Over Committing

As you may well know it is easy to over commit ourselves. Stay at home moms tend to be viewed as those who have more time on their hands than working moms. I don't know what makes people think this, but I can tell you it is not true. As I fall exhausted into bed each evening I wonder at God's plan of having only 24 hours in the day, and think that a bonus day every now and then would be greatly welcomed.

I decided years ago that I was way too busy, and although I enjoyed many of the activities I was involved in, there were just too many. I have since cut down our family commitments to those things we truly want to do, and we work hard to not let that get out of control.

So it is with great surprise that I have found myself in the car everyday for the past week and a half, shuttling my family to summer activities. I am not quite sure how it got out of hand so quickly. I have signed my children up for bowling with www.kidsbowlfree.com, and we are bowling three times a week. The older two are taking skating lessons on Saturday mornings, and my oldest, started tennis lessons today. Not to mention our trips to the farmers market, trips to the beach, Cub Scouts, and the local parks and zoos, we have become way too busy.
While this schedule is temporary it can still be overwhelming, so here are a few tips to keeping the peace in the family while out and about.

~ Many of these activities are for my older children, so I allow the younger ones to pack their own bag of toys to bring along. I limit it to 5-10 items or books that fit in their own little backpack, that they are responsible to carry.

~ Bring snacks!

~ Involve the kids in each errand or stop. We play math games and spelling games while shopping or waiting for food to arrive in a restaurant.

~ My children love to spend their own money and so they are rewarded with stops to the Dollar Store or thrift store to shop. These stops occur near the end of the outings and only if behavior was good.

~ Most of all, know your limitations. I know that if this schedule was to last into the fall I would not be happy. Knowing there is an end in sight and that we are enjoying this brief busyness seems worthwhile.

~ Lastly, evaluate your activity level often. It can easily become overcrowded without your realizing it has happened. This often leads to a cranky family. When this happens choose which activities you want to keep and which you need to cut from the schedule. Make a plan to spend more time together as a family at home.