I need a little encouragement

[BonnieLynn]

My Dh leaves tomorrow for a conference and he'll be gone for a whole week. My 2 1/2 yr old Ds has been having a hard time lately and I need some encouragement to be gentle with him. We use gentle discipline because I feel that he deserves respect, but also because it works so much better for him. But regardless of how much I know these things in my head, I'm really tired, It's going to be a long week, and I'm the only person I know in real life who uses gentle discipline. I'm just looking for a little encouragement and some prayers for patience : )

[mom2grrls]

Make sure you are well rested

[bonamarq]

I may be crazy here, but I found (and yes I was all alone without familial or much peer supports then) that when dh was temp out of town, some things were easier - maybe it was b/c I KNEW no one was around to step in (dh worked from home and even though I knew he was working there was a level of resentment that I was doing everything - it disappeared when he was out of town) Or maybe it was b/c I tried to fill our days with extra special activities - for me as much as her - maybe it was a coffee for me and a donut for her at starbucks - and lots of extra activity like going to the bouncy house and then out to a kid friendly eatery (or take out) - things I might not do on a regular basis but made our 1:1 time a little special - and that also meant maybe a little extra video time as well.... I guess I was trying to lighten my load, enjoy myself and our time together more as a means to cope - but it worked to a large extent, although still very grateful when DH returned -

but if you have anyone you can turn to for help this is also a good time to do that...even if you just know a teen that might want a little extra $ to entertain your child so you can get stuff done without interruption....

and always remember even if you don't have friends IRL to turn to, there are people here, virtually 24/7 - to vent/seek advice from - and if you are tired, skip the extra chores when he's a sleep and get some shut eye - or for me it was a nice hot bath and a good book - once she was down for the night...

[journeymom]

I agree with Bonamarq that parenting was actually a little easier when dh was out of town for a short time.

Take sixty seconds each morning and meditate on this issue. Remind yourself what your goals are. Think about how you want to respond to inevitable challenging situations. Then give yourself a big break and don't be too hard on yourself when things don't go as planned.

[poppan]

I'm with bonamarq -- it's always daunting to have DH gone but it's actually easier and I get in bed earlier when he's away. We do simpler dinners, eat earlier, get in the bath earlier, I don't mess up the kitchen as much when I cook vs. when DH cooks... so there's less to clean up... we are actually better schedule-wise with DH gone.

Maybe prep some food / buy the right groceries before hand so you won't have to worry about that... and put on a video if you need 30 minutes to yourself. What has your DS been doing lately that you're having a hard time with? maybe we can give you some ideas.