait for the sun to do its thing, especially if you choose one with a fast cycle option.

A good iron with a quick heat-up time is handy for getting your getting your family’s clothes ready quickly (such as when preparing school uniforms at the last minute), and an ironing centre can be just the ticket for a busy household that’s cluttered with family things.

A little something for you

No-one can deny that the life of a parent is a lot of hard work. Getting yourself going is the first step to getting your family going each day.

If it’s getting more and more challenging to get up early enough to undertake all of this organisation, one trick is to rely on a pre-programmable coffee machine.  The presence of a steaming cup o’ will-to-live in the morning may be enough motivation to keep some folks from hitting the snooze button that extra time, giving you more time to get the household moving.

Remember that Appliances Online is here to help.  If you ever find yourself in need of a new or replacement appliance to keep your morning routine running efficiently, we’re open from 7am to 11pm, seven days a week, so you can contact us no matter what schedule your family runs on.

Parents, what are your tricks for efficiently running your household?  How do you save time in the mornings when you’re getting the kids ready for school?