Smarty Mom Debbie Leahy: Summer Survival

It’s week 5 of our Smarty Mom Survival Series and this week Debbie shares with us her summer experience, how she handles it and her tips to make it work. As a busy SAHM with 3 year old twin girls and an 8 month old, she has a lot on her plate. When we last met Debbie she shared her family’s story with the baby’s medical emergency and how they courageously handled it.

Smarty Stats:
SAHM
Husband- Jim
Children- Sarah and Caroline (3 years)
Ellen (8 months)
Original Smarty Mom Posting, June 6, 2009

I’ll be completely honest here, as summer was approaching and our budget tightening, I wasn’t exactly sure about June, July, and August. With my husband working out of town most of the week, and with 3 little pairs of eyes (3-year-old twin girls and an 8-month old baby) all on me during these long summer days, I had to quickly figure out a game plan. Part of the beauty of summertime is that you can be impulsive. However, as all you smarty moms of little ones know, we still have to work within nap schedules – for me, that includes a baby that takes a morning and an afternoon nap, one twin taking an afternoon nap, and another that requires no nap, but needs some “quiet time” in the afternoon. I wanted to keep things fun and spontaneous, yet also maintain some sort of routine. We developed a very flexible schedule for Monday – Friday that looks something like this:

Monday – swim lessons in AM, followed by playground playdate and picnic lunch. This is the only day of the week when the baby’s AM nap is somewhat compromised, as I am a huge believer in maintaining healthy sleep habits.

Tuesdays – Mother’s helpers day. Middle-school-aged girls can be wonderful helpers. I have 2 girls, sisters ages 8 and 10, who love playing with the twins, and the twins love them. They stay for 4 hours, and are so wonderful – they even arrive with “lesson plans!” I try to use this time to take care of things around the house that would otherwise take me at least twice as long to do. They can help make lunch and then have a picnic on the porch.

Wednesdays – We swing by the library in the AM, and then go to their grandfather’s house to play in the backyard and have a picnic lunch. These visits usually involve helping in the vegetable garden, splashing in the sprinkler, and exploring his wonderful acre of a backyard.

Thursdays and Fridays – I use these days for “field trips,” and if nothing else is on the agenda, we go to the pool! I am able to get in the pool with all 3 girls with the proper floats. One day I will be able to sit in a lounge chair, but it’s actually kind of fun to get in the water and play with your kids! If they are having fun, we stay and order pizza for dinner. I’ll take any chance I can get to eat a meal outside!

As far as smarty mom summer tips, here are 3 things that I recommend:
1. Visit a dermatologist to get those moles checked. With kids, we are in the sun more now and there is no time like the present to take a few minutes for you to get checked out.
2. Make sure that you keep yourself energized by getting enough to eat and drink. We spend so much time preparing meals for our kids that we sometimes don’t get to eat ourselves. Make sure that your kids see you sit down and eat healthy foods, so that they can follow your example. I am trying to give up carbonated beverages, and have become a big fan of FUZE beverages as an alternative.
3. My favorite adult beverage of the summer is the Pomegranate Martini. Check out Oprah’s recipe for the perfect concoction.
I buy POM juice at Costco in the fresh juice section, and it is wonderful in this drink!

So, we’re more than halfway through the summer, and I can honestly say that we are having fun. We keep a pool bag ready to go, and pack lunches and a picnic blanket just about every day, and away we go! Keeping the girls active keeps them happy, and it usually ensures a good night’s sleep.