Hey Friend!
I wanted to write you a quick note as we embark on the beginning of summer. I was sitting here thinking about my summer schedule with the kids and hubs being home and a wave of overwhelm washed over me. Every year I say the same things to myself, this summer will be different. We’re going to read, spend quality time together, and do all the things together. But I also run a business and have goals. Mom guilt is a B!tch. I know you get it, you’re a mom too. I want to sit pool side with my little humans. I’d LOVE to sit around laughing away the lazy days of summer casually injecting some summer science learning into their still young brains. My logical brain creates a strict schedule where we go to the library in the morning, followed by a trip to the park and a health lunch. After that I’m working on my business, writing blog posts and answering emails.
Then reality hits…
Laundry, dinner, and bills. Your partner wants to spend time together, your kids are not really enjoying the Summer of Camp Mom. They just want to sleep in and wake up to endless hours of Fortnite and pizza. I know this is so not what you had planned.
Some days you will feel defeated, some days you will feel as if you need to finish a bottle of wine by 9am because there are toys everywhere, the heat of July is intolerable, your kids think your activities are lame and your trips to the pool don’t allow you to focus on the growing number of outstanding blog posts or that growing number of photos to edit.
Breathe..
Now with all that being said I ‘m here to tell you summer is short and while you may have had the best of intentions please show YOURSELF some grace. Your children, whatever their ages, are young and growing up in your home for a limited time. I know it’s hard and you struggle with work-life balance and the SHOULDS of life. Our children are our greatest joy and spending time with them in that space creating memories, sharing love, eating junk food and staying up late playing hide and seek in the dark is important too.
Once school resumes in 11 weeks or LESS you don’t want to live with the thoughts of “I wish we had, or there’s always next summer.”
Here are some ideas to help you get your foothold on things:
- Planning your year in advance – Every December I plan my year out – vacations, marketing plan, school calendar for the kids, and things I want to do. I write them in our calendar so they are planned. If they need to be moved by a few days that’s ok but at least they are written down.
- Create a Marketing plan – I sit down and review what promotions I want to run,I review what I did last year and see what I’m going to add for the upcoming year. With the new studio and new assistant I think things will flow nicely this year and I’m excited. Getting back on track will be very liberating.
- Editorial Calendar- I use the WP plugin to track my posts but having a background in journalism so it’s pretty easy to create themes for my posts and what I what to share.
If you plan out your work life ahead of time, you can plan for the family time you need, especially in the summer months where everyone wants a little more fun and a lot less work! Download the Summer Bucket List Printable here and start planning the fun!
