Monday mornings used to feel way harder than they needed to.
For a long time Sundays felt like that moment where the weekend was ending but nothing was actually ready for the week yet… backpacks still unpacked from Friday, fridge full of leftovers and berries with questionable growth on them lol, laundry sitting there, and Monday morning already feeling behind before the week even started.
And when both parents work full time it’s not even just the chores… it’s the remembering. Daycare reminders, groceries we ran out of, meals, school stuff, the CONSTANT little things your brain keeps track of all week.
What finally clicked for me was realizing the week doesn’t need some huge perfect reset… it just needs a few small things done ahead of time so Monday morning isn’t starting from zero.
So now we do a quick 20-minute Sunday reset as a family, and it honestly makes the whole week feel calmer.
And the biggest rule in our house now…
THIS does not all fall on mom.
We tackle these things together as a couple and as a family because the mental load of running a household shouldn’t sit on one person’s brain all week.
Here are the 9 things we reset every Sunday.
1. First thing I do: 2-minute brain dump in my Notes app
Anything floating in my head goes in there… daycare reminders, groceries we ran out of, an email I forgot to send, stuff I need to order for the kids.
If it’s sitting in your brain it’s taking up energy all week, so I just get it all out in one place.
2. Then I pick 3 anchor dinners
Not 7… just 3.
I literally write them in my notes like:
Mon — street corn pasta
Wed — gnocchi bake (coming soon!!)
Fri — 5 salmon sushi bowls
The other nights are leftovers, freezer meals, takeout, or fend for yourself lol.
This alone removes the 5pm “wait what are we eating tonight” panic.
You can grab my free 10-minute meal guide here with a bunch of quick dinner ideas we rotate.
3. I open Amazon / Instacart and do a 3-minute restock
Anything we ran out of during the week goes straight in there so Monday doesn’t start with an emergency grocery run.
Usually things like:
berries
milk
toddler snacks
paper towels
coffee
I drink mold-free coffee, and you can grab my favorite one here with a discount.
4. We set up one breakfast shortcut for the week
Something that takes zero brain power in the morning.
Repeat breakfasts lately because decision fatigue in the morning is real:
Red’s breakfast burritos
Kodiak pancake sausage sandwich
Jimmy Dean turkey sausage English muffin
Mason Dixie biscuit sandwich
Applegate frittata bites
Sandwich Bros sausage pita
Or
Greek yogurt + chia seeds + fruit + hard-boiled eggs.
Or
Easy, high protein, and can eat with one hand.
5. We set up Monday school necessities
This tiny reset makes Monday mornings so much easier.
We set up:
1 backup outfit per kid
backpack packed
both water bottles deep cleaned
nap mats cleaned & by the door
snacks / lunches packed
You can find our favorite daycare and school gear here.
6. We prep one snack bin in the fridge
So during the week I can literally just grab something instead of standing in the fridge wondering what to eat.
Usually things like:
cut fruit
string cheese
yogurt cups
oatmeal bites
bars
hard-boiled eggs
7. I look at my calendar and ask: where can I make life easier?
Sometimes that means:
move a meeting
order takeout one night
skip something unnecessary
schedule a walk instead of another errand
schedule working blocks during busy days so it doesn’t get overloaded
book my workout classes during my recurring call invite blocks
Tiny changes make the week feel way calmer.
I book my workouts through ClassPass, which is how I take my F45 classes for cheaper. You can grab 20 free ClassPass credits here.
8. We do a 7-minute “reset clean”
We tackle this as a team in our house.
We set a timer for 7 minutes and just hit the high-traffic spots:
quick vacmop
quick toilet scrub
wipe kitchen counters
light a candle
fluff the couch pillows
kids put toys in baskets
swap sheets & pillow spray
No deep cleaning… just a quick reset so the house feels calmer going into the week.
Things we use during this reset:
non-toxic candle
Branch Basics cleaning (discount)
the cordless vacmop I’ve used almost daily for 3 years
9. We get a laundry head start
We throw one load of towels in during the day Sunday so Monday doesn’t start with an overflowing laundry basket.
Future Monday me is always thankful for this.
We use non-toxic laundry soap, which you can find here.
If this routine resonates with you, you’ll probably like the rest of my content too.
Follow along for honest motherhood, mental load conversations, and realistic routines that actually make life easier.
