Steady Mom

Avoid Summer Burnout with a Summer Fun List

Every three months our household takes a bit of a dip--stress levels rise and everything just feels...harder. I only made this connection last week after reaching one of those "nothing's working out!" points.

Being the dutiful person that I am, though, I kept pushing. Pushing through our routine, pushing through blog posts, pushing through laundry, pushing through life.

Call me crazy, but when I signed up for this motherhood gig--"pushing through" was not what I hoped for.

And when I thought I might not be able to take it any more, an idea from above popped into my head. It originally came from Erin of exhale. return to center. a year or so ago.

What we need is more fun. So I called the kids in for a family meeting.

Creating a Visual Schedule for Kids

Today I'm over at Simple Homeschool writing about the visual tool I use to bring rhythm to our home.

From my post:

"About four months ago, I began feeling frustrated by constant questions from my three sweet babes. "What are we doing next, Mommy? When are we having dinner? When can we watch a video?"

It brought to mind a schedule chart I remembered using when I worked in a first grade classroom. I decided to invest the time to make one for us to use at home. My return on investment has been huge!

Here's how you can make your own, too."

Head here to read the rest!

On a Mama's Meltdown and a Child's Compassion

Photo by iandet

Written by Steady Mom contributor Megan of SortaCrunchy

I stood at the sink drying dishes with my three-year-old chattering away at my side. She was telling (and re-telling) a joke that she had just learned and considered to be quite hilarious. With each delivery of the punchline, I humored her with a courtesy laugh.

Suddenly she frowned, and hands-on-hips demanded, "No, mama! Do your REAL laugh!"

Oh, yes. I was busted. She saw straight through my counterfeit laugh and called me out on it. Perhaps you can relate?

When I was teaching high school, one of the most exhausting aspects of my job was the fact that from the time I drove into the parking lot in the morning until I left campus late in the afternoon, I was "on" all day.

Whether I was lecturing from the podium, helping a student one-on-one, talking with colleagues, or meeting with parents, I had to be The Teacher. It was such a feeling of relief when I was able to slip back into Megan mode at the end of each school day.

The exhaustion I felt while teaching was nothing, of course, compared to the exhaustion of parenting. Talk about being "on" all day - and night, too! For those of us who have purposed to be mindful, intentional, actively engaged parents, it is inevitable that there will be moments when we don't rise to our own expectations.

We will fake laugh.
We will lose our tempers.
We will be cranky and cross.
We will say and do things we regret.

Releasing the Burden of Mommy Guilt

When I became a mother, I expected many things:

sleepless nights

poopy diapers

lots of feedings

But there was one thing I didn't expect, and it completely blindsided me. It began knocking on my mind's door immediately after Jonathan entered my world, and continues even after over six years of parenting.

Mommy guilt.

I have a feeling I'm not alone.

The information we have access to--parenting books, blogs, magazines, and more--doesn't always help. That's because there is so much, and often they completely contradict each other.

I find it next to paralyzing at times to know that no matter how I discipline my children, someone somewhere thinks it's the wrong way. The same goes for how I feed them or how much TV I do or don't let them watch. And pretty much every other possible issue.

It's enough to make a rookie mama throw up her hands and give up before she's even gotten started.

And the burden gets heavier.