With the summer quickly coming to a close and school days just around the corner, you may be feeling sentimental about your last long days at home with your kids. The school year can be particularly challenging for working parents as they feel like they only see their children for a quick sliver of time in the evenings before going to bed, waking up, and doing it all over again. Here are a few tips to help you make the most of your school nights with your kids. ☺️
Turn off the screens📱🙅🏻♀️
By cutting down on the time you spend staring at your phone and your kid spends watching TV, you can optimize your time together by communicating and bonding more. Once you’ve finished up with dinner and homework for the night, try playing a board game or delving into an activity book together. This will give you more time to work out problems together and make memories, rather than just staring at screens individually.
Plan ahead so that you have less to do when you get home 👍🏼
This may look like ordering take out once a week, so you don’t have to spend time cooking and cleaning or preparing dinner ahead of time. Just think about any steps you can take ahead of time that make it easier to focus on your kid when they get home from school and when you get home from work. Obviously, this can be challenging for working parents who have a lot on their plate so try not to put too much pressure on yourself.
Have weekly rituals to look forward to 🗓
By having certain weekly activities previously mapped out, it can give you and your kid something to look forward to together throughout the week. Think of something like, having pasta for dinner every Wednesday or going out to dinner on Fridays. It’s a win-win because it will help you and your kid get through the week by having something to look forward to and it gives you one less thing to think about.
Remember to count your blessings ❤️
At the end of the day, there is always something to be thankful for. Being away from your kid for 5 days out of the week is hard. Try to remind yourself that you’re doing your best and think about how lucky you are to have a job or to have a healthy and happy family life. Reminding yourself of these blessings can help put it all into perspective and make these things a little less challenging. ✨🥰
