I woke up this morning and my immediate thought was oh no what are we going to do with the kids today! We have a flat roof above our bedroom and when it rains you can really hear it! Judging by the symphonies playing on our roof, the usual walks and cycle routes were not going to cut it today and our two bouncy boys were going to bounce us mad today if we stayed in too long!
Ok morning tantrum over (mine that is) and I decided that was it. Instead of constantly waking up wondering what we were going to do that day, we were going to have a plan. I decided to let my boys run amok (although they decided to ruin all that by being the best behaved ever for about 2 hours!) and my husband sleep, while I planned out what we were going to do for the next 3 months.
I looked at our calendar and all the upcoming events and all the gaps. I decided that now was the time to fill those gaps with plans and now was the time to get ready for the upcoming events.
So to fill the gaps:
1. Invite family over
2. Invite friends over
3. Book in trips to visit friends
4. Book in trips to visit family
Even if it is raining if the kids have friends / family over or visit friends/ family for a few hours they will be entertained. Plus this way we get to spend regular quality time with friends and family. If we make a plan to see everyone once a month or once every couple of months before we know it our calendar will be full!
I decided where possible to leave a day free each weekend to have family time and to do CHORES! On the weekends before we had kids, we used to do the things we wanted to do and felt we needed to do. For some time now though our main goal on the weekends has been to get out the house and do something with the kids. I think now is the time to start refocusing on the things we want and need to do.
Looking at the calendar was helpful because it helped me to think about what was coming up e.g. Christmas/ Chanukah / school holidays/ parties / birthdays etc. We need to get ready for the holiday season – present shopping , party and meal planning need to get underway!
So today once I had finished planning, we went shopping and as it happened the rain cleared, the wind died down and the sun came out! We took a packed lunch which we ate on a bench and got a fair few bargains in the local charity shops. I love shopping in charity shops and buying things secondhand for so many
reasons and find it much easier to shop there as they usually don’t mind if the kids play with the toys for sale while I’m shopping.
On mornings like this one it is so tempting to rush out to the nearest soft play centre and spend a small fortune in a place you have no desire to be (well I don’t) and I’m so glad we didn’t do it! Knowing we have a calendar full of play dates can put a stop to that as well (especially in the winter) and if we do decide to go to a soft play place, then we can do it on our terms and not as a last minute panic purchase!
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I thought this was a great post! I love charity shops too. My kids are addicted to them now. They know there are far more surprises than in chain stores, and they are bitten by the recycle bug after our years home educating them and being concerned with the world around us. And you're right; there's as much fun to be had with kids without necessarily forking out for an expensive play centre if we just use a bit of imagination! Best wishes. x
That's great that your kids love charity shops! Thanks for your comment.