Let’s Go Heat! I’m thrilled that my hometown team is in the playoffs again, but it’s also the beginning of my life as a “single” parent. That’s because as the Heat go for a Three-Peat, my husband, Will Manso of Channel 10 sports, hits the road for the third time to anchor TV coverage for his station.
As I get tidbits of Will’s schedule, I start to worry about how I will run a business, take care of my daughter, and take care of my house? How will I get it all done? Before I completely lose it, I realize there are tens of thousands of other women (and men) who juggle the balancing act of work and taking care of their children all year. How they do it? How do you? Here are some tips I found and other business travelers shared to keep a happy home and spouse:
PROPER PLANNING – Once you know when your spouse or your child’s parent will be traveling, get out your calendar and start setting up babysitting, lunches, or anything else you can plan ahead. Make sure you write down who will be picking up your child, try making a week’s worth of dinners, lay out clothes, and make lunches the night before. Sounds simple, but people who travel all of the time say planning and writing things down helps visualize the task at hand.
ASK FOR HELP – They say it takes a village to raise a child. Boy is this true. When Will or I travel, we rely heavily on our family. My grandmother is the best. She helps me so much with Katelyn and around the house. If you don’t have an Awesome Abuelita, make sure you set up babysitting or ask at your child’s school for extra assistance.
DON’T TRY TO DO IT ALL – I know this is a given, but just because there’s only one of you handling all the parental duties, it doesn’t mean you have to do it all. I don’t love to clean up and when Will’s out of town, I find it’s okay not to do it.
OFFER SUPPORT – Remind the other parent that when they travel, they can still offer support by listening and empathizing with the other parent over the phone. You can also remind the traveling parent to give other parent a break when they return.
I hope these tips are helpful to those of you, who like me, will be single parenting in the near future. To those of you who do this every week, you have my admiration.
Have a wonderful week!
