I was gone for five days and the kids survived. I wish I could say the same about my garden. But at least the chickens are alive.
To be honest, I was worried how the kids would handle it so I did a little research and came up with a few ways to help them thrive while Mommy was gone.
1. Video Chats – I made sure to video chat with the kids each day. It was a great way to show them where I was and considering how difficult Elizabeth still is to understand on the phone, the video chats allowed us to have conversations. We used FaceTime and Skype. Both worked beautifully.
2. Postcards – I know they’re old fashioned, but postcards are an awesome way to communicate and, considering how little snail mail we get now, something special.
3. Keep Them Busy – Elizabeth went to my sister’s house for the duration. She was kept busy with trips to the museum, park, and special treats like manicures and playing with make up. Joseph got to have two sleep overs and go to the zoo, make a tie dye shirt, and attend a birthday party. When we were all together, we were able to fill each other in on our exciting weeks apart.
4. Buy them a souvenir – I bought each of them something small to reflect my destination and then spent time telling stories. From Boston, I brought home Make Way for Ducklings. I read it to them, showing pictures of the actual locations from the book. From Maine, I brought home wooden sailboats which we built together while I told them about the boats I saw in the harbors.
5. Enjoy the Time – The best thing you can do as a mother who is traveling is enjoy the time so you can come back relaxed and ready to slip back into mothering. Even if you’re on a business trip, take a few hours to meander through town or sleep in – two things that are difficult to do with kids.
Do you have any tips you’d like to add?
