Habits of a happy SAHM is a topic I want to write on for a very long time. Not because it is something that has fascinated various communities of people across the globe for a long time now. But because, it is something we should talk about more often in order to help SAHM across the globe to live a happy & fulfilling lives.
With 13 years of SAHM experience under my belt, and meeting & interacting with a lot of other fellow SAHM, I have put down this list of habits of a happy SAHM.
The Stay at Home Moms have often been accused of having an easy life. With only a house & kids to look after, Stay at Home Moms do not contributing to the financial influx & hence has been taken for granted. They are thought as someone who is a support function and never the one directly creating any significant value.
17 Habits of a Happy SAHM
So here is the list of 17 habits that I feel make up a happy Stay at Home Mom. Additionally, These are also the things happy Stay at home moms do consistently & intentionally to live a fulfilling life.
| 1. Laugh Often |
| 2. Move your Body |
| 3. Keep Friendships |
| 4. Follow your Passion |
| 5. Dress Well |
| 6. Follow a fulfilling Morning Routine |
| 7. Learn & Improvise |
| 8. Take Lead |
| 9. Tune Out of Mommy Time |
| 10. Experiment |
| 11. Be Organised |
| 12. Eat Healthy |
| 13. Plan their day Ahead |
| 14. Spend Quality Time with Kids & Spouse |
| 15. Automate Things |
| 16. Avoid the Toxic People & Downers |
| 17. Let it Go |
1. Laugh Often
One of the powerful habits of a happy stay at home mom is to laugh often. Laughter is the best therapy, they say. And laughing often on life, its challenges and sometimes on your own self is an indication of your strength and grit.
There are numerous benefits of developing this healthy habit in yourself. From keeping up mood & vibe in your house, to being the fun mom to your kids, from keeping your stress levels low to being an attractive person, a laugh all so often can be a great addition to your self-improvement agenda.
| While life presents immense opportunities to SAHM to have a hearty laugh every now and then, you might also want to explore the whole world of comedy on screen to live upto your laughter goals. Grab your own Amazon Fire stick and I can vouch for the amazing content you can catch up with via various apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime etc. right on your TV screen. |
2. Move Your Body
Happy Stay at Home Moms indulge in daily fitness activities and prioritise their health over the chores. Exercise keeps your body fit & healthy and is a big enabler to your overall happiness. Release of happy hormones while exercising is what keeps the SAHM looking great & feeling happy.
| I have lately developed a healthy exercise routine for myself. And stepping out of house for my morning walk is something I really cherish now. This is how I do it every day. I multitask my 40 minutes of walk routine. With my headphones and favourite books on Audible, I finish my daily calorie burnout and my daily quota of knowledge simultaneously.
Exercising is something that just cannot take a back seat for us SAHM and so I have invested in An Apple Watch last week and I am loving it so far. The ease with which I can now track my fitness goals now is commendable. If your budget allows, do give it a thought to buy this one for yourself. Needless to say, it is seamless and looks Uber cool too. |
3. Keep Friendships
Keeping your friendships alive and kicking is another awesome habit of a happy SAHM. With kids, life and house taking most of your mind space, if you can keep your personal social relationships prioritised too, it definitely adds on to some amazing times and your happiness.
4. Follow Your Passion
It is very easy for SAHM to get engrossed in the endless chores for managing the kids and the house, and loose the fundamental connection with their own selves. Happy SAHMs intentionally make efforts to stay connected to their true selves and follow their passions.
Taking out a little time everyday for your own selves and doing things that you enjoy is something that is very fulfilling and meaningful. And hence adds on to your overall happiness quotient.
| For years, I have lived through a life where I had nothing beyond my chores / To-do List to finish for the day. And over time, it had resulted in boredom, fatigue and loss of interest in even the basic chores. However, soon I realised that it was not the best way to live my life and started introducing small changes to my life.
Baking bread, Developing chemical-free skincare products, cooking with millets are few classes I had taken in 2019 to renew my interests. Also, Mandala Colouring, Reading Books & listening to interesting podcasts are some of the other interests that I always keep in touch with. |
5. As a SAHM, Dress Well
This one is essential on the list of Habits of a happy SAHM. Wearing flattering outfits and flaunting your style really adds up to how you see life.
6. Follow a Fulfilling Morning Routine
A good start to the day is another great tip for SAHM to stay happy. Having a well structured morning routine sets you up for a winning day. It ensures that you maintain your calm in challenging situations and live out your best version through out the day.
If you are looking for some inspiring Morning Routine ideas and how to create your very own Morning Routine, see this.
7. Learn & Improvise
This is a valuable life skill for everyone to have. However, it gains much more importance and prominence while we talk about Habits of a happy SAHM. Because in the middle of 1000 things on our mind, it is often easy to forget the basic rules like this to living a fulfilling life.
Learning new skills & having a will to improvise and add value are precious life skills that take you from where you stand today to where you want to be. However, it does not happen instinctively and easily. Living a progressive life requires unwavering intent & hard work.
8. Take Lead
Another habit for SAHM to remain happy is to take lead in some selected areas basis your own prowess. Take initiative and follow through the project to completion and you would be amazed at the amount of fulfillment you would experience.
| So like for me, managing the house budget, savings, planning travel & vacations come naturally to me. And hence I am the who takes lead and pulls these things through at my house. However, I ensure to involve everyone else & delegate tasks and follow up on their closure too. |
9. Tune Out of Mommy Time
This is one of the most important of all habits of a happy SAHM. Taking frequent breaks and tuning out completely from motherhood is something that I strongly believe in.
This has helped me maintain my sanity in the middle of a teen & a primary schooler. Every day at 9:30 pm is when I am tuned out and don’t listen to anything about kids or by kids unless there is an emergency like a health concern. Also, I believe in taking my Me time seriously and doing what I love to do in that time to refresh myself.
10. Experiment
Experimenting with few things and taking risks at times keeps the excitement in life. Be it dishing out new recipes or trying out a new craft, checking out a completely different lipstick shade to experimenting with a new playdate idea, I am all in for it.
| The latest I have tried is this educational game which beautifully interfaces between the virtual play & physical play for my son. And we both loved it. |
11. Be Organized
Being organized & orderly is a good form of self-care. Having a clutter-free home and organized processes help in freeing the mind space and reducing the overwhelm of the SAHM thereby increasing their happiness quotient.
However, there is more to being organised than just an organised home. Being Organised also refers to SAHM being organised in their thoughts, their routines, their chores & their life. You can read about some awesome tips on how to stay organised here.
12. Eat Healthy
You are what you eat. And no other quote can do justice in expressing the importance of healthy food in human life. And so is true for SAHM. Eating healthy leads to their overall wellbeing & once you are fit, you are more likely to be happy since you don’t get bogged down by the pressures of daily life.
| I have been trying to incorporate a lot of healthy eating habits for the last 2 years. It is always a home-baked bread for my family. We don’t buy packed bread. Also, I have moved to cold pressed oils for cooking and buy only organic vegetables & fruits. My kitchen to a very large extent is aluminum, plastic & nonstick free. |
13. Plan Their Day Ahead
Planning your day in advance as a SAHM builds in the element of calmness and takes away any anxiety attached to the unpredictability. Hence it is a great habit to build in yourself as a SAHM. A simple Todo List or a detailed schedule, take your pick and plan your day either as apart of your morning routine or night before.
14. Spend Quality Time with Kids & Spouse
This one brings no surprise to the table. Spending quality & mindful time with the kids and your partner adds up to your feeling fulfilled and happy.
15. Automate Things
Automating things refers to eating the same breakfast every day leading to a significant amount of released mindshare that is available for you to use elsewhere.
| I have adopted this habit recently and I am pleasantly surprised at how in control & on top of things I feel. My weekday breakfast is on the automated schedule which means every alternate day I cook the same breakfast. I am saving up on a lot of mental energy that used to go wasted by thinking everyday what to cook for breakfast. And with that free mind space, I am able to manage much more in the same time I have each morning. |
16. Avoid the Toxic People & Downers
This is simpler than it sounds. Stay away from Naysayers, toxic people who pull you down or judge your motherhood. Surround yourself with another lot of positive happy and optimistic people.
17. Let it Go
And this one habit of Letting it go when it is not worth carrying it in your heart goes a long way in keeping you and your family happy. The negative comments, let downs, fears and your negative thoughts are all better let gone. Listen to “Let it Go” from Disney’s Frozen and lift yourself up. That is what I do often.
I am a Happy SAHM & I Work on my Happiness Everyday
Being a stay at home mom comes with its share of ups & downs, everyday wins and failures. However, tasing it all in my stride work on my happiness every day. It is a choice that I make every day when I am spending my “Me Time”. Few additional things that really add up to me being a happy lively & Chipper mom are as under.
I make my house smell good
Using an oil diffuser and essential oils gives a nice fragrance to my home. And this really helps in having a good mood most of the time. Also, I find a positive vibe with a place that smells good. However, I try and go for the purest & natural essential oil in order to stay away & not breath in the toxicity of chemicals.
I Meditate
I take out 20 minutes every day for my meditation. It is the silent time I spend with myself. And, this is an integral part of my everyday Morning Routine. Chanting & Meditation helps me be more self-aware & understand myself better.
I have FUN
Playing board games with my kids, sharing their Halloween candy, becoming a tickling monster or messing it up with paints, I enjoy doing it all. From telling them stories and doing funny role plays to caring less for the mess and more for the precious memories, this is me.
I Shop
Another thing that I believe strongly adds on to my overall joy is the shopping that I do. I do indulge in shopping but in a planned way. I look out for deals and shop for the high ticket items in the discounts or sales.
So this is all that I wanted to say about the habits of a happy stay at home mom do share your comments and experiences your strategies and tips to becoming a happy stay at home mom with me.
Being a stay at home mom is not easy and I understand that. And I hope with posts like this at my blog we are able to inspire a few of my fellow SAHM to break free and develop some positive habits for life.