Celebrate with sense

You are not the Christmas Fairy or the Easter Bunny so don’t overwhelm yourself during holidays or family celebrations. Buy gifts throughout the year – you’ll spend a lot less money, and save so much time.

Submitted by: Jenni Trent Hughes

Rating: 4 out of 5

Check in to your very own hotel

So your family treat the home like a hotel? Well now you get to do the same. Make a 'Do not disturb' sign for your bedroom/bathroom door when you need a little longer in bed or the bath. You could even put your laundry outside the bedroom door and see if you get any takers.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Don’t be Mum's taxi

Between school, sports clubs and other social commitments, you might as well have a 'taxi' sign on your car! Why not work out a rota with a few other Mums and share out the lifts? Just think of all that free time you’ll have...

Rating: 4 out of 5

Don't cook it, just buy it

The family are expecting a hearty meal, but you've got your eye on a relaxing evening with a glass of red and a DVD. Instead of cooking, buy it. Just this once. Or maybe once a week...

Rating: 3 out of 5

Flake out on Fridays

You should be winding down on Friday, not fretting about the weekend plans. Give yourself a 7pm Friday night deadline, when all cooking, cleaning and running round after the kids is officially over. If that means ordering a takeaway and putting off washing the school uniforms until the morning.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Get some flour power

Dip your hands into flour when an unwanted guest 'pops' round to pretend you're right in the middle of baking and couldn't possibly stop for a cuppa.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Get the kids involved

Kids love a challenge, so why not make it work to your advantage and challenge them to some housework? It's amazing how exciting they find sock-pairing when you turn it into a competition. If only we could all find it that enjoyable.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Lazy iron

Who needs an iron when you’ve got a husband who lies flat on the sofa? 1. Place garments underneath sofa cushions. 2. Re-position husband. 3. Leave for a couple of hours. Job done!

Rating: 4 out of 5

Let the kids cook

Whether it's chopping the veg, peeling the potatoes or baking a cake, kids seem to love helping out in the kitchen, so take advantage! It's not child labour, it's a labour of love for them!

Rating: 4 out of 5

Make a daily commitment to yourself

Every day for a week put aside 5 minutes just for you. Chill out on the sofa, go for a walk around the garden or read a magazine. After a week, do the same, but for 10 minutes. Then in week three, take 15 minutes. Studies have shown that repeating new behaviour every day for three weeks can put you solidly on the road to permanent changes.

Submitted by: Jenni Trent Hughes

Rating: 4 out of 5

Make a proper plan

Come up with a list of everything that needs to be done around the house. It might take 15 minutes that you don’t think you have to spare, but it will save you lots more time in the long run.

Submitted by: Jenni Trent Hughes

Rating: 4 out of 5

Plan ahead

We live in an age of labour-saving devices and time saving ideas, so take advantage! Stick three main courses in the oven on a Sunday and spread them over the first part of the week – dinner in 10. Put the clothes to wash before you go to sleep and pop them in the drier before you leave for work in the morning. Give the kids UndyBags where they sta

Submitted by: Jenni Trent Hughes

Rating: 4 out of 5

Plan ahead

Getting everyone ready in the morning can be like a military operation. Ask the kids to get everything they need for the next day ready the night before. Then in the morning they won’t be scrabbling around trying to find things – and you can enjoy an extra 10 minutes in bed.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Running rings

Instead of spending hours in the gym each evening, take your sports kit to work and go for a jog in your lunch hour.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Share the load

Set up a reward system – and be sure to include yourself! This could be as simple as a gold star chart pinned to the wall. Give prizes to the member of the family who does the most to help around the house. This could be anything from their favourite meal to a family outing.

Submitted by: Jenni Trent Hughes

Rating: 4 out of 5

Shop 'til you drop online

Internet shopping will save you bags of time. Get your weekly food shop delivered to your door and save yourself trawling the supermarket aisles. While you're online, you might as well check out the sales too...

Rating: 4 out of 5

Tire them out

The saying goes, 'If you can’t beat 'em, join 'em'. So when your kids are full of energy, take them for a fun family day out – and tire them out! There'll be no battles getting them into bed, so you’ll have plenty of time to kick back and relax on the sofa. Bliss.

Rating: 5 out of 5