Ah, the joys of summer — the feel of the warm sun on your face, the shrieks of kids enjoying the pool, or running in the backyard.
Summer is the time that the Midwest really comes alive. Neighbors are able to enjoy each other’s company when they aren’t freezing and rushing back inside to warm up.
And a Midwestern custom that I have grown to enjoy so much is sitting in the garage and enjoying the company of people walking by, or the ease of watching the kids play, riding their bikes, or just having a summertime snack.
However, if you are a working mom (either part-time, full-time in an office, or working from home), these summer moments can happen less often than you’d like.
You envy the moms who can be home, and can be spontaneous and drop anything going on at that moment and simply enjoy summer.
The Need to Plan
What is tough as a working mom is that you must continue to plan everything! You can’t just decide on a whim to visit a playground or a splash pad.
And summertime is the perfect time for a Pinterest craft. Whether it’s the extra strength bubbles or using the shower curtain hang up to allow for water-based painting in the yard.
But those projects require set-up time, time to gather up the supplies, and time to get the kids interested in the project. Sometimes only to watch it all melt down if it’s not working, or it worked great but the clean up process (and time) is not noted during the directions of the Pinterest project.
Then the weekends are full of scheduled activities, errands, and projects.
Make an Effort to Slow Down
Ease up on yourself, the summer is when you should be able to relax a little bit. We give our children that break from school, and we should allow ourselves time for a break as well.
Don’t feel like a failure if the “want to do” items on your summer bucket list were not accomplished. If you don’t go through them all, that’s ok. And you can always bring it back during the fall or winter, with a few modifications.
The distractions will always be there, so it’s helpful to acknowledge what is a “need” and what is optional.
Ask For Help When You Need It
Reach out to other moms and ask for help, don’t try to do it all on your own.
No matter what the season, we always want to be self-reliant. But if you need it, it’s important to ask for help.
And moms, if you offer to help a fellow mom, follow through on it! A working mom with kids really needs your assistance, not the nice words that you are happy to help, but actual help.
Let’s support each other.
Switch up when one mom does some work while the other watches the kids. We all have support systems available, we just need to ask.
Working mom, if you can utilize the PTO time, take that time to enjoy the summer. The memories you make with your kids will be worth it, and the work will always be there when you return.
