Even when life gets busy, it’s important to make the most of time with the kids.
In a busy household, there are always jobs that need to be done. From washing to making beds, and often cleaning the latest accident from the kids or the dog. It can feel like the work never ends, and at the same time there are little people around that need and want your attention.
Making Time
Something I have learnt over time is that the jobs will always be there but the people wanting your attention will not. They soon grow up and are busy with their own lives, and no longer hassle you to sit on the ground and play LEGO, or want to stop you mid-clean to sit on your lap and cuddle. I now know how important it is to put the cleaning cloth down and play and cuddle.
Growing Up
Once the teenage years hit you are of course still needed but there is a definite change. I treasure my time with my older children, but it is harder to come by and what we do together is also very different to when they were young.
Unconventional Upbringing
I remember as a child my parents were so busy, but they always put my brother and I first and made sure we had their full attention when we needed it. Sometimes it meant talking to Dad on the phone while he was in the middle of his radio show. I often had something important to tell him that couldn’t wait and he always made time. He would also call Mum in the commercial breaks of any TV show he was doing to check in with her and make sure we were all OK at home. Mum was the same, she would put anything she was doing on hold and sit and play Barbies with me, or when I was older, take me for a hot chocolate before school so I could offload my teenage problems. My parents always made me feel special, and no matter what was happening, we came first.
The Little Things
Sometimes family time for us is big holidays and special days out, but it is also walking to the park together or having one of the kids tag along for the supermarket run. I really try to make the most of our time together, and I always drop what I am doing to sit with Perla and Alby on my lap, because I know these years fly by and one day, I will have a perfectly clean house and I will miss all of the chaos.
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