{They All Call Me Mom} Taking Time for the Kids When You Don't Have Spare Time

Over the past month and a half, I have been trying to figure out how to balance three kids to one mommy. Mr Napping was able to take the entire month of March off of work and I was spoiled in having an extra pair of hands to answer the “Mooooommmmm… I need you”s. But, he went back to work at the beginning of this month and I have had to figure out this juggling act all over again.

Do you ever feel guilty for not playing with your kids? I have had more than one afternoon where I tuck my older boys in for nap time, sing the shortest lullaby I can think of and them blow them kisses as I back out the doorway to my wailing infant that is insisting he will perish if not fed in the next 30 seconds. I didn’t always love the nap time routine, but I did it and it always took more than 2-3 minutes. And my boys loved it. That’s what mattered. So, now that there is a smaller, more dependent upon me person taking up the time that used to be theirs, I try to make special moments with each of them every day. But, that’s harder than you might think.

Today, Katrina is here from They All Call Me Mom to share some of her secrets and tips on taking time for the kiddos when you don’t have time to spare. Take it away, Katrina!

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“Mommy…will you play with me?”

As a mother, I adore hearing those sweet words come out of my three year old’s mouth. But as a busy mother of many children who is trying to get everything she needs to get done in a day, those words always tug at my heart strings because as much as I’d love to, the fact is that there are many times in my day that I simply cannot stop what I’m doing to play.

Lucky for me, Aria is very into playing “house” lately. I can hear her playing house with her older sisters. The scene always goes something like this:

ARIA: Okay, I’m the baby and you’re the mommy, ‘kay? And you are going shopping, ‘kay? And then you feed me, ‘kay?

And then after she sets the scene, the dialog starts up between the “mommy” and the “baby” … and the house play begins. It’s so darn cute.

So lately whenever Aria comes up to me and asks me to play with her when I’m doing housework or making lunches or cooking dinner, instead of saying “No, not right now. Mommy is busy.” I say, “Yes, I can play with you. Let’s play house…and YOU’RE the mommy and I’M the daughter…and you tell me to do my chores or I can’t go to the dance with the handsome prince, okay?”

And then a huge smile spreads across her little face. I’ve entered her world and she gets so excited about that.

“Honey, do your work or you can’t go to the dance…” she says, in her best high-pitched mommy voice.

And I say, “Ugh. Okay, mom! I will. Ugh!!”

And then I go about doing the laundry, vacuuming, washing dishes (whatever it is I’m doing) and every now and then I call out to her, “Mom? Do I still have to clean?”

And she answers, “Yes, honey…you’re not done yet. Remember, you want to go to the dance.”

And that is how I play with my three-year-old when I’m too busy to play!

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Thanks for sharing with us, Katrina! That’s too funny. I love the idea and will have to try to implement it with my boys… although I might have to want to go to the park or go-kart racing instead of the dance. Hehe. Check out all the fabulous things going on over at They All Call Me Mom.

This post was written by Krista and originally appeared on While He Was Napping.

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