I remember a few short months ago I was anxiously awaiting summer break – anticipating a relaxing break from the early mornings and stress of being somewhere at a certain time. Little did I know, what summer break would entail, and how most days my only goal would be keeping my head above water.
May hit, the countdown was on…only a few weeks until school would be out for summer, and then a few months later I would have a Kindergartener. This summer was going to be epic – we’d sleep in, do crafts, and enjoy spending time with each other. Only it didn’t quite work out that way.
Those evenings on the back porch, grilling while the children played, were not meant to be. After a strange sequence of events, my husband spent most of the summer out of town, leaving me with the three kiddos and a very minimal support system.
I managed to survive, but it wasn’t easy. It took a few weeks to figure out what worked best for us, but better late than never – here are a few of my favorite hacks to stay afloat:
1. Early to bed, early to rise. I’ve always been a fan of early bedtimes, but even more so now. We woke up early (though not as early as we do during the school year), and went to bed early. Not only did this make life easier when school started back up, but it gave me a bit of a break.
2. Schedules! I was looking forward to having a low-key summer, but throwing the schedule out the window wreaked havoc on us. Since having the twins we have tried to maintain a routine, but I’ve found it even more important now that Charleigh June is in school. Straying from our normal routine caused some major meltdowns and behavior issues from all three.
3. Assistance. This one can be tricky, especially if you don’t have anybody you can count on. I’ve been lucky enough to have three amazing baby-sitters living next door to me. Once a week, for a few hours, one of them come over to give me a break. After a few days as the only adult in the house, even a trip to the grocery store felt like a tropical vacation. I truly couldn’t have managed without that small break.
4. Plan. I’m sure you’re thinking this has been covered already, but it hasn’t. What are your goals for the week? What absolutely has to be done? Are your meals planned out? Is there something YOU want to do? (Okay, okay…if we’re being honest, I never get to do what I want to do, but it’s nice to dream!)
Now that school is back, I’m be trying to figure everything out once again – losing my babysitters and having Charleigh June in school all day long, but hopefully, I can apply some of these hacks. Do you have any hacks that make your life easier?
