I’m busy, work is busy, family life is busy, I can be exhausted at the end of the day and then the whole thing starts again.
The thing I feel strongest about is, we are always available for our children no matter what time of the day it is. One thing I have started to realise lately is, do I really spend quality TIME with my children.
I would feel that I am always there for David, even when he is in Rehab Care, I am still having to check my phone to see if he has called. I noticed when I would be watching tv with him and just pottering around the room cleaning, he used to say to me ‘sit down with me mum’ and one day it made me stop in my tracks, this is what he wants.
It is easy to just let the housework go and sit with David, however in the back of my mind housework still needs to be done so how can I fit it into my day? Do I live in a house or is it a home? Or to put it another way, a friend of mine said to me once “do you think my children will remember I had a spotlessly clean house, almost perfect or that I read stories to them and listened”
I now try my best to make TIME.
Now I’m in a lucky situation I don’t have school runs anymore so it is a bit easier to sit with David in the morning and when he comes in from Rehab Care in the afternoon. Before bed, he even takes my phone and tv remote control and turns it off so he can speak to me uninterpreted which I have to smile about, I love this time, with him also.
David loves watching football (not my thing) so now it is difficult for me to get excited about a goal being scored from a team I have never heard of, but he wants me to watch it with him so I make the extra effort he especially likes tea and biscuits at half time. I’m allowed to go and make that 😊
I’m far from perfect and we all fall into the running around in circles day. However, as I’m a little bit freer now it’s easier to make that time. This is just a suggestion for you to incorporate into your day, you never know it could be a little stress buster for you too.
That’s all fine for me to say but a younger busy parent might find it a little challenging so..
How Do You Make More Time?
You can’t make more time but you might be present a little bit more if you make a conscious effort. You know your own child best, maybe they don’t want to talk in the morning but are very chatty after school. Maybe it takes them time to unwind, give them a little space and you can find the right time. Going for a walk is also a good alternative especially in teenage years as they don’t have to make eye contact with you so it might be easier for them to tell you about their day.
I don’t know many families that currently are not overcommitted. However, try to make the time, it is not all about school, being a taxi driver, therapies and in our case being parents of children with additional needs, it’s about love and it’s about TIME you will never get back.
