4 Realistic Mom Tips to Help You Balance Work and Kids on Summer Vacation

Once upon a time…

When my kids were little, we hired a nanny to care for them five days a week while I worked out of the house. Lisa (Wee-sa, as the kids called her) was amazing － and took care of all four of us. The kids were so young and well-entertained that it didn’t matter too much if I was physically present. Sure, it was hard to leave them in the mornings with their faces covered in toast crumbs, sporting adorable bed heads, but going to work was where I felt accomplished. I relaxed at work, sat for more than 20 seconds, was able to use my brain and talk to adults. While I enjoyed my career, Mom guilt was no doubt ever present and had me on an emotional rollercoaster. Surprisingly － or not so surprisingly － the guilt is still going strong today.

Right before school let out in May a friend asked, “Are you looking forward to summer?” Yes AND no. I have intentions of the going the pool, enjoying late nights catching fireflies, trips to Kings Island, and indulging in spontaneous backyard campouts. In reality (much more often than I’d like) these moments are far and few between working late hours maintaining my business.

It’s really, really difficult to juggle a full-time job that demands making frequent visits to project sites and being a mom of two young-ish children I desperately want to be present for while they’re home for summer vacation. “It all goes by in the blink of an eye” is a harshly accurate cliche － in 5 ½ short summers, we will be preparing for Fletcher’s first year of college. The time to slow down and enjoy their youth is now, especially since they’re old enough to know and feel whether or not mom is playing with them or the nanny is. I’m considering what needs to be done to achieve a more balanced summer.

And boy, do I need some sort of balance in my summer. You know it’s bad when your kids are calling you out for sneaking in some emails after hours…

For me, a balanced summer looks like reaching the goals I set for my business during its busiest season while slowing down enough to soak up my kids and make memories with them they’ll cherish forever. 

For all you parents out there struggling to juggle work and home life and everything in between, here is a list of realistic mom tips to help you achieve a more balanced summer.

If you’re looking for a mom blog with a formula for being a perfect mother to your children, good luck on your search! Here, we’re only being honest and vulnerable.

1. When in Doubt, Plan it Out!

On the summer weekdays, my husband and I struggle to keep our kids off of screens, and I don’t think we are alone in that. Unless we have a playdate scheduled for them, their eyes are glued to the glowing device in their hands. I know, I know… But it’s a constant battle, and sometimes we just wave our white flag and get on with our work day.

One thing I always try to do is plan out our week. I block out time in my calendar for outings and activities for my kids, otherwise other commitments will hijack every free moment I have during the summer.

I would love to be more spontaneous with my kids, soaking up that exciting summer feeling, but that’s just not a reality for us these days.

To have our week planned out － in even just the bare minimum － is to give my family something to look forward to and to give myself some peace of mind.

You use your calendar for meetings and appointments, right? Mark down some time in the week for getting ice cream with your kiddos or taking a walk by the creek! Yes, it requires extra effort to plan something your kids will truly enjoy, but it’s just as much for you as it is for them. You deserve time with your kids, and don’t ever let yourself think otherwise!

2. It Doesn’t Have to be a Race. It Can Just be a Stroll.

I try to work on this way of thinking every day. Why didn’t anyone ever tell us it would take so much effort to slow down and be present?

When we’re in the grind of paying bills, reaching professional goals and making sure we meet all of our deadlines and appointments, we settle into a jet-fast autopilot and no one bats an eye. But that’s not real life.

To be constantly preoccupied with a project and following up on emails, that’s not living. That’s just what we’ve been told to revel in our whole lives.

Unfortunately, summer is the busiest time for my business as this is when most people are doing work in their homes. So, I have no formula here for how to slow down and be present with your family; I’m figuring it out as I go. I’m learning that it is possible to slow down. All I have to do is say, “NO. No, thank you.”

The most important thing here is to remind ourselves each day that slowing down is more than OK. In fact, slowing down is when you get to live real life.

3. Life Follows No Rules

Life can change in an instant.

We all know this, especially after experiencing COVID for… Gosh, how many months has it been now?

The pandemic gave us all some perspective, even if it had to force feed it to us. From one moment to the next, everything changed for us; we lost our typical way of life, people were sick and dying, and there was so much confusion and uncertainty about a virus we couldn’t even comprehend yet.

I think we took our freedom and the easy day-to-day for granted before the pandemic. I’m thankful for this ability to be social again, but I’m also thankful we had a year to take a backseat to life and really consider what is important to us.

Life doesn’t follow a rulebook. We all know this, right? Yet, why do we still act like life won’t change in an instant? Why do we go about our days as though we’re in control?

We’re not. The pandemic solidified that for me, and it makes spending time with my kids even more crucial to my own happiness.

4. You Can’t Do it All, and Why Should You?

Moms, Dads, and all of the parental figures in between: You are not alone in this.

I wear a lot of different hats in my life and sometimes all at once. In other words, being a working mom always feels like having one foot in two different realms of life, and I’m waddling along rather than running at full speed (read: my comfort zone).

But you’re not a superhero; you can’t do it all. More importantly, you shouldn’t have to do it all. Here’s my advice: Delegate tasks to experts.

Don’t be afraid of letting the landscaper, housekeeper, or interior designer do the heavy lifting in areas they are masters in. The same goes for the day-to-day around your home. Need extra help with household chores or errands? Distribute those responsibilities to people you can trust so you can spend more time where it’s really important: your family. There’s no shame in this!

When I’m not scheduling time with my family, I love managing the daunting renovation process of my client’s homes, a process that you might hate taking over. This is normal. This is why there are people who are experts in areas different from you. Use this to your advantage, and feel pride in knowing you’re strategically moving your pieces to make your life a little easier.

If you’re ready to hand over the stress of your home design project to an expert, let’s chat! This will bring you one step closer to a stress-free, kid-filled summer.

Before You Go, Let’s Huddle Up!

It’s impossible to get it all right the first time around.

This is something I’m still learning. But here are your four realistic mom tips at a glance to help you balance work and kids this summer:

• Try to make a plan! You’re not invincible; you’re a busy bee, so block out time on your calendar in advance to carve out moments to spend true quality time with your kids.

• Make an effort to slow down at least once a day. Time is fleeting, but taking a moment to slow down and be present with your family is what makes life golden.

• Accept that life can change in an instant. Everything we hold dear can leave us in an instant. We forget this far too often for how important it is, so cherish these summer months with your kiddos as much as possible.

• Delegate the tasks on your plate. You can’t do everything all on your own. Every parent struggles to find balance, but that’s where we discover our strategy and strength. Hand over the projects, chores and errands over to experts you can trust, and grant yourself the extra time with your family you deserve.

As a full-time business owner and mother, I know that to hear from another parent a simple, “Hey. I feel it, too,” is a beacon in the dark. Or at least, it’s the flicker of a flashlight in the dark, signaling that I’m not all alone in here.

So, let me be the parent that tells you, “Hey. I feel it, too.” You’re not alone in these overwhelming summer months, and you never were.

You’re doing great.