30 Minutes with Mom

The kids made it home from camp safe and sound and no worse for wear. And with their return comes the return of juggling family and work without child care. I really don't mind, though, because I've been granted permission to work from home a few hours each day so that I don't have to be away from home as much. Although being in the house and being at home are really two different things, but that's for a whole other post on a different blog!

Anyway, one of the things I want to be sure to do is get that one-on-one quality time with each of the boys, yet we have a lot to do around the house and only a limited amount of time to do it. So I've implemented "30 minutes with Mom" each morning. During this time, we will do chores or activities together that are not only necessary things but are also designed to teach skills that they need to develop. And having them NOT do it together eliminates the "he didn't do his share" arguments we've been hearing of late.

Here is what happened on Monday:

3rdGrader had the first session. We emptied the dishwasher, reloaded it, and then tackled the refrigerator. I had him sort through the food to see what was expired, what was nearing expiration, and what was still good, and then wipe down the shelves. We had a spill underneath one of the crisper drawers that had been there for ages, so I cleaned that and washed the drawer out. Then we took the berries that were past their prime and tossed them in the yard for the birds. I had him sort through his school papers to see what he wanted to keep or toss (yes, school has been out for nearly 6 weeks). Next we folded a basket of towels and got those put away as well and our 30 minutes was nearly over. He had an email to respond to, so with that, he finished his 1/2 hour.

5thGrader started with making orange juice popsicles and then moved on to clipping coupons. I participate in a Coupon Train so I needed to get them clipped and ready to mail before the week gets away from me, so 5thGrader learned about coupons and practiced his big-scissor skills. Then we moved to the living room where the Lego's had exploded a few weeks ago and got them containered (did I just make up a word?) as well as found the rest of the plastic eggs from Easter that we've been meaning to toss. We followed up with putting pillows away and folding a throw blanket. And suddenly our time was up!

They were each a little less enthusiastic today, but we still got a lot of things done. 3rdGrader drew first round again today. We spent most of it in his room sorting out video games and untangling cords, but in the process we found a game he had been looking for. We also learned the art of folding fitted sheets and that if you put your dirty clothes in the hamper when you take them off, you don't have to go through the house picking them up.

5thGrader told me last night that he needed his patriotic shirt washed to wear on Wednesday, so I told him the first part of his 30 Minutes with Mom would be starting his laundry today. Then we had to finish the coupons and get them ready to mail. Our pumpkin seedlings were ready to transplant, so we did that as well. He had also told me yesterday that his t-shirt drawer was too full, so we spent the remainder of our time going through his shirts to see which ones he had outgrown, which ones he wanted to pass on, and which ones he wanted to take on our cruise.

Tomorrow is a holiday, so 30 Minutes with Mom will be just-for-fun stuff.