Moms, make the most of me time

Kicking back during free time does wonders for men's mood, but does little to ease the strain for busy wives and moms, a new study shows. Among mothers, free time may be too entangled with caregiving to be the 'pause that refreshes', researchers say. Take steps to make your life easier – today.

Take action:
Plan ahead – try to avoid making three separate trips to the chemist, the video shop and the supermarket; make lists – it's much easier to work your way through a list than to try and remember frantically what the last two things were you had to do; do things immediately – the telephone call to the principal of the school ends up taking you ten minutes, after you spent three days agonising about it; buy household necessities in bulk – this will avoid desperate trips to the 24-hour-shop; list kids' activities – put a copy of this on the fridge and carry one with you; and make permanent arrangements with domestic workers and babysitters.