Unexpected Stay-At-Home-Mom

As you know I was let go from my last position, after 10 months of looking and rejection, I decided to take a break from the job hunt.

And took on a new role, an unexpected stay-at-home-mom.

A role I was apprehensive to take on, worried about my sanity and how I would survive being home with one goal; keeping my kids alive. Thankfully, Dylan was still in school so I only had Tabitha during the day which helped ease me into being a SAHM.

I spent my days with Tabitha; hiking, going on walks, music class, play dates, typical stay-at-home mom things. Then would get Dylan with 2 minutes to spare from her pre-school. I was used to having both girls home at the end of the day without help, but it was still exhausting.

When we moved we took Dylan out of school when her preschool class graduated mid-June.  She was supposed to be in pre-school until the end of August right before school began.

The letdown. 

Now, I was going to be in a new neighborhood home all summer with BOTH girls. I was worried. I had always figured out a way to barely ever be anywhere with BOTH girls expect for our own home and now I was going to have to be facing this issue daily! How was I going to survive? I wasn’t made for this.

I put on my big girl pants and convinced myself this would be great! It would be a fun, relaxing summer, exactly what we needed before Dylan started Kinder.  Then I started to tell people, and their reactions made me think I was crazy for thinking I could be with both girls day in and day out.

I ignored the nay sayers and pushed forward. And have had a very successful, fun, summer. I wanted to share my tips to surviving and thriving being an unexpected stay-at-home mom.

Here are my 8 tips to help you keep your sanity:

• Google free events both locally and outside of your comfort distance.
  • Tip: Check your local libraries and malls event calendars for kid friendly events.
• Find an indoor, air conditioned gym/museum that you and your kids love, that you would not mind going 1 million times. And get a membership.
  • Tip: Take full advantage, figure out how many times you need to go to make a membership worthwhile. For example, if the membership is a $100, and $18 to get in, you would need to go 7 times to make price of membership worth it. 
• Take advantage of free museum days. Find out when your local museum has their free monthly day by searching online. Around here, most have a free day once a month.
  • Tip: I have noticed that even though the museum day is free, you still need to book in advance to have tickets for admission. Free museum days get fill fast so take a advantage of booking your tickets early.
• Explore local parks.
• Go to beautiful gardens!
• My all time favorite activity outdoor concerts! Search free/minimal fee concerts for both families and adults. Yes, we deserve a night out too!
• Take advantage of your dollar spot at Target and Michael’s craft stories. My daughters love crafts especially painting so I have stocked up on kits which are generally $1 or so.
  • Tip: If your kids are like mine, you will have a ton of these projects around, instead of throwing them away, give them to grandparents, god-parents, aunties, uncles, etc. as presents. Saves money and it’s thoughtful. I started a Christmas/Hanukkah stash. 
• Have a community pool? Take full advantage! Don’t have one? Find a friend who does!
• Bake! My daughter loves baking with me. It takes up time, teachers her about patience, measurements, etc.

Money Saving Pro Tips:

• Might be obvious, but it’s always hard for me to get my act together when I plan I pack lunch. Even if you only have PB&J, it’s better than having to buys something. Your kids will love it. And might eat it better than anything you buy.
• Take advantage of admission fees, if kids are free until 4 make sure you are not paying for them if they are under that age.
• Book admissions/parking online, sometimes there is a discount.
• When booking online, always ALWAYS search for an online promo code

You don’t have to to be a SAHM to have fun ways to entertain your kids. So curious, how do you keep your kids busy on the cheap? Comment below and share your tips!