Summer Time can be stressful for everyone, especially parents with children. Trying to find activities to entertain the children, busy roads due to families travelling for holidays and ridiculous queues into places – all of these are a nightmare! It also doesn’t help if the weather is dreadful and trying to preoccupy the kids indoors can be a pain too.
Here are 10 tips to try and aid you throughout the summer holidays the best you can:
1. For every day that passes in the Summer Holidays, your children will be shouting “mum” or “dad” more frequently than usual. Just remember to count to 10 each time they shout your name or make them come to you when asking for something, rather than shouting up the stairs to you. This will help you to destress and hopefully your child doesn’t drive you insane.
2. If they suggest making a cake, tell them that grandma’s kitchen is much better for that type of thing. Remember, never to eat anything that your child makes unless it’s been supervised.
3. Remember that the later they stay up does not mean they will sleep in longer the next morning. Make sure you get enough sleep and a strong coffee/tea may help in the morning to wake you up.
4. Play Hide and Seek with your children. Make sure you’re the Seeker, as once you’ve counted to 10… shout “COMING!” to them. Your children will think you’re looking for them, when actually you could be getting some chores done without them knowing or you could finish watching the end of your favourite programme.
5. Arrange special days out that will take place at the end of August. You have an excellent blackmail tool to use should your child misbehave throughout July or begin August. Also, don’t forget rewarding charts can still be implemented throughout the Summer holidays, as this will give your child targets to work towards too.
6. Budget your finance over the Summer Period, as this can be an expensive time when the kids are off school. Think of free activities that you could do weekly and make it a routine. Even if it’s a bonding session by going to a park or playing sport activities in a field. If your child gets bored easily, think of people they could visit over the Summer i.e. grandparents or a sleepover at a friends house.
7. Get them to do activities outside as much as possible. Even if it’s wash the car, helping with the gardening or simply putting the washing on the line (if they are tall enough). It’ll also give you a helping hand with chores that need doing.
8. If the weather is miserable, these activities are best for indoors: get arty and make self portraits or make something out of paper mache, decorate plant pots and repot flowers so the children think they’ve done something proactive, or make forts and castles with furniture and sheets. Anything to keep their hands and minds busy!
9. Sometimes it’s ok to allow your children to have a movie day – it’ll be good to relax on the sofa with them once a week.
10. Make sure you book in free time for yourself and let your partner or family members take the children out for a few hours or for the whole day. You need ME time remember, as you have worked so hard to not lose the plot in front of the kids.
