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Diana Rene: 0:06

You're listening to The Decluttered Mom podcast, a podcast built specifically for busy moms by a busy mom. I'm your host, Diana Rene, and in 2017, I had my second daughter and it felt like I was literally drowning in my home okay, not literally, but I felt like I couldn't breathe with all of the stuff surrounding me. Over the next 10 months, I got rid of approximately 70% of our household belongings and I have never looked back. I kind of feel like I hacked the mom system and I'm here to share all the tips, tricks and encouragement. Let's listen to today's show. Hello and welcome to another episode of The Decluttered Mom podcast. My name is Diana Rene and I am your host, and I am excited for today's episode because we are actually going to play you a lesson from one of our courses and it is from our Simplify the School Year guide, and I love this. It's a new course and I hate actually calling it a course because it's not something that you have to do start to finish to get results. It's not like you have to go through the whole thing. This is essentially like a choose-your-own-adventure guide, so anything that you are struggling with with the back to school season, you can just go to that section. You can go through those systems and you can get immediate results, and so I wanted to play for you one of the lessons inside there, which is all about checklists, because we are back in to the back to school swing. I know there's still parts of the US that are not back in They'll be back in after Labor Day but a large majority of the country is already back in school, and so I know that the overwhelm around before school, after school and bedtime is probably in full effect, and I wanted to make sure that I can get you this specific lesson because it's going to help you in so many ways. If you are interested in the full Simplify the School Year course, then you can find that on my website.

Diana Rene: 2:16

Let's jump into the lesson. Let's get straight to it. Mornings are loud, afternoons chaotic, and most of the time you are the system holding everything together. These checklists are here to change that. They make your day run smoother without more effort from you. They give your kids a clear rhythm to follow without constant reminders, and they create order where there's usually overwhelm. In this lesson, you'll learn the four checklists I've used for years in my own home to calm the chaos and build rhythms that actually stick the night before checklist, the before school checklist, the after school checklist and the before you go checklist.

Diana Rene: 2:59

Before we dive into the checklist, let me share one thing that makes all of this actually stick, especially for kids the clipboard system. In our house, every checklist lives on a clipboard, one per child. We either laminate the list or slide it into a plastic sleeve and use dry erase markers to check things off. Here's what makes it work. We attach the dry erase marker to the clipboard using a string taped to the cap so it never disappears. We hang the clip erase marker to the clipboard using a string taped to the cap so it never disappears. We hang the clipboard on a hook right next to each child's backpack at the launch pad. That way it's visible and ready to grab during each part of the day. And the best part kids can carry their clipboard around the house as they complete their checklist, checking things off as they go. Younger kids especially love this. Let them decorate their clipboard before the school year starts with stickers, markers. That extra sense of ownership makes a big difference. It's a small system but it turns routines into something your kids can see, touch and follow. They love it and you will love how much less you have to remind them the night before checklist.

Diana Rene: 4:07

This is the checklist that makes the other three possible, because if you want a smoother morning, you don't start with morning. You start the night before. When your kid wakes up and can't find their shoes, when the water bottle is still in yesterday's lunchbox or you forgot it's library day, everything feels urgent and everything falls on you. But when your kids reset the night before, you get your piece back. In my house we've used the system for years. Each of my girls has a laminated checklist on a clipboard. After the PM pickup system is done, they grab it and walk through their list on their own. It takes five minutes, mostly tops. Here's what's typically on our night before checklist Put shoes by the door, pack backpack, fill water, bottle, prep or pack lunch. Sometimes that's them, sometimes that's me Lay out their clothes and add any special items library books, pe, shoes, instrument, etc. You can use a printable, a dry erase version or a picture-based version for younger kids. The key is they do it, not you. Once this becomes routine, your mornings feel completely different.

Diana Rene: 5:14

The before school checklist Now that the night before prep is done, we move into the morning rhythm. The before school checklist gives kids a clear structure for what needs to happen before walking out the door. When we don't give them that structure, you become the structure, you become the reminder, the enforcer, the walking brain. Instead, you can post a checklist in their bedroom, in the bathroom, next to the breakfast table or at their launch pad. Here's what's typically on it Eat breakfast, brush teeth, get dressed, socks and shoes, grab water bottle and lunch. Check the launch pad Again laminated clipboard or plastic sleeve with dry erase. Huge win here Kids love checking things off. It makes the process feel doable and empowering and, honestly, just more fun For younger or neurodivergent kids. Make it visual with icons. For older kids, keep it short and use it consistently. And here's the mindset shift you stop being the checklist. Instead of saying did you brush your teeth, you say check your list. It gently puts the responsibility in their hands.

Diana Rene: 6:20

The afterschool checklist. Let's talk about that window from the front door to meltdown or mess. Backpacks get dropped, shoes get kicked off, someone's asking for a snack, before you even put your keys down. The afterschool checklist helps reset that moment without yelling or repeating yourself. Here's what ours includes Take off shoes and put them away. Hang up backpack or drop in launch pad. Empty lunchbox and water bottle. Put any mom papers in mom basket. Wash hands, grab a snack. Again. We use laminated clipboards for this one too. They hang near the launch pad so my girls can see them immediately when they walk in. It's fast, it's visual and it builds the habit of closing the loop on the school day. You don't need to nag, you just say check your afterschool list For younger kids, walk through it with them for the first week or two. For older kids. They'll take ownership pretty quickly, especially when it leads to their favorite after-school reward of snacks, screen time, whatever works in your home.

Diana Rene: 7:21

The before you go checklist this is our family's launch sequence. It's a tiny verbal checklist. We run out loud right before we walk out the door and it's been part of our rhythm every single school morning for the last five years. We keep it posted right by the back door because that's where we leave from. It's short, sweet and life-saving. Here's how it sounds Backpack check. Lunch Check. Water bottle Check.

Diana Rene: 7:47

Once you get your kids scheduled for the year, you'll want to add special day items directly to the list. So library book Tuesdays for Emma. Pe shoes Fridays for Noah instrument Wednesdays for Mia. This isn't a memory test, it's a cue system. It replaces that panicked moment in the car with confidence. It reduces how often you have to turn around. Moment in the car with confidence. It reduces how often you have to turn around and it gives your kids a reliable, predictable rhythm that they'll eventually run themselves.

Diana Rene: 8:15

Why these work? So these checklists aren't about getting your kids to be perfect. They're about building systems that reduce your mental load, make expectations visible and put your family's routines on autopilot. And here's the truth Kids like structure. They like knowing what's expected. They like feeling successful. You don't need to yell. You just need to create a system they can actually follow and then repeat it, reinforce it, celebrate it. It becomes habit.

Diana Rene: 8:42

If your kids ignore the checklist, try walking through it with them. Use it together. If they resist, that's okay. Make it visual. Use it together. If they resist, that's okay. Make it visual, make it fun. Let them decorate their own clipboard. Let them use a dry erase marker. If you forget to enforce it, that's okay too. Just bring it back into the rhythm tomorrow. You are not failing. You are building your action step.

Diana Rene: 9:04

Pick one checklist to start with. If mornings are the hardest. Start there. If afternoons feel chaotic, start with that reset. If forgotten items are driving you nuts, begin with before you go. If everything's falling apart before the day even starts, start with the night before. Then print it, post it, walk through it with your kids, repeat it until it becomes second nature. And remember clipboards plus dry erase equals magic. We've included a set of kid-friendly checklist templates right here in the lesson for you. You can use them as is or tweak them for your own family. Just pick the ones you need and hit print. Remember this doesn't have to be perfect to work. It just has to be consistent. You've got this All right.

Diana Rene: 9:46

I hope that was helpful for you. I hope this is something that you can actually implement in your own home to help with your busy time back to school. I would love to hear if this episode was helpful. You can always send me a DM on Instagram. That's the easiest way to get in touch with me.

Diana Rene: 10:01

I am at thedeclutteredmom and I hope that we will see you next week and, by the way, I would love it if you have ever received any type of benefit from this podcast. Can you follow me on Apple Podcasts, because that is seemingly the biggest thing that the podcast algorithm likes to see when it decides whether or not it wants to show this podcast to other busy moms, and so if you can follow me on this podcast and then I would love it also if you could leave me a review. If anything's been helpful for you, I would love to hear it and we will see you next week. Thanks for hanging out and listening to The Decluttered Mom podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, it would mean the world if you could write a review or share this episode with a friend or your instagram stories. And if you're on instagram, be sure to follow me at thedeclutteredmom and send me a dm to say hi. I'd love to hear what you thought about today's episode. I hope you'll come back next week and hang out with us again.