Some people do power yoga-we strategize about our life and kids.
Offsite even!
In the last few months my Guy and I have realized a serious need to ALIGN together as we enter these complicated teen years. It seems like everyday we are facing another question or request from our 12 or 14 yr. old that we have no clue what he answer should be.
“Mom-there is this guy selling a watch for half price on Facebook. I don’t know him but want to meet him at a subway station and buy it. I promise it is not stolen”
“Dad-can I start a hat selling business and use my free time to be a broker on the internet?”
“Mom tonight I need to stay up until 2am as I offered to edit the huge project my team is doing in English and we created an hour long video. Goodnight Guys!”
“Ya I don’t really feel like packing for Italy and the incredible wonderful extremely generous trip you are going out of your complete way to take me on. Are you ok if I just play outside? Packing is boring-you can do it.”
So all that to say we went offsite to figure all this out to have a plan. To decide and align on what is important to us at this new stage of our lives.
What is working well as a couple? What is not? How about our schedules-do they work? Need to be re-adjusted given our new morning routines? And our kids-how are they doing? Are we happy on how they are turning out? Are we achieving our goals with them and handing down values that we had intended?
What is our strategy for the next 5 yrs. with the family?
How do we put it into action? What even are the actions?
So since our Jacuzzi needed some serious fixing and we needed to make a trip up to Trent anyways on Sunday-we left the kids for the day to fend for themselves and talked and talked for about 7 hrs. Straight.
We wrote it all down (well I did) and we have put many things into practice already over the last 2 days.
We did this for years when the kids were younger at least twice a year (minus the offsite). It was almost a religious thing for us and the cornerstone of success of raising kids as far as we were concerned. However after they all reached about 8 yrs. we stopped it seemed. The school and middle yrs. seemed much easier for us went a lot more smoothly I guess. Not as many surprises and decisions to make as with babies, toddlers ands teens. I guess we got a break for 6-7 yrs if you can call it that! Didn’t really feel like a break!
So I will keep you posted as we go along but so far this week has been interesting indeed.
I don’t have to spend time at table with kids in morning anymore as I find it irritating since I am not a morning person and am irritating them all anyways. Hubby cooks breakfast and drives carpool because it relaxes him. I get an extra hour in of work in the morning with no disruption. No! No! and No again to internet brokerage business of teenagers. Assessment is risk of kidnapping for meeting strangers at subways. Vodka Martinis will need to be limited for healthy normal and awake adults in evenings. Earlier bedtimes and may need to go to beddie bye at different times since I have loads of energy at midnight and husband wants to sleep. Bitchiness has to stop! Irritability bring it down a notch too? Accountability a teensy weensy bit higher pretty please? Numbers 8 and 22 will take on a whole new meaning. Late night Jacuzzis a deux a necessity. And my God Bear….just pack and be grateful! Are you kidding me???
