![]() I know other moms who feel stir-crazy at home or whose kids need more activity than mine seem to – so this is an area where it helps to know and honor yourself and your family dynamic. I’m not a fan of bouncing around from errands to activities to another quick errand and then one more thing before we head home. I also am happiest when we spend a fair amount of time at home, punctuated by one or two outings during the day. And finally, I work from home, so I rely on that predictable routine and midday nap to Getteth The Stuff Done. I also have a toddler who naps during the middle of the day, somewhere in the window between 11am and 2pm. I work best with a predictable routine – not down to the minute, but with a same-enough rhythm to my days. Block schedule your days (and know thyself before you do) Depending on your schedule, you might have more or fewer blocks. ![]() I use a Sharpie and draw straight-enough lines vertically to divide the length of the paper into seven days of the week (I start the week on Monday but that’s just a personal preference).īelow the days of the week I draw horizontal lines to separate four major blocks of time during the day (more on schedule blocking in a bit). Once you’ve made your list, you’ll need the materials you see below (or something close enough): The key is that we have a good mix of at-home and out-and-about activities, as well as a balance between Big Cool Fun stuff and more everyday entertainment. – I’ve also been filling the list with everyday, at-home activities: bake cookies, paint, play-doh, kids-make-dinner night, family movie night, etc. To balance out the big-ticket outings that the kids have no trouble dreaming up – Children’s Museum, Science Center, amusement park, etc. I can guarantee we won’t actually DO all of them this summer, and that’s okay. You might call it a bucket list, but I think of it more as a catch-all for the things we think might be fun. Every time somebody says “you know what we should do this summer? _.”, we write it down. Make two lists (at-home and out-and-about)įor the last couple of weeks we’ve had a giant piece of butcher paper taped to the wall in our kitchen. Let me know if you have any questions by leaving a comment at the end of the post! 1. If you’re looking for just-enough structure this summer, here’s a step-by-step guide to how I made our summer schedule. It’s not about programming every hour OR checking things off a list, but about making time for the things we want to do – and need to do.They can see and read the schedule anytime they want to or need a reminder.The kids are involved from beginning to end – they make the list of things to do, they help create the schedule, and they put the activities on the calendar.Here’s WHY I think this summer schedule works (for us): We make the whole thing large, dynamic, and in-your-face obvious to minimize the “what are we DOING today?” and “can we GO somewhere now?” questions.The kids choose from a list of at-home activities and out-and-about excursions to fill in the blocks on the schedule.We block-schedule our days so that everyone understands the basic rhythm of each day (we’re always home in the middle of the day for the baby’s naptime, for example).We make a giant weekly schedule template that the kids help create and fill with activities.Here’s HOW our summer schedule works (in a nutshell): I kept my protected at-home work time each day, they knew when to look forward to their big-ticket “fun stuff,” and they also had a stable of at-home ideas to keep them busy. I felt like it gave the kids a big role in designing their own vacation fun, without turning me into a helpless chauffeur to their every whim. I first tried out the system I’ll share with you in a minute over spring break, and it was so helpful.
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