Mother's Day: How to find 'me' time as a mum

It has been estimated that the average mother gets just under two hours to herself a week. Every day can seem like it is filled with endless school runs, ferrying children to various clubs and bedtime routines.

Throw in a full-time or part-time job, as well as preparing meals and household chores, and it can feel like the week has disappeared in a blink of an eye.

For many finding a moment to relax on your own can feel almost impossible among non-stop errands and cries of 'what's for tea?'.

But it's important that as a mum you do take a break to re-charge your batteries, which will benefit both yourself and your children.

So, what can mums do to ensure they get some quality alone time?

Try introducing a regular 'me-time' treat a day – whether it's a cup of a tea and half an hour's reading in bed before you wake the kids or a visit to see a friend for a cuppa and a natter before you pick them up.

Depending on the age of your children, you can introduce daily quiet time for them to nap, play or do their homework. While they do this you can do something that's just for you. Even if it's just 30 minutes, it will be time for you to clear your head, take a bubble bath, read a few chapters or listen to some music.

Get organised by jotting down what you need to do each day and when. This will give you a better idea of how you can allocate some time to yourself, see friends or go to the gym.

Start up a rota with your husband or partner for weekends to give each other 'an afternoon off'. One can go out for a few hours while the other looks after the children but make sure you don't end up spending this free time doing errands. If you're a single mother, then team up with some other mums to share the load and give each other the chance to 'escape' for a bit.

Meal planning can also be a way of making evenings go more smoothly, giving you more time to relax at the end of the day.

Dedicate a few minutes every Sunday to think about what you're going to eat during the following week and ensure you have the ingredients you need or note them on a shopping list if you don't. This will save you or your partner from panicking around tea-time because you've not thought ahead and save you some time – every little helps!

And while you're thinking about groceries, make the most of supermarket deliveries and order everything online. You won't need to drag yourself around the aisles each week because it can be done much quicker with clicks of the mouse. Another way to save some time in the evening is to make double what you need, freeze what's left and then you have an easy meal ready and waiting for another day.

For Shropshire mum Sarah Jenkinson, aged 35, who has a four-year-old daughter and a two-year-old son, organisation is key.

She also works part-time as a teaching assistant at a village primary school but believes she is luckier than most because she manages to keep regular plans with friends and also makes it to a weekly exercise class.

Sarah says she does this by making definite plans for activities important to her as this helps her to stick to them.

"I'm lucky because I have a job that thankfully works around the hours that my children are in nursery and pre-school. I finish early enough to collect them so juggling work and childcare is not normally too difficult as long as one of them doesn't get a sniffle and is sent home from nursery.

"When it comes to finding 'me time' that can be more difficult. Some weeks it can feel like I've had no time to myself and even my job, as much as I love it, still involves looking after children.

"My husband Mark is very good though because even after a long day at work he is more than happy to cook or do bath-time, we divide what needs to be done between us. If we are lucky, we get a couple hours to ourselves once the children are in bed, if I'm not too tired and need to go to sleep!

"Once a week I go to an evening aerobics and Zumba class. I knew that unless I committed to something set in stone, it would never happen. It's no good saying I'll go to the gym once a week because it would never happen. This way I have to be at the leisure centre for a set time and I find that works for me.

"I also meet up with some friends one afternoon a fortnight, with the kids in tow. We normally find a child-friendly cafe or something similar and this means we can catch up and put the world to rights over tea and cake – as long as our children aren't screaming the place down!

"I think the best thing mums can do is to keep making plans because it makes you stick to them. It can seem a lot of work but it's worth it," adds Sarah.

By Heather Large