Note: This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Part 2 addressed getting your children involved in the planning and how to handle the stress that comes with a busier life.
The beginning of back-to-school season is an important time for children. After all, it could very well have an affect on a child’s ability to socialize and impact how they perform academically.
It can certainly be a tough transition, but kids are not the only ones that have to deal with a new schedule. Parents must also adjust, and those adjustments are usually a little harder on the divorced dad; even more so for those going at it alone.
It doesn’t matter how much you love them, not too many of us are enthused about going from beach lounging and backyard barbecues to making lunches and checking over homework. I definitely wouldn’t call it fun, but it is another one of those necessary evils that has to be dealt with.
In this article, I will provide some practical tips divorced dads can use to simplify the transition and get back into the swing of things.
Get Yourself In Rhythm
If you want to maintain your sanity throughout the school year, which can prove to be a rather grueling stretch, the first thing you should do is a establish a routine and get yourself in a good rhythm from the very beginning. Are there important things you need to get done on the typical school day?
More than likely there are so I would suggest making a list or creating a schedule and jotting down your priorities. Whether it has to do with school, work, or groceries, visualizing your goals, even in such a simple manner, will make them easier to accomplish and also help you get on the path to establishing routines everyone can follow.
Map Out Your Sleeping Schedule
It is very common for parents to allow their children to stay up later during the summer months. More often than not, this changes once the school season starts back up, and that could mean an inevitable change to your sleeping schedule.
The time you decide to crash depends on a wide range of factors, but figuring it out is important because it will help you determine when the kids need to be in bed as well. Don’t underestimate this because monitoring activities such as chores, teeth brushing, and laying out tomorrow’s attire can be more time consuming than you think.
The last thing you want to is continuously find yourself running behind at night and getting to bed later than planned. This can make for very irritable mornings.
Plan the Morning Routine
Finding rhythm in the morning routine is one of the most vital aspects of getting back into the grind the school season calls for. This is where both you and the kids must adopt the ritual that hopefully gets everyone off to a good start.
For kids, this could mean fitting in getting dressed, watching morning cartoons and eating breakfast before heading out the door. For you, it could mean having that cup of coffee, checking your e-mail or actually getting breakfast on the table.
The better you execute your routine the night before, the easier it will be to transition into the next day and assure that the morning routine flows like clockwork.
Note: This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Part 2 addressed getting your children involved in the planning and how to handle the stress that comes with a busier life.
Contel Bradford is a professional freelance writer, journalist, and published author of multiple books. He specializes in many areas, including legal, divorce, and family-related topics. You can learn more about his services by visiting www.contelbradford.com.
