Happy Thursday! Life here has been pretty good. We have had a few tricky parenting phases with sleep and school drop offs, but I’m definitely feeling in a better place about it than I was when we began the month.
1. Like I mentioned above, we had some kid phases in the past month that took a lot of energy. Things have definitely improved. I really took Nicole’s advice to heart. She wrote, “they need their "tanks filled," and so when they are clingy and needy, it's because they just need a little extra, and to give them the extra love and attention.” This really helped me to dig deep and provide that extra love and snuggles. I also tried to make pain points in the day more enjoyable. If we had extra time before school drop off, I snuggled my toddler in the front seat of the car while we listened to Frog and Toad. I packed snacks for the car ride pickups, which I resisted because it seemed unnecessary, but made our afternoons so much more peaceful. Round trip, the whole thing takes 45 minutes, so having something to look forward to in that for M really helps.
2. Another thing I thought about a lot was something I read in Lag Liv’s post. She wrote, “I remember thinking, I am so glad I have a job. My day could have so easily risen and fallen based on her own experiences and that would be the worst thing I could do for her.” Right now, I don’t work outside the home, and it is absolutely true that it’s easy for the emotional tone of my day to mirror that of my least happy child. My kids are younger, and the problems are smaller, but it’s still true. Lately, I’ve been trying to focus on what’s in my control (exercising, being outside with the kids, making yummy food, seeing friends and family, how I show up for the kids) instead of feeling so caught up in kid feelings/struggles. I also have been waffling a lot on when it’s the right time to go back to work. I now feel clarity that I’d like to wait until M starts TK, which is essentially one school year away at this point. At that point she will be at the same school as A, and we won’t have to figure out different childcare for one year. There is a lot I enjoy about being home with the kids and the flexibility of that comes with it. Since we can swing it financially for another year, I feel good about the choice even if there are days when I miss teaching. I also know that it is a huge privilege to have this option to stay home while our kids are little, and I don’t want to lose sight of that either.
3. Lastly, I’ve been really enjoying the Money for Couples podcast. It’s so interesting to get a window into conversations about people’s perspectives on money decisions and also see how different couples make decisions. I highly recommend it, and it has also helped me feel more motivated to stay on top of our day to day finances as well as think through the bigger picture with more intention.
3. Do you also enjoy hearing about other people’s finances? Have you ever had a gap in working, and if so, what was it like returning to work?
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