It’s almost the weekend! Are you a) psyched out of your mind or b) trying your best to fend off a mild sense of dread?
For me, it’s often times b… is that terrible?
At my house, the weekend generally means two days off work/ preschool. Which means two long, unstructured days with a toddler who has the energy level of an overachieving camp counselor.
Brutal honesty: I can’t stand it. I get anxious thinking about our routine being thrown to the wind. By Wednesday, I’m researching every event, activity and baby class we can attend. By Thursday, I’m texting an outline to my husband — trying to gage his interest level as well as any last-minute plans.
Gone are the Sunday Night Blues; that melancholy feeling that creeps in as the weekend comes to an end and Monday approaches. Now, I have the Friday Night Blues and the Sunday Night Woo-hoos! I cannot wait to drop my daughter into the loving arms of her amazing preschool teachers on Monday morning.
We do travel to see family and friends quite often. The packing/ traveling can be exhausting, but the change of location is also a nice reprieve.
But what to do on those low-key weekends when we’re just at home? I really, truly want to enjoy them. After all, these are supposed to be the gloriously cozy days of babyhood. (And we’re fortunate to have most weekends free for family time.)
I’m still working on my plan of attack, but here are a few ideas that have helped so far.
My Weekend Plan of Attack:
- Designate an Early Riser: My husband and I switch off who gets up early with our kiddo and starts breakfast.
- Embrace the mess: Mentally, I prep myself to have toys, newspapers, dishes and clothes covering the house until 7 pm on Sunday. Basically, I give the weekend chaos a “hard stop” so I can embrace it for the next 48 hours.
- Plan to get out of the house: As much as I used to love being unstructured, life with a toddler has turned me into a planner. On weekends, you need a good Plan A and a Plan B, in case your first few ideas get derailed by meltdowns or nap times.
- Pack on Friday: Friday evening, I start packing things for the next day or two: the pool bag, snacks, cleaning and restocking the car, etc. This makes a slow-moving Saturday morning go a little faster when you want to get out the door.
So, here’s my question for you, friends: What’s your weekend routine?
