As a full time stay at home mom to two young children right now, this school closure is not a huge deal for us personally because my kids would be home anyways. I know that's not the case for a lot of people who are scrambling not only to find childcare, but to figure out how to entertain their kiddos for the time being when our outside options are limited. Though we usually do day trips or small outings at least a few times a week, it looks like many of those things will be off the table for the time being. It's been nearly four years since my oldest was born, and I've been a stay at home mom so I've learned how to survive the chaos.
First off, lower your expectations. In fact follow Elsa's lead and just LET IT GO. Things aren't going to go smoothly. There are all kinds of disruptions and changes. This is a time for survival mode, and by that I simply mean getting through it without screaming our heads off at our kids and losing our minds. What's best for each family or even each kid isn't going to the same. Now I'm going to totally contradict myself and say that all kids really thrive with structure. Create a schedule, even just a loose schedule, and try to stick to it each day. This will provide a sense of normalcy in this wild time. Read. Bake with the kids. Frost cookies. Decorate cupcakes. Play in the bath. Bring cups in the tub and practice pouring. Let them hang out until the water gets colder. It breaks up the day, gets rid of germs, and provides some fun. Check out @busytoddler on Instagram because she has the BEST activities for kiddos! That page has saved my sanity on multiple occasions. There are so many easy activities that don't require a trip to the store even usually that will keep kids entertained. Bouncing off that, my kids absolutely love to play in sensory bins. We have one full of dry pasta and another full of rice and beans. They use measuring cups, scoopers, and left over Easter eggs. Cut and glue activities. Cut Easter eggs and glue them in a basket. We love cutting paper hearts and glueing them. As a learning bonus, I'll put letters on whatever shape is being glued down and have them spell their names. Color. Print pages to color in. Grab a $5 large coloring book that can be laid on the floor and color. Find new crayons. We grabbed some metallic and neon crayons today. Watch movies. For as much as we like to diss screen time, it can be a great asset. DisneyPlus put Frozen 2 up March 14th. Build a fort. Everyone loves a good blanket fort. Use extra cardboard boxes to make a fort. Be unconventional and just let the kids color cardboard boxes and sit in them. Simple, free fun! Dig out the blocks and build. Play Jenga Paint Play-dough Do chores. Make chores part of the routine. Little kids can do easy chores such as helping sort laundry (learn colors) and unload the dishwasher. Breathe.
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Megan is a stay-at-home mom to a stubborn and charming toddler and adorable baby girl. She is a freelance writer who hasn't slept in way too long.. She survives off of the pot of coffee her wonderful husband makes her FRESH each morning and any snack she can grab while keeping up with her little ones. Archives
October 2019
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