Parenting Hacks To Make Your Life Just A Little Bit Easier
If you have kids, you know that parenting is no joke. Kids are messy, they don't like to listen, they have minds of their own, and for a while, they don't know how to use a toilet.
As parents, we'll take any help we can get. And sometimes, that help comes in the form of little parenting hacks from internet strangers.
Make your life a little bit easier by making your own cheap ice packs, carrying crayons around in your bag, and teaching your kids not to waste toilet paper.
Keep reading for some amazing and very useful parenting hacks.
Lint Rollers Pick Up More Than Just Lint
If you own a pet, or if you like to keep your clothes neat and tidy, you probably have a lint roller lying around your house. You can use that lint roller to pick up stray glitter that your kids spill while crafting.
Make Your Own Plug Covers
The lid of a container of baby wipes makes a great plug cover. Just attach it to your wall using some wall-safe mounting tape. You can just flip it open when you want to use the plug.
Keep Those Little Socks Together
Baby socks are so tiny, and they're always getting lost in the wash. Sew on these little snaps so you can keep pairs together while they're being washed and dried.
Barbie Goes To The Drive-In
This dad came up with the brilliant idea of taking his daughter's dolls to the drive-in. Now he gets to watch TV, and she gets to have some playtime with her dad.
A Laundry Hack
When you have kids, it can feel like the laundry is never-ending. This mom came up with a way to make laundry a little bit more manageable. She uses cardboard dividers in her laundry baskets to separate her kids' clothes.
The Monster In The Basement
This mom really went above and beyond. She carved (that's right, carved) a scary monster into her basement door so her kids would be too scared to go down there.
Necessity Is The Father Of Invention
This dad wanted to take a nap, but he also had to watch his kid, so he came up with this brilliant idea. This is pretty smart, but knowing what we know about kids, he's going to get out of that knot in two seconds.
Protect The Grill
Instead of putting a baby gate around your kids, you can put it around dangerous objects that you don't want your kids to touch. Then your kids can have a bit more freedom while still being safe.
Time To Beat
This mom turned her morning routine into a game. She has her kids try to set a new record each morning. This makes getting ready to go to school so much more fun.
No More Soap Spills
Playing with bubbles is great, but kids have a way of spilling that bubble solution all over the place every time they use it. This mom came up with a great trick. Just strap the bottle of bubbles to a pole.
Custom Shoes
This kid didn't like her white shoes, so her mom let her color all over them. Now she loves her shoes, she got to do a fun activity, and mom didn't have to go out and buy new shoes.
A Makeshift Milk Warmer
This dad was on the go with his kid and he didn't have a milk warmer on him, so he used the next best thing: the engine of his car.
Encourage Your Kids To Drink More
To kids, "more" is an abstract concept. Use a rubber band to show them exactly how much water you want them to drink, and then challenge them to get the water level to that line.
Keep Your Car Seat Dry
This mom used a puppy pad to line her car seat after her kid had one too many accidents. Now she doesn't have to clean the car seat as often.
Visual Interest
Sometimes, kids just want to play with their food, and there's nothing wrong with that. Invest in some cute, fun, child-friendly toothpicks. Your kids will have so much fun with them that they won't even realize that they're eating a healthy meal.
Bring In More Groceries At Once
Making multiple trips to the car to bring in groceries is super time-consuming. Instead, you can use a wagon to bring in multiple bags at once. This hack is amazing.
No-Slip Socks
If your kids keep sliding around your hardwood floors when they wear socks, use some puffy paint on the bottoms of their socks to make the socks more grippy. This can be an activity you do with your kids.
The Best Kind Of Scavenger Hunt
If your kid needs something to do and you've lost track of some essential items, send your kid looking for them. Make them a scavenger hunt and have them find your missing glasses or cell phone charger.
A Cardboard Box Is The Best Toy
You could buy your kid all the most expensive toys on the market and they'd still rather play with a cardboard box. Give them a box and some markers and watch them let their imagination run wild.
Left And Right
Cut a sticker in half and put it inside your kid's shoes to teach them which shoe goes on the right foot and which shoe goes on the left foot.
The Best Medicine
This kid thinks he's drinking Pepsi right now, but the other end of that straw is actually sitting in a bottle of medicine. Sometimes you have to trick your kids for the greater good.
Crayons On The Go
Keep some crayons in an Altoid container in your bag or purse so you always have an activity for your kids if you get caught in a long line or if you get stuck in traffic.
Too Much TP
Kids often use way too much toilet paper. Put a "do not pass" line on the wall to teach them how much to use. You'll have to buy much less toilet paper this way.
A No-Spill Cup
OK, so maybe this cup with cling film over it isn't entirely spill-proof, but it is more spill-resistant than a totally open cup. This is a good way to transition kids out of sippy cups.
Never Lose Your Bubble Wand
Kids (and adults) are always dropping their bubble wands into the big bottle of bubbles, and then you have to go searching around for it in the soap with your hands. Just attach a clip to the top of the wand so it can't fall in.
A Play-Doh Holder
Small containers of Play-Doh are pretty much the same size as those individually packaged coffee pods. That means you can store Play-Doh the same way you store coffee. This way, your kids can easily see all of the colors.
A Magnetic Car Storage Solution
You can use a magnetic strip (traditionally used to hold knives) to hold up your kid's car collection. Your kid will love sticking the cars to the wall, and it makes a nice display in your kid's room.
Make Your Own Ice Packs
Kids lose their ice packs at school all the time. If you find yourself running low, you can just freeze a wet sponge in a Ziplock bag and throw that in your kid's lunchbox.
Turn Down The Volume
Put some tape over the speakers on your kid's toys to make them a little less loud and annoying. Those beeps can really drive you crazy. Tape is going to become your best friend.
A Clothespin Toothbrush Stand
Kids have a habit of leaving their toothbrushes brush side down on dirty bathroom counters. This clothespin trick will keep their toothbrushes and your bathroom counter a little bit cleaner.
