We survived our first official month home during summer vacation!
I just realized that the kids only have 7 weeks left before the start back to school.
This month has been a lot of trial and error as we navigate all of us being home during the day. However, there has been a lot of things that have worked for us and some things that have not.
Things that have worked:
1. Lazy Day! Okay this started off sort of naturally but Mondays have turned into our day of doing nothing and staying at home (if possible).
2. Snack bag and drawer. I have been using this little basket to hold healthy snacks on the counter (granola bars, pretzels ect.) and one of our drawers in our fridge has turned into a snack drawer. I buy grapes, carrots, celery, watermelon, flavored water and put them into individual snack bags. This removes a ton of going back and forth when it comes to choices between the kids and myself. When they ask for a snack, or if they are hungry before a meal all I have to say is "Go grab something from the basket or drawer" I know they are getting something healthy and giving them options.
3. Rest Time! Arlo still takes a nap everyday. This can last anywhere from 2-3 hours depending on what we have done for the day. Cece doesn't really nap anymore but I still require her to rest in bed. She usually reads books or writes in a book. I would say probably twice a week she will end up passing out. This also gives me the ability to lay down and rest too.
4. Pool Days! We usually go to the pool 2-3 times a week and the kids are at great ages for exploring on their own. Cece is a very strong swimmer and I'm confident enough in her abilities to allow her more freedom. Arlo on the other hand doesn't do a lot without his lifejacket on. Once in awhile he will take it off and swim in the shallow end, but I've noticed it's usually when there is not very many people at the pool. It's been pretty relaxing so far.
Things that have NOT worked:
1. Expectations! Duh this is parenting 101 for sure. I should not expect any certain day to go accordingly when I have a dramatic 6 year old and a 3 year old who goes from sweet to sour in a matter of seconds. However, I have realized I don't mind changing our plans at the last minute if they take it to far. Some days are way better than others and I would have to say that most days are great.
2. Clothing options. I arranged Cece's closest so that she could pick from a number of outfits each day on her own. However, I noticed that she chooses the same shirt and shorts pretty much all the time. As soon as I have her week's work of clothes washed/dried and put away she rotates her outfits accordingly. I guess this isn't something that technically isn't working, but mostly annoying. However, on the bright side I now realized that she still has way to many clothes and less is more.
3. Me watching Arlo and Cece playing outside. I noticed that if I sit outside with the kids while they are playing in the backyard, they just sort of sit by me or ask me a lot of questions. They don't actually play. So I started sitting in Alro's room and watching from the window. I know this is super "helicopter-ish" of me but my son loves to climb things he shouldn't and it makes me to nervous. What I noticed was that they will actually play with one another and make up games and use their imagination. I'm not sure if my presence distracted them or what but this seems to work out better for them.
We still have over half the summer to go and with that comes a lot of events that we have on the calendar for either birthdays, weddings or baby appointments. So far the kids have been troopers when it comes to all the doctors appointments that I have to go to and don't seem to miss a beat when Mommy needs a break.
I know next summer is going to look drastically different than this one and I'm trying to soak it all up.
No comments:
Post a Comment