My girl and I haven’t had one-on-one time in a while. It’s been a busy summer so far and during the school year I always have her brother in tow (it’s not like it’s going to ease up anytime soon with #3 on the way). Yesterday afternoon we both had dental cleaning appointments. At 5, she is patient enough to wait for me while I get my teeth cleaned, but her brother will not sit through two cleanings at 3.
I dropped Alex off at my husband’s work around 2pm and the little man entertained himself at the office while Eric tied up loose ends and finished working. After the dentist appointments, Sofia asked: Mom, can we have you and me time? We can go to the mall and go play at Pottery Barn! After a quick check with my husband about logistics he agreed to leave work early and take Alex to the bookstore while we had girl time.
After a few stops at a couple mommy-stores, we headed to Pottery Barn for our 3 hr play date inside. Yup, you read it correctly. My girl and I played inside the store (they know me already) for a LONG time.
At some point, another little girl came by and they began playing together. Her mom and I talked about kids, schools, and lunches (of course!). When we finally left Pottery Barn, my Girl tells me: Mom, this was a GREAT afternoon. It was nice to not have my brother bugging us while we try to play together! At that moment, I realized how long it had been since my Girl and I had spent some alone time doing girly things (and things SHE enjoys). When I asked her what she wanted to do next, she replied: a pizza dinner date! So off we went to grab some pizza.
I’ve spent today thinking about how much kids just want US time. They don’t want to be in all these activities and entertained…. what they long for is time alone with us, their parents, to provide them with love and undivided attention. Do I neglect my kids? No, I’m with them and do things together all the time. The thing is, that when you have more than one kid, getting alone time can be difficult to arrange. However, it is something we are going to do more often for sure!
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