3 Simple Rules To Stay Connected Despite Busy Schedules
With three children, there are days that I am feeling much more like a taxi service than a mother. I am doing my best to manage a crazy schedule and a busy family by setting three simple rules for my family.
I know that many, many families are struggling with the same problems so I wanted to share how these three rules have been working for our family.
Rule 1: Each kid only gets one lesson or activity at a time.
I know that this sounds harsh when children have TONS of interests! I want to teach my children that they have to start something that they finish and I give them the ability to make the choices.
Each season they are able to pick one that they are going to participate in; however, they have to remember that when they make a commitment to a team or activity they have to finish the length of it.
If they get to the end of the lesson length and decide to try something else… we go exploring. This has helped us control the amount of activities that we are running to and it keeps them from getting too overwhelmed at their young ages. As they get older and learn to juggle things better I am sure that we will increase this rule.
Rule 2: Family dinner stays intact.
Even if we have lessons one night we all make sure that we are home for dinner together. This may mean that I need to use my slow cooker so that dinner is ready when we get home or plan a simple and easy to throw together meal… this helps us stay connected despite our busy schedule.
We always go around each night and take turns talking about our day… each of us has to say three good things and three bad things that happened to each of us. It is a great way to stay involved in every one’s lives.
Rule 3: Make one night a week family night.
For my family, because our children are all under six, we have that night be Friday night. We usually make homemade pizza or another fun dinner that the kids can help me make and then a fun dessert.
We can watch a family movie together and snuggle on the couch as a family or play fun games together enjoying laughter as a group. No matter what you do, set aside the time to have one night of fun together… it has really helped all of us enjoy our family so much more.
These three simple rules, working together, have made a HUGE difference in my family… I hope that you and your family are able to use one or all of them to make a difference in yours.
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October 28th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Very nice tips, thanks:) I think that they will be really helpful for me too because my schedule is crazy!
January 21st, 2009 at 10:27 am
I think all of our schedules are crazy… Anything that makes it a little easier is worth a try.