After I became a stay at home, I had no idea what I was doing. I needed help and one of the best things I did was read books for stay at home moms.
Over the past nine years I’ve read a lot of books that have given me practical tips. So today I’m sharing a list of books I think every mom should read.
As a stay at home mom you balance a lot and it can feel overwhelming if you don’t know what you’re doing. That’s why you can gather a wealth of advice from books written by other stay-at-home mothers who have come before you.
First, I’ll share the best books for moms. Then I’ll give you practical ideas to find reading time as a busy mom.
Most of the links are my affiliate links.
Time Management Books for Stay at Home Moms
1. Say Goodbye to Survival Mode
This was one of the first books I read as a new mom. It was written by Crystal Paine, a mother to 3 at the time who was also running a successful blog.
The title of this book, Say Goodbye to Survival Mode, is what intrigued me because I was in survival mode during those early days of motherhood. At the time I had no idea how I was supposed to get the to-do list done.
Crystal’s book helped me prioritize my life and fit it into a daily routine.
2. Successful Stay at Home Mom
This is an instant downloadable workbook that is a quick read with practical worksheets. It helps you create a daily schedule which is so important as a stay at home mom.
I wrote this workbook, Successful Stay at Home Mom, as a practical guide for stay at home moms who want easy steps they can take to find life balance.
There are 9 sections that help with time management, cleaning the house, and spending quality time with your kids.
3. Eat that Frog
This book is not geared specifically to mothers, but it is helped me so much with my time management. Besides the simple tips, Eat That Frog is an easy read.
Financial Books for Stay at Home Moms
4. You Can Stay Home with Your Kids
I found this book so encouraging. Erin Odom got really personal and shared how much she and her husband struggled financially in order for her to stay home.
Even though they struggled, they overcame both the mental and financial hurdles to having her stay home.
You Can Stay Home with Your Kids was full of Erin’s life lessons. I enjoyed her story telling that I could easily relate to as a stay at home mom.
5. Living Well Spending Less
Another great book with money-related tips is Living Well Spending Less. This book was written by Ruth Soukup. Her book is what encouraged me to start making my own cleaning supplies to save money.
It’s full of easy steps you can take to be in charge of your personal finances.
6. Money Making Mom
Stay at home moms can still make money at home! In fact, many moms have to provide some sort of supplemental income to their husband’s income.
Money Making Mom by Crystal Paine is both an encouraging book and full of effective tips for finding unique ways you can add to your family’s income even if you aren’t a working mom outside the home.
Parenting Books for Stay at Home Moms
7. Loving the Little Years
If you’re looking for an easy read, this is the book for you. It’s a short book with encouraging words from a mom who’s right in the trenches with you.
There are not a lot of practical tips in this one. Instead Rachel Jankovic offers words of inspiration to moms of littles.
8. Boundaries with Kids
I love all of the Boundaries books by Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. Townsend! The Boundaries with Kids book is such a good book for parents who maybe at their wits end.
When I was a teacher, I knew how to manage a classroom. However when it came to my own children, I needed practical advice for dealing with bad behavior.
This book helped take the drama out of discipline. I also love all of the real life examples that are written throughout the book.
9. Hands-free Mama
As a stay at home mom it’s really easy to get on social media at multiple times throughout the day. However you will waste a lot of time if you’re on your phone for much of the day. Plus it’s terrible for your mental health.
I had to get honest with myself about my social media consumption and learn to put my phone down more often. I don’t want to waste this precious time with my kids.
Hands Free Mama helped me recognize the need to spend quality time with my kids and really learn to be present with them.
10. Letting Go of Anger
One of the things I think moms have the most shame about is anger. Being a stay at home mom is hard mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically.
Your kids know how to push your buttons either intentionally or unintentionally. And if you are worn out and lacking important self care, it’s easy to yell at your children.
Believe me, I’ve done it and I knew I needed help. That’s why I borrowed this book from the library years ago.
Letting Go of Anger by Annie Chapman helped me so much! It’s full of biblical and practical advice.
11. The Unhurried Homeschooler
Many stay at home moms are also homeschooling moms. There is so much information out there. It can be confusing and overwhelming!
That’s why I loved Durenda Wilson’s simple approach to homeschooling in her book The Unhurried Homeschooler. It’s a super short book. I was able to finish it in only a couple of days.
She also has another book called The 4 Hour School Day with more specific action tips. Both of her books are easy to read and provide lots of encouragement for your family life.
Household books
12. Love the Home You Have
A big part of being a stay at home mom is taking care of your kids, but there is also the upkeep of the home. You spend a lot of time at home, so it’s important to create a home that you love.
It may not be perfect, but it can still be beautiful and comfortable. Love the Home You Have is full of easy tips for making your home a functional, comfortable space for your family.
13. Unstuffed
If you feel like your home is overrun with clutter, Unstuffed by Ruth Soukup will help you change that. Your daily life is affected by the clutter in your home.
This book will give you the nudge to get rid of the extra things taking up space in your home. It’s an easy read as well.
14. Make Room for What You Love
Decluttering is part of the battle of overcoming the clutter in your home. The other part is maintaining a tidy home.
Make Room for What You Love has lots of good life advice you can use to keep up with the messes each day.
Finding Time to Read as a Stay at Home Mom
Now that you know what books to read, let’s talk about how to actually read them.
You’re a busy mom taking care of kids and the house all day and it may feel like you have no time to read. But you do!
Not only that, reading is a great way to practice self care.
Here’s a quick list of things that have helped me and will hopefully give you some good ideas too.
- Listen to audio books while you drive, wash dishes, or go for walks.
- Read for 15 minutes before bed instead of watching TV.
- Have a reading time each day when the kids look at books and you read.
- Read a book while the kids play in the backyard.
- Read a book while the kids do independent play.
- Tell your husband you would like to have some reading time and work out the schedule with him.