Ahhh, the “Dog Days” of summer: kids up at 6 am, rarin’ to go, shorts and flip flops on rotation, popsicles at the ready...and mom about to lose her mind. Just the usual stuff— Except, it isn’t even summer yet! We’re still a month and a half away from it being officially summer but with this COVID-19 crisis, kids everywhere are home from school, and moms everywhere are losing their minds! What, exactly, were we supposed to do when most counties across the U.S. decided that the safest thing to do to avoid “the spread” was to shut down schools and turn happy stay-home moms into school teachers, lunch ladies, activities directors...etc, etc, etc.?? Go with it, that’s what. So instead of actually losing my mind, I’ve decided to embrace the suck, be positive and turn some sour lemons into sweet lemonade. How I cope:
- Pretend summer came early. The benefits are longer days, cool mornings and warm afternoons spent watching movies with the A/C blasting. My kinda thing. With snacks— plenty of snacks!
- Keep that A/C blowing and turn on the oven for some freshly baked treats from the “lunch lady,” —or keep the oven off altogether and make some Rice Krispie treats, homemade popsicles or yummy fruit salad. Those kids gotta eat!
- Take a nap. This one is important. My big kids have a fairly structured routine and are capable of handling Mommy taking a quick afternoon nap. “Sleep while baby sleeps” is the advice of the ages, and when my 10-month old takes a nap, Mommy does too! You don’t even have to sleep but you absolutely have to be in your room with the door closed, or the kids will find you. Paint your nails, take a bath, call a friend, but DO NOT let the kids know you are awake!
- Embrace take out. Ok, I am allllll for making a homemade breakfast, lunch and dinner every day for my family when I have the energy, but when I don’t (which is often) my family relies on a handful of local haunts to satisfy our cravings and to give me a break. Not only will you get a day off from cooking, but you will be supporting businesses that may otherwise not be able to keep their doors open. A few of our faves are Avianos or Marcellos pizza, the Greek Street Grill, and Johnny’s or In ‘n’ Out cheeseburgers. Not the healthiest but pair it with a salad or that yummy fruit salad you made earlier and you’re good to go. Oh, and running to the grocery store for after-dinner ice cream sundaes is a must!
- Have a quick car date with the hubs. We regularly sneak out for grocery shopping, errands or just a quick ride on our golf cart in our community to escape from the kiddos. It’s necessary.
Equally important are things NOT to do, no matter how fun or cute they sound. Trust me on this. Whatever you do...
- DON’T offer to play with your kids. Just don’t do it. It sets a precedent that you’ll have to maintain for the next 10 years. I mean, if you want to sit on the floor playing LEGO or Play Dough or what have you, then by all means go for it. But personally, I’d rather stab my eyes out with a fork than sit on the floor and be handed a Barbie while my child demands that I “BE HER!” —Just sayin’.
- DON’T Host homemade pizza night for the kids! Everyone make their own! Just...no. Little hands, sticky dough, RED SAUCE! NO. Should be a no brainer but moms everywhere (myself included, years ago..) love pizza night! I’ve learned through my own failed attempts that the only one who should be making pizza is mommy. While drinking wine. In theory. Because, I don’t drink wine. But if I let my kids make the pizza, I’d want to.
- DON’T Ignore little red flags. You know how, when your kid asks to do something and that tiny voice in the back of your head yells “NOOO!” But you think, “Calm down voice-in-the-back-of-my-head, this is harmless! I got this.” Listen to the voice! Here are a few brilliant ideas my kids have had that I WISH I would have rejected immediately:
Homemade slime, homemade hand sanitizer, homemade pond, homemade swing, digging large holes in the dirt in the backyard, making me breakfast, making me a “surprise” (with paint), starting any kind of business (Oh, you think it will be a good idea because the kids will learn the value of earning money. No. It will end being your business. It will.)
See, the thing is, we think that if the kids are busy doing their own little project, it will give us a little peace and quiet. And it will. But then...the aftermath. It’s like a fun shopping spree on a credit card that at the time is super fun but then...the bill arrives in the mail and you have to pay the piper. The piper, in this case, is the dirty mess from the digging of holes, and YOU are the one who will have to do that laundry. Or the paint that “accidentally” gets on the carpet and the couch and guess who gets to clean it??? So whatever you do, listen to the tiny voice and stick to activities that are a) outside b) involve electronic devices or c) use simple craft items like crayons and coloring books.
Hang in there, mamas!
