Jolin is a full time working mum to a toddler boy and wife to a wonderful husband. She blogs at The Js Arena, where she shares about the development of her growing-way-too-fast boy, activities they do together as a family and all things fun. 

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Being a FTWM always leaves us with very little time for Little J. On a weekday, I can only spend about 2 hours with him before his bed time. So, weekends are very important to us. Weekend is time for us to have fun, to learn and to bond as a family. Follow me on Fun this Week to find out more about the weekly fun we have.

More often than not, we are tempted to rest in on weekends. After a hectic work week, we just simply want to laze around doing nothing. However, I feel that this is not beneficial for Little J. Therefore, I try to manage my time to squeeze in fun activities for him. It can be a simple outing, a simple craft or just a simple hug and kisses.

Today, I’ll share with you some tips on how to manage time for fun.

1) Plan Ahead

I will brainstorm on what we are going to do over the weekend beforehand. If we are going out for an outing, I will plan out the place that we are going, how we going to get there, what are the things to bring along, etc. The night before the outing we will pack our bags and decide on the clothing to wear. If we are going to do craft, I will prepare the materials needed, run through the steps and what are the learning pointers.

2) Be Flexible

You can never predict how the little kid will behave or react, so just be flexible on the schedule. For example, Little J rarely follows through the steps of the activities; he has his own way of playing around with the materials. I will just let him and be imaginative. For outings, be prepared to change the program if necessary, especially if he is cranky.

3) Get All the Materials Ready

You do not want to leave the child alone when you realise you forget to bring something to the activity area. So make sure you have all the materials and tools ready before you start any activity.

If Little J is having water play, I will make sure I have his towel and change of clothes ready. I will also lay down the area with old towels to prevent any slips and falls.

If we are doing painting, I will lay down the area with a big shower curtain and have an extra wipe cloth ready to wipe off any paint on his hands and legs before going for a shower. This will ensure that he will not help me to paint the walls or furniture.

4) Recap

I will show Little J the photos we took on an outing, describing where we went, what we see and the fun we had. His crafts are hung up on the wall of his room to refresh his memory of the crafts he made. This will always bring a smile to his little face when he recalled how much fun he had. It is also a great way to bond.

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Do you have tips you’d like to share? If you have, link up here for this series of Tips for Moms – by Moms, and stay tuned for more tips from other Singapore Mom Bloggers!

Tomorrow, we have Tzer Jing who will share her enjoyable parenting journey as a full-time-working mom.

Check out Jennifer’s tips on how Teamwork and Delegation do the trick shared yesterday!