When you have a weekend that seems to have less on the calendar, try to sit down with the family ahead of the weekend and come up with a game plan.
Talk to the kids about your own decluttering or project goals. When kids know what to expect, they can behave more appropriately. Ask the kids about their own decluttering or project hopes for the weekend. Let them know you can help them.
Once you have each come up with a goal, plan something a little fun for when the work is done. Plan a whole family reward for when everyone has worked to support each other to get all the goals done! This doesn’t have to be anything extravagant! It can be something simple like a board game night, crazy popcorn toppings, a movie, or a make your own sunday bar. It’s actually more fun when you get to spend time at home having fun together rather than going out to a fancy restaurant, not to mention the cost savings!
I think it’s so valuable to work hard and play hard as a family. Especially with some planning ahead. Everyone knows what the reward is ahead of time, so everyone then knows what’s at steak if they don’t participate! Making it family effort means that everyone also encourages each other to work hard because, again, everyone knows what they are working hard for.
So Friday night through dinner, set aside some time to make some plans with the family. If your kids are really young, try to at least chat with your partner about goals so that you can both feel like you’ve accomplished something over the weekend.
Come up with one working hard goal each. It doesn’t have to be overly ambitious, just something that may be harder to do during the week. It can even be something like, ‘get all the laundry put away properly!’ Or ‘work hard to see the floor in the kids’ rooms.’ Or, ‘set up the outdoor seasonal decorations.’
Whatever it is, each person gets one goal for the weekend. Each person can decide if they need or want help. Don’t forget to also plan the reward! If you are worried about one person in the house not getting on board, set some limits. If you do half the work, you get half the reward or something like that.
Have fun planning and getting some stuff done this weekend! Use some time over breakfast tomorrow to get started for this weekend.
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