Startup Sunday
Guest Post by Caitlin Douglass
It's the most wonderful time of the year, when two of the biggest holidays come around, and everyone is off from work and school. Well, maybe not everyone. If you still have a lot of work to do during the holidays, you need to find ways to keep kids busy. If you're a freelance writer, or you write and manage your own blog, that content isn't going to write itself while you take a week off for your children's school vacation. Or maybe you're a virtual assistant, and your clients are relying on you right now to keep their busy holiday schedules straight, and plan their holiday travel. So how can you keep the family occupied while you keep working?
Get them out of the house
Those words sound nice, don't they? Let's be honest. Of course you love your family. But there are just some days when it's not enough to keep kids busy -- you need them to be somewhere else so you can complete your to-do list. Kids reminding you for the thousandth time that they really need a Kung Zhu hamster this year, and can't possibly go back to school without one, or a husband coming in every five minutes,are distractions to put it mildly. Get them out of there.
Talk to your husband, and explain that while everyone else has time off, you still have work to do. Hopefully, you've already spoken before about how even though you work at home, you really are working, and it's a real job you get paid for, so he'll understand. Ask him to plan some activities that will keep the kids busy, and out of the house, at least for a few hours during the workday. And it doesn't need to be anything that will cost a lot, either. They can go to the park, weather permitting, or even do a little Christmas shopping for the family. This is the perfect time for them to get their gifts for you and maintain the surprise.
Give them chores to do
If you're planning on having family in from out of town, or just a house full of guests for Thanksgiving Day, there are several things that need to be done before everyone arrives. Even if you all keep up with the housework on a regular basis, having guests stay with you requires a little more preparation. And putting together a large meal for several people is not small undertaking. Your husband and kids can start the process.
If you have a dedicated guest room, it's not used every day, so it's going to need some extra attention. They can wash the linens and remake the bed, vacuum, and dust everything. Have them make sure there are extra hangers in the closet, and plenty of travel size toiletries. When it's just a couple of days out from Thanksgiving, they can even begin preparing some of the food. Pies can be prepared ahead, and then baked on Thanksgiving Day. When you put together your menu, choose appetizers and side dishes that can be prepared ahead and either refrigerated or frozen and later microwaved. The kids will probably get a kick out of helping Dad in the kitchen, too.
Let them have some fun
As wonderful as it sounds to have a live-in housekeeping and cooking staff, they can't do those things all day every day. Something about child labor laws, which were obviously written by people who don't need to keep kids busy. To maintain the harmony in the household, give them a break and let them take on some fun activities, too. Let the kids use your craft supplies to make some creative holiday cards for grandma and grandpa, or some unique decorations for the house. They could even put together a centerpiece for the Thanksgiving table. Just make sure if your kids are young, Dad is there to supervise use of scissors and glue.
When they're finally worn out from everything they've been doing all week, reward them with a big bowl of popcorn, and let them all snuggle on the couch together and watch a movie. You know that much of daytime television is soap operas and court shows-not appropriate fare for kids. Pop in a video or stream a classic children's movie online. And if your husband is a little tech-savvy, he can connect the computer to the television so they can watch everything on the larger screen.
Remember to take some time to spend with your family, too. No one should work straight through the holidays. Plan ahead to take some time off, and share some of these activities with the family. After all, they're the reason you do what you do every day.
Photo by Carissa GoodNCrazy via Flickr
Caitlin Douglass is a freelance writer specializing in telecommunications, technology and productivity.
Absolutely interesting. I'm glad i came across this blog.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bDNMuA795U Gonna follow some of these ideas with my kids. I love the outdoor activities stuff. Or they love helping me with cooking.
Posted by: Kids Play | Monday, November 22, 2010 at 12:52 AM