Mandatory Mama & Son Time!

Hellooooo, peeps, from the third week of onboarding the new school year!

My crew is still functioning with some stability, but...we're feeling the growing pains, for sure.

Our literal (and metaphorical) gas tanks are emptying faster than ever (hello, Elementary, Middle and High--oh my!).

https://delappenings.blogspot.com/2026/08/elementary-middle-high-oh-my.html

Our new, top-notch, digital wall calendar is FULL and free time is EMPTY.

https://delappenings.blogspot.com/2026/08/catch-up-to-keep-up.html

And, there's never (ever!) as much sleep as we all need.

But, thanks to so many hard-won lessons (that I'm still constantly learning, if I'm being honest), our expectations of free time are quite low these days, we're really trying to maximize joy and mental health, when possible, and...we're growing more adept at bobbing and weaving with alllllllll the challenges that face a family of our age and stage.

https://delappenings.blogspot.com/2025/03/big-picture-posts-family-schedule.html

Change is the only constant, right???

Which is an excellent segue for this particular post--all about implementing a new and amazing routine for Little Man that we're LOVING.

The kind of routine that has become so Mission Critical in just a short amount of time that I can't believe we ever survived without it.

(Real quick--I'll give you a couple of pictures so you don't have to wade through even more text before you get any!)

Okay, now...let's back up, for context:

Last year was the first school year with Little Man left behind in Elementary while his sisters were in a different school.

And though it was a bit sad at first (no sibling wants to feel left behind and/or reminded of their birth order), I quickly learned to appreciate the benefits.

Namely, the solo time with Little Man crazy-early in the morning and when he arrived home from school--before anybody else!

Just that bit of "found" Mama & Son time with him felt like such a gift and I was glad for it.

That said, we eventually fell into a bit of a routine after school that never quite set well with me.

Little Man would arrive home hot and wiped and ready for a brain break. Most days, he'd opt to skip a snack and retreat upstairs for a bit of mindless time on his iPad or watching TV.

Of course, I understood why he needed that decompression time. I truly did.

So after some hugs and the briefest rundown of his day, I'd let him make his escape while I continued on with my own tasks and mountain of To'Do's, but...the whole thing just felt like a terrible, unsettled waste. 

Because, an hour later, the girlies would descend with mountains of homework and places to be and help that was needed. And then sometime around dinner, I'd be like: Where's my son; I haven't seen him in a couple of hours??

I'd get a brief, dinnertime sighting, the Little Man would disappear again while the girlies required more of my time and car services, and...man.

Little Man just constantly received the leftovers. (Probably not entirely accurate, but that's sure how it felt!)

Of course, this sort of thing is a problem for all households with kiddos of varying ages/stages.

Some kiddos just reach critical junctures with more activities and more demanding homework before others (obviously; it's a basic, birth order conundrum), and finding time for everyone is a whole thing. 

Now.

In conjunction with all of the above, two things became evident to me, this Summer.

First, Little Man has officially joined his sisters' ranks of Brooding Tween/Tween (SO scary).

And, second, Little Man thrives on connectivity--with friends, with family, with anybody--and gets a bit blue if he doesn't have somebody to hang or play with. Even when he doesn't realize why he's blue.

So...if you're still following along with this bloated lead-in to today's topic, this Cliff's Notes is this:

Heading into this school year, I felt a strong need to carve out more and better quality time for my son. Something that would become the new normal. And I just had to figure out a way to accomplish it!

Enter: video games as a negotiating tactic, ha.

Little Man is at that age where he wants to be gaming (while on his headset, talking to his friends) as much as humanly possible.

But it has to be said that I loathe video gaming. I find it to be really destructive to productivity and moods (much in the way of social media) and I've been a strong proponent of setting very strict limitations on his gaming.

So when he came to the hubby and I, trying to negotiate new and different terms for his school year gaming, I realized it was the perfect opportunity to come to an agreement.

In addition to his daily chores and the completion of his homework, to earn gaming on a school day, Little Man has to make it through a certain amount of quality time--with ME.

Brilliant, yes???

You'd think that he'd balk at this sort of annoying, forced time with his mother, but...it's been absolutely, completely wonderful.

Instead of coming home from school and slinking upstairs for 99% of the remainder of the evening, each day, we have a plan for what we're doing together. We tackle any homework or To-Do's, and then we DO something. TOGETHER.

Does it require a lot of planning?

YES.

Are there days when one or both of us would much prefer to veg out or divert attention to other pursuits?

Also, YES.

But is it always rewarding and joyful and meaningful conduit for connection?

YES, YES, and YES!!!

We toggle between doodling (a huge win for us and something we've desperately missed!), baking, going on food or beverage jaunts, or even tackling something silly like bathing Coda girl.

Every so often, I can tell Little Man starts our chosen Mama & Son Time task kind of ready to just check that box and move on with life, but...after a few minutes of digging into our activity, I always win him over--and manage to get him talking more about his day. ;)

These days, we're often deep in the weeds of whatever time we're spending together, right up to the point where my next child arrives home from school. And, honestly, it's been such a positive shift--plus a way to alleviate guilt when I have to later divert attention to siblings--that I truly can't believe we ever structured our afternoons differently.

Life will not always allow us this opportunity to connect.

In fact, things will shake up again next year, when Little Man goes to Middle School, and I have two kiddos arriving home at the same time, again.

But for now, this mandatory time is absolutely Mission Critical to the mental health of both my son and myself, and I'm so grateful we've launched this routine right at the start of a fresh, new year.

Okay...I'm going to shut it, now, and share a whole slew of fun pics of all that we've done together--with many more to come in future months!

Our crew is already eyeing this holiday weekend as a mini finish line! But we're going to have to earn it through survival of a very busy week!

Happy Tuesday, peeps!

Over and out.

Summerween & PSL Dreams!

Okay, peeps.

It’s HERE.

The beloved Pumpkin Spice Latte is BACK, and I am soooooooo here for it!

I don’t think it’s a surprise to anyone who knows me that I am an early and often celebration kind of gal.

Yes, yes, I know there are oodles and gobs of purists out there who don’t want to see a pumpkin anywhere in sight until mid-September at the earliest, but I am not one of those people!

I live for the day after July 4th because I know it’s only a matter of time before Fall decor and scents are stocked in my holy trifecta of: Homegoods, Bath & Body Works and Tarjay. And if it’s autumnal vibes in my fave places, it’s autumnal vibes in my life!

Even my kids accept the fact that Mama’s a little cray-cray and the Halloween merch is going to start appearing as soon as humanly possible!

In fact, in mid-July, we went for a family night out to Cracker-Barrel with a pop over to shop for spooky decor and the excitement was real.

And when I needed a little retail therapy that same week, I popped over to get a fix of candle and soaps and alllllll the spooky, glorious things, and I *might* have left the store with skull soap dispensers and a cauldron candle holder and it wasn’t even double-digits in July, yet. Tehe.

And don’t let Chicklet fool you: she claims to be a purist and often tries to get me to hold out on my obnoxious early-Fall love, but she was the first to wear the new autumnal pajamas I got her. And she wore them loud and proud, I might add. ;)

Which left Little Man free to bust out his oodie:

And Chica happily jumped on the bandwagon:

And don’t let the hubby fool you: he was more than excited to add some fun, new plates to our Halloween collection:

And it was glorious to utilize said plates for the baked apple cider donuts I made this past weekend!

I know there are millions out there who think people like me are nuts for enjoying these festive things so dang early in a season, BUT…

I’m a big, big believer in sparking joy in any and every way, and the slide to full autumnal glory is literally my favorite time of year, so I’m going to lean in—this and every year!

And I guess the sentiment is genetic, since I got this text from my eldest, this afternoon. ;)

More tomorrow on all of the autumnal doodle happenings!

Happy PSL Tuesday, peeps!

Over and out. 

Catch Up to Keep Up!

Okay, peeps.

It’s a truth universally acknowledged that most families…

Spend their school year whining and pining for the freedom of summer.

And then spend the summer whining and pining for the structure of the school year.

It’s a conundrum, yes?? 

So much to love—and loathe!—about each season of this cycle, but I must admit: this stretch, right now, from about mid-August through mid-September is one of my very favorites.

It’s that sweet, in-between spot.

That return to structure without the burnout—yet.

It holds the promise of autumnal vibes and witchy decor (even when the weather doesn’t comply).

Every moment of daytime silence (even when it’s bustling silence) within my household feels like a gift.

And…August is my birthday month. ;)

So even though it’s quite literally as hot as Hades here in South Texas this time of year…

And I’m now spending approximately 2,748 hours each morning to get my kiddos to their three separate schools…

And I’m emptying my wallet for supplies and enrollment fees and booster club donations… 

Plus navigating hours of nighttime, school-related meetings, To-Do’s and homework (yes, homework, from the very first day!)…

My mood still feels LIGHT and BRIGHT as my kiddos launch a new school year that’s brimming with promise and possibilities. :)

That said:

It takes a bit of time for me to recalibrate when the kiddos return to school. 

And that recalibration involves tackling a backlogged To-Do List about a mile long.

Things that need to be wrangled before we can well and truly hit the ground running with the onslaught of full-steam responsibilities.

But…this year, I’ve got a clutch bit of assistance that’s my new favorite thing in the whole, wide world:

Our new, digital, wall-mounted calendar!

Okay. So. To rewind…

I can’t believe that, once upon a time, I was a person who could keep track of life without some sort of massive, collective family calendar. Insane. And so risky!

But then, Chica hit middle school and I quickly realized we’d leveled up, activities had become more plentiful, and we needed to keep track of things in a more visible way—for the benefit of the entire family.

Enter: our family whiteboard calendar years:

https://delappenings.blogspot.com/2025/03/big-picture-posts-family-schedule.html?m=1

It was so lovely to utilize a calendar that was located right inside the back door, that the kiddos could see and manipulate at a glance, and that was gloriously color-coded and organized.

Now, hysterically, it took the hubby about a year or so to actually pay attention to and utilize said wall calendar. But when he finally got on board and realized it was full of all sorts of useful and mission-critical information, it was the easiest sell in the world to make the recent decision that we needed something even more sophisticated and useful.

Yup. That’s right. We realized that three kids in three different schools required a super-boosted calendar and made the investment this summer to call out an electrician to hook us up with a new outlet so we could purchase and mount our absolutely fantastic digital calendar:

As kind of an old-school, analog person, I both recognized the necessity of such an upgrade—but felt quite anxious about the change.

I was certain I was going to loathe it.

That I wouldn’t make friends with the digital nature.

That the software might be too complicated or that I’d regret the decision and pine for my simple white-board days of yore.

Yeah…NOPE.

Within about five minutes of playing around with the thing, I knew it was a game-changer.

We can see everything at a glance, color-coded by profile (family member) and broken up into any block of time.

I can book things an entire year (or more!) out, add meal planning, and even take a picture of a paper full of dates, e-mail it to my device and watch all the commitments on said paper magically load onto our master calendar—in seconds.

The corresponding app is now on all family members’ iPhones, and it’s just…amazing.

I’m in love.

Mostly because…life is insanely fully for us in this era and anything—and everything!—that keeps us organized is a GOOD THING.

It well and truly takes me a solid two weeks after the launch of school to clear that backlog of To-Do’s, level up and get my game face on for the year ahead, but…one week in and I already feel like I’m nearly there!

It takes a lot of thought and planning—and sometimes money—to help our crew operate at maximum efficiency. And even then, we sometimes flail or outright flail. That’s just life.

But, every time we level up (like this), I feel a little more capable.

And, let’s be honest: that mental fortitude is more than half the battle!

Happy Monday, peeps!

I’m channeling positive, We Can Do This Vibes and feeling so grateful to have that first school week under our belt.

More catch-up posts, soon!

Over and out.