Penciling It In

While I was pregnant, I was so exhausted that if I didn't plan things in advance, my poor little toddler would be stuck inside with me all day, every day, because I just didn't have the energy to think of something to do with him every day and then actually go do it. I found a great suggestion on a parenting discussing board on how to keep things exciting and productive for you and your child by planning a different activity every day of the week. It was specifically for kids home during the summer, but since my son isn't in school yet, it's like summer all the time, and I want to keep him stimulated, happy, and hopefully that will be good tantrum prevention. The idea is as follows:

"Make It Monday": Make a fun craft
"Time to Read Tuesday": Go to the library and check out some awesome books
"What's Cooking Wednesday": Do a recipe with your child. Not only is it fun, it teaches great life skills!
"Thoughtful Thursday": Do some thoughtful act of service for someone, like writing a note or taking a treat to them
"Somewhere Fun Friday": Go somewhere exciting and, obviously, fun

Like I've said, I'm a list/chart junkie, so I immediately wanted to make a spreadsheet for this :) I switched my library day to Thursday because our local library has toddler story time on Thursday mornings. I also added a "Family Outing" on Saturday to make sure that I wasn't staying inside all day Saturday doing chores on the one day that my husband doesn't have to be at school. I need to remember that family memories are more important than a clean home. (But I do have another spreadsheet to help me keep up with my chores :p )

We don't go anywhere on Sundays because they're reserved for going to church and other quiet, Sunday-appropriate activities, like spending time at home with family, reading good books, etc., so I used my Sunday line for FHE (Family Home Evening), which is typically held on Monday evenings, where we have a short gospel lesson and a fun family activity and, of course, a treat. Right now we're going through the Nursery manual because our toddler is 2 and has a short attention span. It's the best. I'm not sure what we'll do once he graduates from Nursery, lol.

Anyways, here's my spreadsheet! It's the month at a glance, although I fill it in one week at a time so that we go places that are interesting to my son at the time, and do service for someone who really needs it at the moment.

Enjoy!

Family Activities			Week of:
Sunday	FHE	Lesson:	Treat:
Monday	Make It Monday	Craft:
Tuesday	Thoughtful  Tuesday	Person:	Item/Service:
Wednesday	What's Cooking Wednesday	Cooking:
Thursday	Time to Read Thursday	Library
Friday	Somewhere Fun Friday	Destination:
Saturday	Family Outing	Destination:
Family Activities			Week of:
Sunday	FHE	Lesson:	Treat:
Monday	Make It Monday	Craft:
Tuesday	Thoughtful  Tuesday	Person:	Item/Service:
Wednesday	What's Cooking Wednesday	Cooking:
Thursday	Time to Read Thursday	Library
Friday	Somewhere Fun Friday	Destination:
Saturday	Family Outing	Destination:
Family Activities			Week of:
Sunday	FHE	Lesson:	Treat:
Monday	Make It Monday	Craft:
Tuesday	Thoughtful  Tuesday	Person:	Item/Service:
Wednesday	What's Cooking Wednesday	Cooking:
Thursday	Time to Read Thursday	Library
Friday	Somewhere Fun Friday	Destination:
Saturday	Family Outing	Destination:
Family Activities			Week of:
Sunday	FHE	Lesson:	Treat:
Monday	Make It Monday	Craft:
Tuesday	Thoughtful  Tuesday	Person:	Item/Service:
Wednesday	What's Cooking Wednesday	Cooking:
Thursday	Time to Read Thursday	Library
Friday	Somewhere Fun Friday	Destination:
Saturday	Family Outing	Destination: