Mom Co-Op

How To Stay Sane During The Summer...

Yes, it is possible! I have a solution.

One aspect of summer that I love is having my children home. No school or extra activities to dictate our schedules. However, close behind my joy at having them home is facing this absolute fact.... the days can get long, the kids get bored...and I just need a few hours to myself. I need to run errands and get more done in 1 hour than an entire day with kids in tow.

Thankfully, I have a solution. It is a similar strategy I had when Andrew was the only child at home during the school year.

I have 2 friends who have daughters close to the ages of mine. Each Thursday, we rotate having all of each other's children at one of our houses (we made up a calendar for the entire summer--when I did this years ago with Andrew, I did it with 3 other moms and we made a calendar for the entire year)

Every 3rd Thursday, I have a house full of children playing. On the other Thursdays, I can make plans to run errands, go to the Doctor, get a deep project done, meet a friend for lunch, etc. I don't mind having my "Mom Camp" Day every 2rd Thursday as I know that the next two Thursdays, will be productive for me. The day is from 9-4...a full day! Think of all you can accomplish!

I highly recommend this arrangement. It takes time to find the right mix of moms and children that this will work with, but in the end, it is so worth it. This arrangement can be adapted to meet your needs. Based on my experience, I recommend a few tips:

-No more than 4 Moms involved (in fact 4 is ideal as you only have your turn once a month.

-No extra kids. The word gets out that you have a day where your house is the fun house full of

kids for a day and other moms will ask you to watch their kids for the day...NOT! Their mentality

is that what is a few more for you.

-Make plans for the day you have the children at your house. Do a craft, have a water activity, rent

a great movie, yet...on the other hand...do not feel like you have to entertain them all day. One

of the benefits of this play day is PLAY. They just need to play.

-Get out the Board Games and Puzzles you don't use all school year.

-Have a No TV, Computer, or Electronics day (or at least a few hours) unless you are watching a

Group Movie or playing

a game the group can play such as a Wii Game.

You can make this as structured or laid back as each mom desires. If each mom has a skill to teach the children, such as sewing, painting, science, computers, etc. You can add to your calendar what the activity will be each week. Just make it work for you and dont allow it to run you or become a production.

Happy Summer. Oh....today is my Camp Mom Day! My house will be full in an hour. I already have the pool towels out and more water balloons ready to fill than they can possibly use in a day (or so I think)