I’m
promoting another article in which I appreciate and completely agree with the
author’s suggestions for Stay at Home Mom’s. Kuddos to the author: Sheila Wray
Gregoire.
Here
is a portion of the author's suggestions:
1. Think Outings, not
Hibernation
We
go about stay at home parenting all wrong. We start by buying tons of equipment
(ExerSaucers, swing sets, trampolines) to ensure that we never have to leave
the house. But what happens if we’re home alone all the time? Our kids may go
stir crazy and whine, cry and vomit. Then we cry. Probably we whine, too. And
if we’re pregnant, we definitely vomit. So let’s take a step back and approach
this stay at home thing differently.
Instead
of spending all day cooped up with the kids, plan for a daily outing, if
possible. When my kids were little, we went out every single day. We went to
the library. We went to a playgroup. We walked to a nearby park. We went to the
museum (it was free on Thursday mornings).
The
benefit was that the kids had fun, but they were tired out, and then they would
nap better for me later. And if we were out, I could focus completely on them,
so when we got home, it was easier to get them to give me time to myself.
2. Enforce Quiet Time
We
count the minutes until we can put a child down for a nap. We rejoice when more
than one child manages to nap at the same time. Sometimes we even grab a nap,
too, wondering how long it will last.
And
then an older child stops napping, and it all falls apart.
When
a 3-year-old stops napping, enforce quiet time. Have them stay in their room
for half an hour with a book or a toy, and let this be “quiet play” time. That
gives you some time to yourself, and helps them get some rest (and thus not get
so whiny).
To
continue to read, let me direct you to the author’s link from her site ~ To Love, Honor
& Vacuum @