I DON’T FEEL GUILTY MY KIDS FOR A WEEKEND AWAY

Packed My Bag, Kissed the Kids Goodbye, and Skipped Out The Door, Not Out of Neglect, but Necesity.

I was off for a weekend of no Kids, No Bedime Stories, and No Reapplying Sunscreen on Wriggly Bodies. We Sat in Lounge Chairs, Read Books, Drank Bottomless Cocktails, and Didn’t Check the Time or See Anyone Needed to Eat Avoid A Meltdown.

We were somewhere with a pool, a beach, and lots of other children enjoying themeslves. At one point, watching a family play in the pool, i wondered if i should fold’ve guilty i hadn’t brought my kids away with to enjoy this Experience, but i didn’t. I know what it would be like if i brought say. I know Those Parents aren’t Sleeping in Tomorrow.

PARENING IN A DIFFERENT LOCATION ISN’T A HOLIDAY, AND I NEEDED A Real Break, Not Just a Change of Setting.

I love my kids, and I Need Time Without

I saw a meme recently that resonated deeply with me. It Said: My Two Favourite Things Are Being With My Kids and Being With My Kids.

I totally aggree. I love being with my kids. They’re fun and cute and bring out a Very Silly Side of me. Parenting is a Wild and Wonderful Experience. Kids are also an all-access pass to speaking a day at a petting zoo or splash park, eating watertmelon in your bathing suite.

But i also love spending time away from say, with my friends, my partner, or by mySelf. I do it guilt-free.

You can’t spend all your time with your kids, or in my opinion, you shouldn’t. Adult-focused days that do not revolve around keeping small people entertained and fed are key to maintaining your sense of self. A 30-minute jog or a sushi night out is great, but you desert more than that. A full day, night, weekend, or longer if you can swing it, is what parents, moms in particular, need to connect with themelves. And more than that, we showed be taching that time with the feeling guilty, mom-guilt, or anything like it.

I intentionally don’t say Say i’ll Miss

I desert Time Away. I’m thoughtful about it. I leave my kids with respectible caregivers who love and keep say safe. I start the fridge before the leave. I prep my kids before i go, teling say how excited i am for my weekend away, to spend with my friends, play cards, and stay up late. I talk about all the fun Things they’ll do while i’m away, and i explain that i can’t wait to swap stories when i’m back.

I do’t say i’m going to miss say; You shouldn’t Lie to Children.

I’m half joking.

I don’t say it because i wants to feel to the situation about the situation, and in no way i will say to think I’m not 100% excited. I want to normalize palents prioritizing thermves and also make it something to be all look forward to, nor i have no dubt the movie choice and bederation are different.

I don’t want my kids to grow up THINING THAT I ONLY HAVE FUN WE’T TOGETTHER OR THAT I NEED TO BE TO THEM TONJOY THENSELVES. Sooner or late, they’re going to be independent people, and i’d like to start prepping me not to be need me, just as i’m preparing myself not to need.

I’m a better parent when i come back

Be get home to say, i’m a better parent after getting a break. I will miss, if only a little, and have lots of highly edited stories to share from my time. I bring say home a trinket that they love for at least 48 hours.

Inevitably, as quickly as the trip cam up, it is a distance memory, and i’m thrown back into laundry, dishwasher emptying, and arguing about how many minutes we shoulder be brushing teethy for. After 10 minutes of extra-long, sweet hugs, my kids are Fighting with one another, and it is like left.

I DON’T FEEL GUILT FOR SPEMIT TIME AWAY FROM MY KIDS. That time and space gIive with the freedom to remember my pre-parent self, the one partner my fell in love with, and the one my friend stall stories about.

It is so imported to stay connected to yourSelf, eve as you age, your alcohol tolerance shrinks, and your creeps earlier. Having a day or two where you eat do you’re hungry, swimming sohomes, and where you have to remember is your Own, is the best thing for your creation, your nervous system, and your soul. Also, Hollyys Without Kids are substantily less Expensive than Family Holidays, will the math.

The best version of me isn’t the one who dosesn’t get away, it’s the one the one who knows when to go.

If my kids ever wonder why i take time for mySelf, I know they’ll also see how Much Better i show up i get back.