Motherhood #NoFilter

Katerina talks all things motherhood, family life, relationships, work, and trying to do it all at once, with of course, #NoFilter

@keepingupwithkaterina @keepingupwithmyclassroom

Summer is here!! As a teacher, July feels like the end of the year for me. I feel like I’ve gotten to the 31st December – although the difference is I have a 6 week break before I get my January the 1st (which is really September the 1st).

School years can feel like a flash or a lifetime, depending on how your child gets on at school. Either way, the 6 week break can either be daunting or something that you really look forward to. I’m definitely the mum that finds it quite daunting. It’s a lot of time to fill, a lot of time to feel overwhelmed, a lot of money to spend and it can be a time that routine (even if you’re like me and don’t really have one aside from the school day) can just go out of the window.

What I’ve learnt to do – in all areas of life not just in parenting – is just to enjoy the moment. Live in the moment. We know as parents that you blink and your newborn is a toddler, blink again and they’re in school, one more blink and they’re a teenager (or in my case a soon to be sixanger). So yes, the summer might be long, tiring, hard and overwhelming, but you know what, there’ll be times when I’m sure we’ll be wishing these times back. Wishing for them to want to do things with us and not their friends, wishing for the times where things happened for the first time, wishing they still had that child innocence, wishing they would still want to hold your hand, wishing back for the times when they have a meltdown, drive you mad, embarrass you, but still get into bed every night with no stubbornness, no holding of feelings and still look you in your eyes and tell you how much they love you. Our kids will always need us (just as much as we still need our parents) but as the years go on, this need becomes less and less, and I can already feel the pain of losing that constant need, even if it is annoying right now.

So this summer, I’m going to make sure that I live in the moment, I live in the now, I enjoy the good days, and I quickly forget the not so good days. I make sure that I take pictures, videos, make sure we have days in and days out, I listen to what Rico likes and enjoys and try my hardest to make this summer a special one for him. Not for any other reason but simply because… if you can make your child happy, why wouldn’t you?

When we think back to the memories of our childhood, we always remember the really good times, or the really bad times. I’m going to make a conscious effort to try and make every day a good day. Whether that’s an extravagant day out, or whether that’s just waking up with a positive mindset, having patience, and making the most of being indoors watching a favourite film and baking some cookies.

We’re not perfect – we never will be. But the most we can do is try our very best, not just for ourselves and our own sanity, but for our little dependants who watch, react and cherish our every move.

I hope you all have a wonderful, happy, healthy and rewarding summer, whatever that might look like for you and your family. I’ll be back in August with some recommendations for things to do!

Until next time lovelies