256: Sanity Summer Series: Themed Days to Keep Kids Engaged

Camille: 0:00

The magic trick is that as you add structure to your week, it adds a way of doing structure without adding to your to-do list of what you're going to do every single day. So you wanna make an impact. You're thinking about starting a business, sharing your voice. How do women do it that handle motherhood, family and still chase after those dreams? We'll listen each week as we dive into the stories of women who know this is Call Me CEO. Welcome back everyone to Call Me CEO. This is your host, camille Walker, and today is another solo episode for your sanity summer series, and I am doing these shorter episodes because summer is crazy and busy and I'm sharing with you things that have worked for me throughout the years. Now, the topic that I'm talking about today is something that I don't do as much now that my kids are older, because they tend to have more extracurricular activities that are their own meaning. They're teenagers now and they have friends and jobs and things that take them away from being around my feet all the time. However, this is still a theme idea that could work for children of any age, or if you're looking for a little more structure or ideas to mix up the monotony of your everyday in the summer. Now, some of you have kids who are in daycare, so this may or may not apply to you, depending on how much time you want to devote to this idea. But essentially, the idea of theming your days in the summer is so that your kids and you have an idea of the activities that you'll do during the week. So I'm going to give you a rundown of some ideas that have worked for me in the past and also to give you a variation of these ideas as you can adapt them to work for you. But what we are doing this for is because your children, if they are anything like mine, will ask what are we doing today or the night before? What are we doing tomorrow? Tell me what's happening tomorrow. That's a question I still get every single day. So while you're half asleep clutching your coffee or holding onto the diet Coke, let's talk like friends and tell you about how this has worked for me. Because kids, when they know what to expect, they don't have to think so hard, they don't ask you over and over of what is going to be happening, and that, my friend, is a true summer fix for bringing you some sanity. So let's break down this idea. The magic trick is that as you add structure to your week, it adds a way of doing structure without adding to your to-do list of what you're going to do every single day. Last week, if you missed it, we talked about how to handle screen time. We talked a little bit about chores and zones. That's going to be on its own separate episode of talking about chores in the home, but for this, we're talking more about how to incorporate the fun. So this is something that you can encourage your kids or get them excited about doing the things after you get the to-dos around the house done.

Camille: 3:11

One idea for theming your days is to make it something that is something you can do together. So let's just go through some ideas. I'd love to hear if, as you're thinking or listening to these ideas, if you have other ideas you'd like to share, please feel free to DM them to me at callmeceopodcast, on Instagram or at camillewalkerco you can reach me either way. But with theming their days, it will help them to come up with more creative ways to connect with you or to use their imaginations. So let's starting with Monday. So one thing I like to do is make it an alliteration. So, for example, it would be something like make it Monday, try it Tuesday, water Wednesday, thoughtful Thursday and friend Friday. Another idea for Friday could be a free for all Friday, or in our family we've done movie Fridays. So whatever that looks like for you, you can kind of adapt it to what you think.

Camille: 4:10

So let's talk about Make it Monday. So Make it Monday could look like this this could be a day that you do crafts, baking or building projects. Maybe you have Lego fans in your house. We definitely do. Bring out those pieces of puzzles or pieces of Legos and make something. If you allow your children to create on their own time, it can be a really fun way to see their imagination go wild and see what they come up with, even if it's just with a duct tape, wallet or a batch of cookies. One of a really fun idea that I've done in the past and I even just did this a few weeks ago we had a big box that was shipped to us and I gave it to my son and said this is yours, make it your own. And I gave him crayons and markers and he got in there and treated it like a car, all sorts of different things. He I don't even know what he did with it, but he had a good I don't know week with this box and it. But he had a good I don't know week with this box. And it's interesting, when you give kids just a couple ideas and let them run with it, what they'll actually come up with. So Make it Monday could be interpreted a lot of different ways and if that's something that you think would work for you, definitely give that a try. Another alliteration on Monday could be movie Monday or munchie Monday, maybe, where you go, try something new to eat from the store or a restaurant or something. But make it fun and think about your kids ages and what would work for them.

Camille: 5:39

Hey, moms, if you feel like life is a non-stop juggling act school drop-offs, business, business calls, meal prep, trying to find a single moment for yourself I've got something for you. First, you need to sign up for my newsletter. It is free. I always include the episodes, what's upcoming, what is the takeaway from that week, and I will include a free recipe as well as, sometimes, activities that have to do with the upcoming events happening in today's world. But I have the mom balance playbook for free. It is a simple, practical guide to managing the mayhem of mom life, so you can finally stop feeling like you're dropping the ball. It's time to bring more balance, joy and structure into your home, without the burnout. And the best part, it is totally free. Head to camillewalkerco to grab your free copy now, or grab it from the link below in the show notes. Okay, so for the next one is Try it Tuesday.

Camille: 6:34

Explore something new a park, a food, a board game or a skill. The novelty keeps them engaged and curious. One thing that I did when my kids were younger is I actually searched parks in my area that we didn't live directly around. It was a little bit more of a drive, but we got to explore new parks around us and I ended up finding the most darling park that had a water feature that went through it and we were able to float little duckies and things down the park. I never would have found it on my own, but where we have Google, you can go and search and see what are some of the best parks around you or what are some of the best highly rated restaurants or what's a new board game you could try.

Camille: 7:21

They say that with kids in the kitchen, specifically if you help them in the process of creating or cooking a meal, they're much more likely to eat it or to try it. They're much more likely to eat it or to try it. And I actually attended an event once with a food therapist and we were talking about how to get picky eaters to try new foods and she said one of the biggest things for kids to overcome is the fear of sometimes even the texture or the touch of it. So even just playing with the food or touching the food to their face is a new way for them to experience the food. So when my kids were younger, we had this thing where it would be to touch, to try to taste and then to try. So it's touching it to their face, touching it to their lips, their tongue and then even taking a nibble. And that was a huge, monumental feat for some of my children that were really particular or picky about their foods. So maybe that could be something that you try and to do it and encourage those incremental wins because, trust me, I have been there with very, very picky children and even getting them to lick and to taste something big deal. So maybe making that a part of your try it Tuesday could be a cool way to incorporate some new things this summer.

Camille: 8:40

Water Wednesday is a staple in my house. Just yesterday I picked up my nephews. They were covered in sweat from a soccer game and a practice and they came to my house and were so hot and they're like what can we take a shower? I just sent them right back outside and I said why don't you just have a water fight? And they were so excited and it was so easy and fun to do. Other ideas for Water Wednesday could be sprinklers, water balloons, splash pads, even a long bubble bath. Anything that involves water is a hit and it keeps them cool For sure. One of my favorites was splash pads when my kids were little, because you can have multiple kids in one place and not have to worry about anyone drowning, which is always when.

Camille: 9:29

Thoughtful Thursday is the next idea. This is something that could encourage kindness, so writing letters, making cards for grandparents or helping a neighbor. It's a reset day that feels good. You could even include baking or something like that, where you could bake cookies or have something new for the kids to try, and this is also a really fun way to have your kids looking outside of themselves. It could also be something that you could do to encourage other ideas of service. If you want to help them with pulling weeds or gathering food for a local food shelter, free for all, friday is a fun one. This is where you let them choose. It could be movie nights, late nights, pajamas till 2 pm. This is a no pressure day where everyone chills.

Camille: 10:19

For us, friend, friday was a really good one to encourage because my kids tend to stick to themselves in the house, and so I would ask them ahead of time who is someone that you would want to see, or me, to make a special effort to see if we could set up a play date with. So Friday, make it special, make it fun, make it easy. The beauty here it's totally flexible. You can skip a day, change a theme, make it your own. The goal is to reduce the daily decision fatigue. So if you can get together with your kids and come up with the ideas or themes that they're excited about, that's even better. And then put the weekly chart on the fridge so it gives the kids a sense of ownership of what it is that you're doing and what the theme is for the day. So, in conclusion, you don't have to entertain your kids 24 seven.

Camille: 11:08

I think that's one of the biggest mistakes I ever did was thinking that their entertainment and pleasure was completely up to me, because I think that when our kids are given the opportunity to be bored, they are better at figuring it out on their own. I tell them it's like flexing a muscle or growing a muscle. Sometimes when they're bored, it feels awkward or hard, but when you give them the chance to flex that muscle and to be bored and figure it out, it feels awkward or hard. But when you give them the chance to flex that muscle and to be bored and figure it out, it's amazing what their little minds can come up with. If you have any ideas or things you want to share, make sure to reach out to me at callmeceopodcast on Instagram and make sure that you are tuning in every week listening to inspiring stories for moms.

Camille: 11:51

I have a summit coming up this early September called Mom in Mind, where we're going to be sharing a whole bunch of guest speakers talking about how they are managing both home and family, and I am also going to be opening up the doors for my CEO mastermind. So make sure to stay tuned for that. I hope you have a wonderful summer. If you want more resources around this, make sure to check the link below and I will give you more details on how to connect with me online. Thank you for tuning in and we will see you next time. Hey CEOs, thank you so much for spending your time with me. If you found this episode inspiring or helpful, please let me know in a comment and a five-star review. You could have the chance of being a featured review on an upcoming episode. Continue the conversation on Instagram at callmeCEOPodcast, and remember you are the boss.