Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Keeping the Magic of Me Mondays

Now that school is out, and daycare is no longer, my children are at home with me for the summer. This was a choice. I could have looked for a summer job to pay for two kids in daycare, but that seemed like more of a headache than it was worth. Why would I submit myself to being gone all day, working, the come home and play house catch up and take care of the kids? No, I would rather spend my summer days playing the balancing act of fun times with kids and fulfilling my duties as house spouse.


That said, I need to be aware that my Magical Me Mondays are gone, no more, bye-bye, zilch, nada. This means that I need to be especially aware of my "limit" with the kids. I have a tendency to get over stimulated with the amount of noise and mess the kids create, and then all of a sudden I have a breaking point. The whole concept of my Magical Me Mondays is to rest and recuperate from a week with children; a built-in Sabbath from being mom. It helps me be a better parent through the rest of the week. Without the kids going to school and daycare, I will have to remember to ask Corey to watch the kids while I get out of the house this summer.

I did not ask for time alone last summer, mostly because Lily was small and still nursing. Time away from her was limited at best. She is now an independent and capable toddler with excellent communication skills. Leaving her with Corey and Carrick for two hours while I recover some sanity is totally doable. I just have to make sure I schedule it.


For this installment of Fun Dollars, I am coming to you rested and relaxed from Java Love Café in West Sedona. Everyone here is engaged with their laptop or tablet and chilled out oldies are playing over the speakers. I am here with my thoughts, collecting my wits, sipping Jasmine Tea and taking and uninterrupted break for my Magical Me Monday time.

I already went to Goodwill with my Fun Dollars and came out $4.00 lighter. I found a hard back Frog and Toad book for Carrick. We have Frog and Toad Together at our house, the book from Goodwill is Frog and Toad are Friends. When Carrick saw the copy we already own, he was so excited. His teacher read him all the Frog and Toad books at school this year, so connecting to something he is familiar with really charged him up. When he reaches a recognition point with his star chart, he will get the book in a gift bag. (I have a whole closet full of presents wrapped and ready to go for the summer. Car trips, positive reinforcement and special occasions are covered proactively for both kids. I used a combination of inexpensive and free items I have collected leading up to summer break.)
 

For Lily, I found a V-Tech Tree House. It is just like the one she played with at her daycare. Many days when I dropped her off, she would head straight to the Tree House and begin her playtime before I even took her jacket off. I can just hear her saying when I give her the play set, "Just like my one at school!" She really has very few of her "own" toys at home. Many of them are Carrick's old toys. We are now reaching a point in her development that she has her own taste, and doesn't always want to play with what is left over from Carrick. Also, I spent the morning listening to them fight over toys, so it's clear that she needs things that are hers that won't interest Carrick.

Taking into account my new awareness for the need of having Me Time, adding to that everything I have already planned for the summer, I expect to have more moments of peace than I did last summer vacation. Time together should be enjoyable, not stressful. Cheers to Summer Vacation!

Toys at Goodwill- $4.00
Jasmine tea at Java Love- $3.00
Leftover from last pay cycle- $40.00
Balance this pay cycle- $93.00

Happy Spending!

No comments:

Post a Comment