Five school holiday tips for an enjoyable break with the kids
There’s no doubt that school holidays are a wonderful thing – they allow us to spend time with our families, travel to new places and embrace new hobbies. This time period also allows for new ways to connect and the chance to establish (and stick to) a routine.
Whether you have an action packed roster of activities, or are taking each day as it comes, read on for some of our favourite ways to help make the school holidays an enriching and fulfilling time for the entire family.
Establish routine
With no school or day care to dictate your day, it’s easy for any routine to disappear, but for kids, younger ones especially, familiarity is comforting, so it’s helpful to try and maintain some sort of schedule (even if it’s just to bookend the day’s activity).
For example, you might like to wake up at the same time and play some feel-good music before sitting down for breakfast. It can even be nice to partake in a small gratitude practice, like sharing one thing you’re grateful for or excited about in relation to the day ahead. To kickstart your family’s gratitude practice, read our blog on the power of words.
Holiday fun beyond the screen
The attention kids crave means they’re often looking for their next activity and source of entertainment. Why not switch up and establish a routine that allows for time off and on technology with your kids? Not only does it occupy their time, it also is beneficial to your wellbeing and productivity during the day too.
You might like to try an off screen activity, such as the below, with an hour of screen time in between, or however you see fit in your routine.
Try out a new recipe. Depending on their age, kids can help by mixing, stirring and taste testing. There’s a range of healthy, delicious recipes available on endota Retreat. Pesto pasta, BBQ chicken pizza and banana pikelets are a few of our favourites.
Why not plan a ‘crafternoon’? Some watercolours and a blank canvas are easy to pull together, or you could try painting terracotta pots. Once they’re dry, plant some herb seedlings and get the kids to water them every day. It will be exciting for everyone to watch them grow.
Try out mindful movement
If you’re doing a yoga or pilates routine, your kids may want to join in with you — so why not include them the next time you plan to get your body moving? Yoga or pilates might not seem like the most obvious kid-friendly activity, but you might be surprised at their interest (especially if you frame it as something that can be done together).
Just roll out a couple of mats, diffuse some essential oil and encourage them to give it a go!
Instil a fun bedtime ritual
Now’s the time to try out a bedtime ritual the entire family can get behind, that can last long after the school holidays have come to an end.
Start with a warm shower or bath using the endota Organics Nurture Gentle Bath & Body Wash, before trying out a quick guided meditation. Now is also an opportune time for reading together. To finish, mist the sheets with endota Organics Nurture Calming Sleep Mist – the organic lavender will promote feelings of tiredness and soothe your kids into a sound sleep.
If your kids are open to it, quieten their busy minds with a sound healing playing gently in the background to help them drift off to sleep.
Manage expectations
Finally, remember to go easy on yourself. There is no right or wrong way to enjoy the school holidays with your kids, but there is the right way for you. Surrender to the flow of the holidays, ask for help when you need it, and be sure to steal half an hour for yourself, whether that’s a quiet cup of tea, a hot bath, a mini at-home facial or breathwork session. As a parent, you absolutely deserve it.
For more ideas on taking care of yourself to be the best version of you for your loved ones, read our blog on reconnecting to self at all stages of motherhood.