8 Things Only a Mother Would Do One-Handed

There is a heck of a lot of stuff that moms do crazy different after kids come into the picture. This shouldn’t surprise anyone, but it’s hard to get stuff done when a child wants to be held on and off throughout the day. This is when moms start using their one-handed tricks because they don’t have time to wait around all. day. long.

Moms are mind-blowingly efficient, leaving many of us wonder how we weren’t WAY more productive in our pre-kid life. Here are just a few things moms used to do with two hands that they now do using only one…

Cut and dice vegetables, whisk eggs, and make an omelet.

Ever find yourself chopping onions with a chef’s knife one-handed. Or mixing up the stir-fry on the stove with one hand stirring and the other securely holding your child to your hip.

The other thing you might end up doing one-handed is grilling. Yep. Sounds totally unsafe, but when you don’t have any help, sometimes it’s just better to flip burgers with a toddler in one hand and a spatula in another.

Unzip, go to the bathroom, re-zip.

Not only do you have regular visitors during bathroom visits, but if you are fortunate enough to visit a public restroom, you are probably holding your baby or toddler in one hand while you un-zip, wipe and re-zip with the other. Surely, no one else would venture to try this except a mother.

Talk on the phone, take 3 messages, and remember them all.

Can you visualize it? Child on one hip and mom holding the phone to her ear with the other. Now if you need to write a number down and take a message that will require an advanced skill. Hold the phone using your shoulder, write the message with one hand and keep your child secure using the other.

Eat every. single. meal with only one hand.

Most meals you probably find yourself regularly hold a child. It’s almost like the world’s best diet plan because you can never seem to really eat as much only using one hand at every meal.

Wash face, apply moisturizer, powder, and of course, mascara.

Washing your face, brushing your teeth, putting on makeup and getting dressed—yes, all those things are now done with only one hand. The hardest part is getting dressed, but hey, moms have awesome skills.

Brew and drink strong coffee.

Coffee is important to a lot of moms. You might even say you could make coffee with no hands if you were desperate enough. Coffee filter, water, grind beans—it all gets done with only one hand.

Complete vacuuming, dusting, laundry and dishes.

Mopping, vacuuming, the garbage, laundry, dusting, cleaning toilets….yes, most moms have done all of these things one handed more than most realize. Any other chore you can think of? Moms have done it one handed.

Change a diaper like a one-handed MacGyver mom.

Only the best moms can do this one handed, and sadly, I am not one of them. I desperately wish I had this skill, but my child squirms and wiggles way too much to be contained! One day I hope to be a diaper ninja like all those other moms.

Want more on parenting and motherhood?

• For All the Moms of Toddlers
• What Kids Secretly Want to Tell You About Roughhousing — Girls Included!
• Why Every Great Mom Fills Her Cup First

These, of course, are not ALL the things moms do one-handed! So tell me, what do you do one-handed now that you are a mama?