When you become a mom, your days tend to fill up quickly. There are meals to think about, school schedules, work, errands, appointments, housework, family plans, and a hundred small things that somehow become your responsibility to remember. Even when you enjoy your life and wouldn’t trade motherhood for anything, it can still be easy to get into a routine where most of what you do is connected to someone else.
That doesn’t necessarily mean you need a big self-care routine.
Sometimes you just want to do something that is yours.
Maybe you want to try a different hairstyle, start writing in a journal again, spend some time on a hobby, take a walk without your phone, or simply change something about your usual routine. These things aren’t necessarily about fixing stress or becoming a completely different person. They’re just small ways of paying attention to yourself too.
That’s the idea behind this 24 Little Things to Try printable.
24 Little Things to Try
I made this calendar for moms who want to try a few things for themselves without turning it into another long list of things they have to accomplish.
There are 24 simple ideas on the calendar. Some are practical, some are just for fun, and some are small habits you might want to continue after you’ve tried them.
For example, one day asks you to start a journal and write one sentence about your day. You don’t need to write several pages or find the perfect notebook. One sentence is enough to get started.
Another day suggests trying a hairstyle you don’t normally wear. It could be something completely new or simply a different way of putting your hair up. It’s a small change, but sometimes doing something differently can make an ordinary day feel a little less repetitive.
There are also ideas such as taking a short phone-free walk, doing a gentle five-minute warm-up, listening to music while you get ready, spending a little time learning something you enjoy, looking through your favorite photos from the year, and wearing something you’ve been saving for a special occasion.
None of these require a major change to your schedule.
This Isn’t Another Self-Care Challenge
There are plenty of self-care lists for moms that tell you to take a bath, meditate, drink more water, wake up before everyone else, exercise every day, or spend a certain amount of time doing something relaxing.
Those things can be great. But they aren’t necessarily what everyone wants.
You may already have a morning routine you like. You may already exercise. You may not like meditation. You may have no interest in taking a bath, and you certainly don’t need another person telling you that you should wake up earlier.
This calendar is meant to be a little more open-ended.
The ideas are simply things you can try. If you already do something, that’s fine. You can use the space in the box to write your own idea instead.
I wanted the printable to leave room for that because you know yourself better than a generic self-care list does.
Use the Blank Space for Your Own Ideas
Each box has some extra space that you can use however you like.
You could write your own activity if you don’t want to do the suggested one. You could add something you’ve been wanting to try for a while, make a note of something you enjoyed, or use the space to write a little reminder to yourself.
For example, if the calendar suggests taking a phone-free walk and you already do that regularly, you could write down something completely different that you’d like to try that day.
The calendar doesn’t have to be exactly the same for everyone.
That’s part of the reason I wanted to leave the space open rather than turning every box into another instruction.
How to Use the 24-Day Calendar
You can start with Day 1 and work through the calendar in order, or you can simply choose an idea that sounds good to you.
You also don’t have to complete one every single day.
If life gets busy and you miss a day, don’t worry about catching up. Just continue when you have time. This isn’t meant to become another unfinished challenge sitting on your desk.
And if you find something you really like, keep doing it.
For example, if writing one sentence in your journal feels good, there’s no reason to stop after that particular day. If you enjoy the phone-free walks, you can make them an occasional part of your week. If you discover that a five-minute stretch helps after you’ve been sitting for a long time, you can use it whenever you need it.
The 24 ideas are really just starting points.
Getting Back to Yourself After Motherhood
One reason I like the idea of small experiments is that motherhood doesn’t erase the person you were before you had children. Your interests and routines may change, and your priorities certainly change, but there are probably still things you’re curious about, things you enjoy, and things you’d like to explore.
You don’t have to recreate your pre-mom life.
You can simply make a little space for the person you are now.
That might mean picking up an old hobby, changing your hair, learning something new, making time for a friend, reading something that has nothing to do with parenting, or finding a few minutes to think about what you want more of in the coming year.
Sometimes it is easier to start with something very small than to decide that you’re going to completely overhaul your life.
A Simple Mom Reset
If you’ve been searching for a mom reset, this printable is meant to be a gentle place to start.
You don’t need to plan an entire new routine. You don’t need to spend money on a new self-care kit. You don’t need to find an hour every day.
Just try one little thing.
You may keep some of the ideas and forget about others. You may write your own ideas in the blank spaces and end up with a list that is much more useful to you than anything I could have planned.
And that’s exactly what I hope you’ll do.
Download the Free Printable
I’ve made 24 Little Things to Try as a one-page US Letter printable that you can print at home.
It has 24 numbered boxes, each with a small suggestion and some space for your own ideas. The design has a subtle Christmas feel, so it works especially well as a December printable, but the activities themselves aren’t limited to Christmas.
Print it, put it somewhere you’ll see it, and start whenever you want.
You don’t need to wait for Monday, January 1st, or the beginning of a new year. If one of the ideas catches your attention today, that’s a perfectly good place to start.
If you’re thinking about the year ahead and want a few more realistic ideas to carry forward, you might also like these 10 Gentle New Year Goals for Moms. They focus on simple changes that can fit into real life rather than another list of resolutions to keep perfectly.
What’s Inside the 24 Little Things to Try Calendar?
The 24 ideas are a mix of small changes, things to try, and simple habits you might want to keep. Some take only a few minutes, while others are things you can fit into your normal routine.
You’ll find ideas for starting a one-sentence journal, trying a different hairstyle, taking a five-minute break when you’re feeling overwhelmed, and having an unhurried shower instead of rushing through it. Here are some 5-minute breaks that you can incorporate in your daily life.
There are a few ideas that are more reflective too. You might write down three things you’d like more of in your life, record something that made you laugh, write down something you’re proud of, or finish the sentence, “Next year, I want more…”
And then there are the ideas that are simply about doing something because you enjoy it. Spend some time learning about something you’re interested in, revisit a hobby, look through your favorite photos, make a playlist, or spend a few minutes doing something you enjoyed before becoming a mom.
You can also use the blank space in each calendar box to add your own ideas. Here are a few more you could choose from:
- Read a few pages of a book just for fun.
- Try a new recipe you’ve been saving.
- Rearrange a small corner of your room.
- Call a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while.
- Try a new nail color.
- Spend 15 minutes on a hobby.
- Visit a place nearby you’ve never been.
- Learn something completely unrelated to work or parenting.
- Make a list of movies you want to watch.
- Take yourself out for a coffee.
- Try a new way of styling an outfit you already own.
- Spend an evening without scrolling social media.
- Make a small wish list of things you’d like to do next year.
- Take a few photos just because you like how something looks.
- Write a note to your future self.
- Do something you’ve been saying “I’ll do that someday” about.
You don’t have to use these as a checklist either. Pick the ones that sound like you and leave the rest.
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