The new Sara Jessica Parker movie “I Don’t Know How She Does It” comes out in theaters nationwide today. If you have not seen the trailer yet, here it is:

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjQIv1KI59s

Though I have not seen the movie yet I am pretty sure I read the book on which it is based. I tear through those chick lit books at a pace as rapid as the trailer for this movie. We can all relate to the frenzied pace of SJP’s character and the tasks that she faces.

How do you keep your life together without losing it?

First of all you have to accept that everyone loses it once it a while. It is the bounce back from those low points, and the humor that you can take from your own wacky moments that separates the chaos from the calm.

Setting clear expectations for everyone in your household helps a lot. Reinforcing the idea again and again: we are a team, we sink or float together.

That’s the simple answer, but this takes practice.

For my family it starts FIRST THING in the morning. Everyone gets themselves up, dressed, fed, and packed for their day (if they haven’t the night before)  This way we can all enjoy a little free time before the mad dash out of the house to school or work.

We used a marble jar at the beginning to get out of the house in the morning. Now it is a learned habit and the jar doesn’t come into play.

Marble Jar Morning Routine

As I type this Steve is rearranging his fantasy football roster, and Ollie and Leo are distributing lego star wars figurine in some way that is apparently equitable for both sides. Number of weapons and epic battles factor in of course, but also relative scarcity in the household. The new Asoka seems to net 3 clones FYI.

Here we are in illustrated form practicing.

Here are the boys enjoying their free time RIGHT NOW

Boys enjoying free time in the morning