Rosters, Routines, Schedules, Timetables, Programs, Plans.............

assorted planners are available on-line
 or you can make your own

Parenting can be hard. 

Especially when juggling the family household, work commitments, and anything else you want to do.
Some days we can feel so overwhelmed, they seem to blur into weeks or months.

At times we can be so consumed by everything, we may begin to doubt ourselves and our ability to cope with every part of being a parent and what that fully entails,

especially when considering the additional demands we need to cater to for a child with a disability.

The first thing we need to do, is set out a plan/roster/routine/schedule of the day-to-day needs etc.

Now I know some of you are going to say - no.... it won't work,

I don't have the time, it's too hard to organise.

But humour me anyway.

Remember that this is as much for you, as well as everyone in the family.

As you start to process everything, you'll begin noticing the regularity of what you are doing,

this will then have a flow through effect in other areas.

I always remember when my kids were little, between the new-born/toddler ages through to early school years, we were so pedantic about the routine we needed to set out for ourselves.

Being new and fresh and all so exciting, it was easy to set out an idea of what we wanted and how we needed to implement it all.

I will admit that not everything worked out exactly as we imagined it,

but the general flow of things worked pretty well to plan, even if it was for the simple fact that we needed to get certain things done in each day.

Over the years I have set out many different roster systems and time-line schedules depending on the age of our kids, work and school demands, as well as sporting/recreation and household expectations.

With it all I realised that what was/is important is the time we spend with our family, doing what 'we' want to do,

remembering you can't gain back lost time.
These days I have got to the point I will tell everyone.....
...... "if it's not in the diary it won't happen!"

The steps begin by assuring you start the day the same, waking up at the same time each day, this came about due to the struggles we had with A.J. when he first came to us, realising as we gained a routine, we needed to keep it flowing.

So I do this for week-days and weekends, (other than the occasional holiday treat etc),

so beginning a regular routine that becomes an automatic process.

Firstly we set out a time-line list for each thing needing to be done.

For example:- a weekly roster is set out on the fridge which we change each Sunday

My schedule notes stating daily activities are included -such as - 

- appointments - meetings - household requirements - work related schedules -

- as well as providing a separate listing for each family member's events etc -

- chores, are also added, and at times a reward chart has been included -

- each day is broken into morning, afternoon, evening, for easier organisation.

We have so much going on I need to know EVERYTHING is noted as soon as confirmed so as not to double-book or forget anything.

I try to work on only 1 or 2 important meeting/schedules per day for myself, working with-in school times, to be there for A.J. in the afternoons,

making sure I also have some down-time for myself, so I don't 'burn-out', helping me to stay focused when needed.

find the right schedule to suit your family

With A.J. I've had different rosters depending on age appropriate necessity - 

We always included him in organising the roster so he feels a part of the decision making.

The roster was mostly to assure he kept his regular schedule, and knew what was happening if there were unavoidable changes, so he wouldn't become panicked and overwhelmed.  

He would have a copy of his routine on the wall in his room so he could view it any time.

using a reward chart can help
-tick the circle to get points

Picture clues worked well for him when he was younger - with simple instructions.

There are different ways of setting these up   

 -on a single roster chart -

- or using separate cards for each instruction -

I worked more on separate cards, this option allowed us to remove/add/change anything when required.

- we would also use actual pictures with A.J. in them, to be more relatable.

When working on a time schedule you could also include the use of a timer clock.

look up different websites or my go-to is pinterest for many free downloads or just to get ideas to make your own.

I hope some of these ideas help to get you going or start searching on-line for more options.