Advances in technology can and should be used to your advantage as a mom. Apps like Chat GPT are no exception. This app can help to answer questions, aid in planning, and save you a lot of time that you can then spend with your kids. In this post, we will focus on Chat GPT and how it can help you in motherhood. I will also share some helpful apps in each section that will aid in that particular issue.
Chat GPT: What It Is and Getting Started
Chat GPT is a free app, there is a paid version of the app, but the free version has been useful in many contexts. I’ve never wished I had the paid version, but we will go over both in the next section. We will also go over how to use it and five instances to use it in the context of being a mom. There are many more than this, but this list is meant to help you get started and save time. As moms, we are busy, and anything that helps to simplify our life, is welcomed.
How to Use Chat GPT
The first step is to locate Chat GPT in the App Store. Just type in “Chat GPT” and find the app that looks like this:
Download the app and sign up for an account. You can choose a few options when signing up. You can decide whether you want a free or paid account. I have personally used the free account and haven’t felt the need to pay for one. You can also turn your memory on or off so that the app can remember your previous inquiries.
Writing Prompts
When writing prompts, you can be very specific if you want results to mirror a certain answer. However, if you are looking for general information, prompts can be more vague. It really depends on what information you are looking for. Chat GPT will also ask additional questions so that the full answer is provided. In each section, I will provide prompts to try out.
What Technology can Help with in Motherhood
Meal Planning and Meal Prep
One of the many duties in motherhood is making sure our families have proper nutrition. Making a meal plan can be extremely time consuming. Chat GPT can be used either to make your entire meal plan and will even give you a grocery list or it can be used to aid in making the meal plan.
Prompts to Consider
“Can I have a meal plan for my family of four for the next week? We do not eat dairy and would like to stick to a budget of $100 or less. Please include breakfast, lunch, and dinner for each day of the week. We would like to shop at Walmart in central Wisconsin.”
“Can I have a list of websites that provide recipes for families on a budget?”
“Where can I find the cheapest groceries in my area?”
“Can I have 10 snack ideas for my kids, age 1 and 5?”
Additional Apps that Help with Meal Planning
My absolute favorite meal planning app is Copy Me That. With this app, the user can save recipes that are found anywhere on the internet, add them to a meal plan, and then add all the ingredients to a grocery list. I use to do this process using Pinterest and the notes app, but this has simplified it and made it much less time consuming.
My next most used app when it comes to meal planning is the Walmart app. I use this app to add all of my groceries and then order them and do a pick up. This process is much easier than entering the store with crabby kids. A tip that I have learned is to sort your search by lowest price to find the best deals. If Walmart Plus is offered in your area, you can even have groceries delivered to your door. Unfortunately, I had a horrible experience with Walmart Plus, but I do live in a smaller area. I have heard good things about it in larger cities. When I canceled it after a month, I did receive a full refund.
This one isn’t an app, but a website that I absolutely love. Budget Bytes has provided our family of four with countless recipes. The recipes come with a price guide to let you know about how much it will cost to make each recipe. The recipes are always amazing quality, we are never disappointed.
Finding Free Activties
Entertaining kids gets to be exhausting and expensive. Use Chat GPT to find free activities to keep you busy in your area. You can find events, concerts, or even hidden gems near you. Instead of scouring the internet for endless hours to find the right event, simply ask Chat GPT to do the heavy lifting for you and save an enormous amount of time.
Prompts to Consider
“Find free events to do this weekend in northern Wisconsin. I have a family of four with a six year old and a ten year old.”
“Find hidden gems near me to do this summer with a family of four.”
“Find inexpensive movie tickets near me for this coming weekend.”
“Find an event near me that involves princesses for a four year old.”
Additional Apps that Help with Finding Free Activities
My most used app that helps find events in my area is Facebook. Follow pages of venues that offer free events, your local schools, and groups that offer events every year. Ask in your local mom’s group or use the search function to find events. If you are planning an event or party, you can even use Facebook to organize it and invite participants for free.
Eventbrite is an app that I recently discovered. I haven’t worked out all of the functions yet. However, I did use it to find a Princess Party for my daughter that was about an hour away from us. You can follow events, search, and purchase tickets through the app. Free events are not plentiful, but rather, paid concerts and events will be found here.
Good old Google is an oldie but a goodie. Type in similar searches like for Chat GPT to find events near you. I’ve found this useful when looking for something specific that might be harder to find on Facebook or through Chat GPT. An example would be when I was looking for a Trunk or Treat put on by a local church. I searched for the church name and Trunk or Treat to find it.
Planning Vacations
Although planning vacations can seem fun, allotting the time to carefully consider and plan each detail can deem itself difficult. Using technology can help to plan the little details, budget, and even find fun vacation spots for your particular family. Use it to find hotels, restaurants, or activities while on vacation or use it to aid in the planning process.
Prompts to Consider
“Find a vacation for my family of four (including a five and seven year old) in the United States. We want a vacation for five days and want to spend under $5,000 total for all accommodations and food.”
“Find a frugal vacation in Illinois for a family of four. Our budget is $1,000. The kids ages are ten and thirteen.”
“Find a relaxing four day vacation for my family of five with activities for kids under ten.”
“We are going to Florida in July. Help me plan my vacation for my family of seven.”
Additional Apps that Help with Planning Vacations
Booking.com has helped me plan many vacations. You can download the app or use the website version. The app will remember your last several searches. Try searching for hotels, flights, and car rentals. Use it as a tool to help get an idea on the total price of your trip.
Just looking at all of the unique properties on Air BNB is a favorite pastime of mine. We’ve only stayed at one Air BNB, but did have a pleasant experience. There were quite a few things we had to do before leaving, but it was nice to not have to worry about how loud we were early in the morning with kids running around. Be sure to check out reviews of the listing prior to booking as well as any contingencies.
Utilize credit card rewards to book travel and save money. Check out the rewards on your current credit cards or look into opening new ones. A word to the wise: be sure to pay them off every month to avoid getting yourself into a pickle.
Budget Planning
Planning a budget is another tedious task that typically falls on moms. Whether you are planning a budget for the month, for a party, or for a trip – let Chat GPT help. Knowing some of your finances will help as you will need to input them to get a clear picture. However, you could also work off of a hypothetical or working budget for a trip.
Prompts to Consider
“My husband and I make $X a month and have the following xyz living expenses. Help us create a budget.”
“My budgeting goals are the pay off debt and save money. We make $X, have these expenses, and these debts. Create a budget for our month.”
“I’m planning a party and have the budget of $300. It is for my two year old’s birthday and is dog themed. There will be 20 people attending. Help me think of food, decor, and anything else needed with this budget.”
“I’m planning a trip to Orlando, Florida from Minnesota for five days with four people. Help me come up with a budget.”
Additional Apps that Help with Budget Planning
YNAB or You Need a Budget is a budgeting app that many people love. I tried it and didn’t see the hype. However, I’m usually adverse to budgeting apps because I find them either too restrictive or not restrictive enough. Since this one is so popular and many people find it helpful in the realm of budgeting apps, it made the list. Try it out and decide for yourself.
This one seems like to is not directly related, but trust me when I say: podcasts. I listen to the Frugal Friends Podcast every single day and it has helped me get into shape with my spending and budget. I’ve learned so much about 401k/IRA, budgeting, living a frugal life, and more. My tip is to find a podcast about money that you enjoy and love to listen to and the rest will follow. Seriously, if you need inspiration to budget, podcasts are where it’s at.
What do I use to budget? I use my notes app and sometimes my reminder app (on my iPhone.) In the notes app, I have a list of my monthly bills, split into two because we are paid biweekly. Every time we are paid, I go in and see what needs to be paid and check them off as I pay them. Then, with the next month, I uncheck everything and reset the list. If I have a goal to pay down a debt or save, I add it to the bottom of my list as a reminder. I also have automatic recurring payments set up to savings and my 401k. I use my reminder app if I have an abnormal bill due to remind myself to pay it.
Seeking Advice/Finding Community
Motherhood has many stages, many of which are somewhat lonely. Of course you may have your husband or parents, but sometimes it’s nice to talk to a friend or someone more removed from what you are going through. Finding community can be a challenge; putting yourself out there instead of just internalizing your angst takes a lot of strength. Why not use technology to boost your confidence and help find some community to keep your sanity?
Prompts to Consider
“I am a working mom of four living in Houston, TX. I am looking for a few friends with similar lives as me. Can you point me to some resources to help me find these friends?”
“I want to find online communities for moms of teenagers that understand my situation. Can you help me find some online communities?”
“I homeschool my two kids age 5 and 7. I am looking for a co-op for my kids to spend time with other kids their age.”
“I live in a small town in CA. I have two toddlers and need help finding and making friends.”
Additional Apps that Help with Seeking Advice/Finding Community
Facebook is a great resource for finding both online and in person friends. Try searching for mom groups in your area. If there are none, create one. If you are looking for more of an online community, try searching something like “mom of toddlers group.” Just be careful if you ask for any advice, knowing that sometimes people on the internet don’t have the best intent.
There are many different groups (or subreddits) on Reddit. Finding your community here would be online based and if you are uncomfortable at first, it is easy to make your account anonymous. There are groups that reach far beyond motherhood to cater towards your interests outside of your life circumstances. For example, I could spend hours on the Buy it for Life subreddit.
Search for online forums on reputable websites such as the What to Expect website or app. Find online communities with moms that share the same age children as you and ask or share advice easily.
Final thoughts
With motherhood comes many tasks and less time to complete them. Using technology can drastically cut down on the time these tasks take so they take less of a toll on your life. With more free time, you can spend more time doing the things you love the most.
How have you used technology in your motherhood journey? How has it helped improve your life?
