Let’s quiet the noise for a moment shall we?
Ah, Motherhood – in all it’s joyous and challenging forms it can often be a little, well, noisy. So how can you create more peace, quiet and harmony at home so things feel more restful and restorative for you and your family?
If you are a bit of an introvert (like me) or grew up as an only child maybe – you can often feel a little overwhelmed and frazzeled by the constant barage of noise that surrounds your home. Sometimes it can be comforting, when your children are happy and totter around – in and out of the garden in summertime with ice lollies on their faces. Then sometimes, in the depths of winter, when coughs and colds have launched themselves onto your house, the doors and windows are shut and the skies are dark and grey, the noise can sometimes seem even louder.
Maybe sibling squabbling turns up a notch from the lack of fresh air and such like, and your home can feel a little – or sometimes overwhelmingly – noisy.
I get it, I do. I grew up in a quiet home – basically an only child as my older half siblings had either moved away or were out with friends. I played alone, alot. Being a little introverted, I naturally feel restored by quality time alone.
I have 3 children – toddler twins and a 10 year old, the large age gap means they like to do vastly different things. Our house is full, and sometimes on those days where multiple things go wrong, and theres a million things to do, I can quickly feel overwhelmed by the constant noise, squabbles and requests for 342 snacks.
I’ve quickly learned that a few nifty tricks here and there, can help create more peace and harmony at home. In turn helping me feel less overwhelmed. Here are my top 5 Tips to help create more stillness at home if the noise volume is up to 11 ….
Find your stress triggers
– and your most overwhelming times of day.
Grab some pen and paper and write down specifically what moments or times of the day you are finding paticularily stressful right now depending on what season you are in.
Maybe you have a newborn and a struggling at bedtimes with your partner working late, maybe nobody is ready quick enough in the morning, maybe it’s tidying up time – or dinner time. What moments have you wanting to run and hide in the bathroom with a pack of minstrels? and why? Knowing these triggers is the first step in tackling them. Once you know what they are dig in to why they are stressful.
Do you have a toddler that you might be struggling with at bedtime? Do you have picky eating at dinner time? Maybe dinner time is too much as someone is always rushing out of the door to the next activity. Once you know the trigger try and decifer why it’s happening.
For me, it was usually dinnertime. Catering to multiple tastes and ages alone left me feeling super frazzeled at tea time. My partner was often not home untill later, my toddlers tired and irritable – leaving toys strewn over the kitchen for me to break my neck on, my eldest playing online xbox in the next room rather loudly – you get the vibe.
1. Use calming oil blends and scents.
One of the quickest and easiest ways I try and change up the atmosphere at home is by popping some essential oil blends in a diffuser. We tend to use a calming blend in the run up to dinner (see the early issue) and a sleepy blend upstairs during bedtime. Sometimes if germs have desended on our home I might use some breathe easy eucalytus blends. Its such a simple thing that has a big impact on the general vibe and feeling of being at home.
You could try putting some scented sticks in the walkway entrance of your home, and maybe find some of your favourite scented soya candles to burn after the kids have gone to bed to give off a cosy more grown up atmosphere after a day of nappy explosions and cheesy wotsits being rubbed on your sofa…..
2. Decorate with natural living things that make you feel good.
Think about the decor of your home. Is it in alignment with how you want to feel? Is it full of clutter which overwhelms you? Ornaments and nik naks are sparce in our home and we prefer to add a few basic plants and flowers which make me feel good whenever I see them – and also improve the air quality by helping to absorb unwanted toxins (don’t believe me – check out this study NASA did on house plants and air quality).
Try adding some strategiacally placed plants to up the cosy factor. I also like adding big displays of flowers to places where I generally do everyday mundane things – like in front of the washing up sink or by the bathroom sink.
Crystals can be a nice calming addition to your home if thats the vibe you are going for, I like to pop some by the bed and bath to help me feel relaxed after a frazzeled day.
3. More Music!
Music can really help set the tone of your home, during the early days of becoming a mother I was so busy I forgot how much I actually enjoyed having musc on at home.
If you are struggling with certain times of day such as bedtime, dinner time or the morning rush – try incorperating some calming music to help give off some relaxing vibes. I try this in the morning during breakfast as this was generally when I found my anxiety creeping in at the stress of getting multiple children out of the door on time. Most days you can also hear Alexa pumping out anything from Beyonce to to 80s hair metal to help me get inspired to actually clean up the kitchen after dinner time. Sometimes a glass of wine gets added in to the mix too. I swear I get things done quicker like this rather than silence – or just the soundtrack of over tired children squabbling before bath time.
4. Surround yourself with little luxuries.
You don’t have to break the bank to bring some inner peace and calm into your home, a few items here and there can really make a difference. It’s all about how you want to feel remember, if you are comforted by being surrounded by books and photos – Kim Kardashians sparce aesthetic living room vibes may feel cold to you. Here are some of my faves:
- Super soft blankets and throws by the sofa for colder evenings.
- Soy wax candles in the bathroom and lounge (check out Fosse – their scents are everything.)
- Big, beautuful, cosy mugs for morning coffee. The mug has to be right, or the day is all wrong. Right?
- Indulgent bath foams, oils and body oils – for those post bedtime pampering moments with a book…
- Fluffy socks. always.
- Cosy, satin or silk pajamas for cosying up on the sofa with a glass of wine or tea.
- Hand creams by the sinks and bed (anyone else feel super grumpy when their hands are dry?)
5. Ditch the clutter.
You environment affects you, and there is research to support this. As busy mums – we already have enough going on, right? I figured out I make on average 14 plates of food a day – and I’m not even including snacks.
Add into the mix toys, laundry and the random papers and bits and bobs that manage to sneak into our homes on a sometimes daily basis. It’s no wonder we feel overwhelmed and are craving peace and harmony in our homes.
Getting lazer focused on how you want your home to look and feel is the first step in clearing through what no longer serves you and your family. Is it used, is it loved? Is it broken? It may help to sesonally look at decluttering (as we do) – as the less things you have the less you have to take care of. Unsure where to start – try these key areas first:
- Any toys broken or no longer played with – bonus if you can get your kids involved and on board.
- Any kitchen crockery and appliances that are broken or unused, or those mugs you simply hate (we all have them, why are they even there?) Pop appliances not used daily out of sight.
- Any clothes no longer worn or grown out of.
- Paperwork you don’t need.
- Try aligning your entry ways and wardrobes with the seasons and box up winter coats, summer shoes, jumpers and whichever thing you know you will not need in the coming months to free up a little room.
- Unused cables, controllers, wires etc.
Once you’ve cleared up some space – things will naturally feel more peaceful in your home and you you will feel less overwhelmed in turn. Try not to instanly “fill up space” on counter tops and in drawers – live with the space for a while and only bring things into your home with purpose and intention.
This is your home and your space – it should be a reflection of you. It should be a space that feels calming to you at the end of the day as you unwind on the sofa with an episode of Shitts Creek, it should be a reflection of who you are and it needs to work with yours and your families lifestyle. If it curently doesn’t ask yourself why and what can be changed. We spend enough money on our homes – they should be a calming place for us to live and its time to become unavailable for any anxiety that your home may bring you. You got this.
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Thanks for stopping by at my corner of the internet, I’m Maz – you can read about me here – it’s my mission to lift the lid on motherhood and make your parenting journey easier. Stick around for mindset hacks, tips and truths on lessening the overwhelm and simplifying motherhood.
If you enjoyed this blog pop me a message or comment – I’d love to hear from you! You’ll also love My Tips on letting go of motherhood overwhelm – which you can read about here. You can find me on my Instagram at @twinsandthings13.com so drop by there and we can virtually hang out! To never miss a blog join the twins and things community here x
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