What daily habits create joyful structure in your home?
Stay-at-home moms carry so much unseen work, and Brianna (stay-at-home mom) shares the rhythms that create joyful structure, making her days lighter, more joyful, and more connected. Her practical tips and honest stories offer encouragement for anyone building a home-centered life. Take a peek into her daily habits and find rhythms that fit your season.
Welcome to Rhythms of a Happy Home, a 7-part series exploring the intentional routines that help us create peace, order, and belonging inside our walls, no matter who lives there or what season of life we’re in. I recruited guest posts from family and friends: women from a wide range of life stages, including a retired great-grandma, a part-time working grandma, part-time and full-time working moms, stay-at-home moms, single working women, and a married working woman.
Each post offers practical wisdom and personal stories about the daily, monthly, and seasonal habits that make home feel grounded and joyful. Together, these posts will help you reflect on your own rhythms and inspire you to craft routines that tailor joy into your everyday life.
Highlights: Discover the joyful structure and habits stay-at-home mom, Brianna, uses to create order, stability, and a sense of belonging for her family, plus tips for other stages of life.
Tips for women with young kids:
“I only have an 11-month-old baby, so I won’t even pretend like I have this figured out, but I’ll share what I’ve observed so far.” Brianna
* Lower your expectations! Especially if you’re nursing or pumping…that literally burns 500 calories a day. My main goal has been “keep the tiny human alive.” Also, recognize that you are now working 24/7. Even if the baby sleeps through the night, you’re subconsciously listening for sounds. It’s ok to rest or nap during the day because you’re basically working around the clock.
* One of my favorite hacks as a stay-at-home mom has been crockpot meals that will feed us for 2 or even 3 nights. Meal prep is complete in the morning, and then the next day or two are easier to serve and clean up dinner. This allows me to knock out other projects. It’s a super win if I can prep a crockpot dump and go bag for the freezer.
* Baby wear!
* Be creative about your tasks and don’t expect to take anything to completion in one sitting; for example, do one load of laundry a day or one cleaning task a day, and you can do it in pieces throughout the day.
* Your husband is still your priority. It can be hard when you’re overstimulated and touched out, but try to learn his needs in this season. If your husband’s favorite thing is intimacy, then maybe dinner needs to be PB&J sandwiches. If his favorite thing is a hot dinner when he comes home, find a fancy-looking sheet pan meal, set the table nicely, and hide the four loads of unfolded laundry in the closet.
* “A place for everything and everything in its place.” Find ways to declutter and store things in an organized way. Or get rid of it.
* Open the windows 10-15 minutes a day! It freshens the house and seems to breathe life into each room.
Tips for married women with no kids yet:
* Learn your husband. Learn his favorite meals, favorite date activities/restaurants, the outfits you wear that he likes, etc. Put that knowledge into practice.
* Have candid conversations. It can save a lot of headaches if we would all just say what we mean, especially with the person we’re closest to in the whole world.
* Get your home running really efficiently. This will help when kids come along (Lord willing). See below for more notes on honing homemaking skills.
Tips for single women to hone homemaking skills:
* Figure out which cleaning products you like (or develop the recipes to make your own)
* Nail down a few go-to recipes
* Take the time now to visit different grocery stores and compare prices. You can save money in the long run by buying items from different places, but you won’t always have the time that you do now to do that research. This can also be helpful if you are researching the quality
* If you are interested in other aspects of homemaking like sewing, gardening, home apothecary…. start practicing now.
* Sometimes a lot of homemaking is trial and error to figure out what works well for you, and it may change season to season. Starting that process early can only help you later on as you create joyful structure and rhythms in your homel
* Build a beautiful wardrobe. Versatile pieces that can accommodate pregnancy and breastfeeding are a bonus.
* Practice sticking to a budget.
* Save money.
* Visit thrift stores, find your favorites, and get good at spotting deals.
* Learn to sell unused items (in-person or online).
Tips for all women, regardless of season of life:
* Spend time with God.
* Start the day with Scripture and prayer.
* Be creative about ways to boost time with the Lord. Some ideas…
– listen to a sermon on your commute or while getting ready
– write a Bible verse on an index card above the kitchen sink
– laminate a passage of Scripture and tape it up in the shower
– pray while driving or walking
Table Talk: What would you add to the list for honing your homemaking skills? What is one piece of advice you would give to young moms?