How do you manage through the school holidays?
School holidays are not a holiday. Sure there are some great times.
But the struggle is real. There are tears, tantrums and tough times.
We need circuit breakers to help us through mentally.
What are your circuit breakers?
Here are a few that my wife and I are using as we juggle a son with ADHD, a pre-schooler and a toddler whilst managing two careers.
1. Tag in and tag out. When it gets too much, we tag out and take a break.
2. Everyone outside! Fresh air and exercise is needed, whilst we use the hour for a ride around the block or a trip to the park, we have plenty of little breaks in the front and back yards.
3. Have a good cry. Tears are shed for a purpose – we allow ourselves to cry.
4. Deep breathing. We do this regularly and include the kids as we do it. In fact, sometimes my son initiates to help us calm down.
5. Screen time – not ashamed by that! I am very thankful for streaming apps.
6. ‘Strategic hug’. Hugs heal.
And finally my favourite –
7. Hide and Seek – counting to 40 helps to calm me down. And whilst I can usually find the kids within about a minute or less, I stretch it out to enjoy the calmness for a few minutes. I’ve even unpacked the dishwasher or packed away toys whilst ‘looking’ for them. Plus the kids usually don’t want to be found that quickly anyway!