As most of you know, I am a work at home dad. I have been doing this for a little over two years now, and it has been great. There is a certain freedom that comes from not having to go to your job (don’t get me wrong, I run a business so I still “work”), and it is great to be there while you children grow up.
But one of the most important things that you need to do as a stay at home parent is have breaks from you kids. Taking a break gives you the time to get rid of stress, “recharge” your patience, and appreciate your kids more. I didn’t realize how important a break was to being a successful parent until recently.
In the past, I usually tried to get away from the kids for a day or two every two weeks or so. For me, this was kind of the sweet spot and it allowed me to take a break before getting too worn down and frustrated with the kids. But, it seemed that the timing wasn’t right over the past six weeks, and the usual opportunities that I normally would have had were taken away from me (thanks to being sick, and my wife’s business commitments).
Though I love my kids dearly, 42 days in a row with them was just a little too much. These past few days, I found myself getting frustrated a lot easier and the little things got to me a lot more. I think that even my wife noticed that I wasn’t doing so well and wasn’t “myself”.
But thankfully, I am sitting here writing this blog post sitting at my parents house with no kids in sight. I am very thankful that they have the room for me and live reasonably close (an hour away), so that their home provides the perfect getaway without causing any kind of financial duress.
And how do I feel?
Great. Relaxed. And I am enjoying the quiet. I know that coming to the city makes life a lot busier (since there are so many things to do), but it is a great way for me to recharge my batteries. It has been long overdue.