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tjlove February 28, 2008

Moms- What do you do for fun?

Lately I've been taking my toddler to everything with me- which isn't fun for either of us- and when I do have time without her I find myself doing things like grocery shopping (BORING) or going to Costco to buy diapers (also BORING). I really want to take some time back for myself and do something that's actually FUN. What do you guys do for fun? Dads, you can chime in too!

Parent Answers to "Moms- What do you do for fun?"

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Fun~~ Wow !!! Get-up and starting the day with a nice paced walk. Being I just got a rescue puppy and when I took him to my Vet now I found out that instead of a Black Lab I have a Black Lab mixed with Great Dane. So my walks are quite the site for sore eyes. But it is fun to train Jake (dog) to find out what the end result will be. Also, I Love my MARY KAY I love to have that girl time with new friends from all over the States. My GOAL is to have friends and Consultants in every State. Now that would be so awesome. I just met a friend in Nassau, Bahamas. Of-Course it is not in the US but we are close enough. Her family seems so much fun and have their goals set. Alot of fun and planing to keep in touch. I guess I would have to thanks Mary Kay Products for that. Before I had a party for one of my friends. I really never cared. More on the tomboyish area and 5 and dime it for products. My son still goes out for sports and I seem to still have one of the loudest whistles out there. But I feel good about myself. Not to much on the face it just what the product does for your face, and it is made in the USA. When I turn 50 next year people are really going to be shocked. Because they all still think I'm turning 40. So hello, yes that makes me feel great I know the product really works. So I love to make others look and feel the way I do about themselves. Its all about enriching others. Having good fun and friends for life...

I love reading so I can spend hours in my public library. If I am not doing that I like to hit the gym-nowadays anyway :)

I also enjoy doing genealogy and watching movies I could not normally enjoy with my son around. I used to like to go for a drive in the mountains near my house but that's out of the question now. I also have lots of family and friends in the nearby cities where I live so I make a trip to see one of them about once a week.

What my husband and I are now making a point to do is set aside some time two nights a week for ourselves. Even if that means putting our son to bed a little early. We watch movies, play games, have some friends over. I am doing the stay at home mom thing for right now it's nice to have some adult company to look foreword too.

I like to work on my Ancestry and Family Tree, I like to bake and do arts and crafts w/ the kids. Go to the mall or movies. Relax and take a bubble bath.Play games on the computer or chat to my brother and sister on Messanger.Listen to music. Watch T.V. I'm gonna start scrapbooking. I'm gonna make a scrapbook for my son and a scrapebook for my ancestry to pass down the family line. I love to draw. I take the kids to fun places and I get to have fun too. I try to do things at least once a month whether it's alone time and do what I want for fun ,or plan something w/ the family for fun. I like to turn my bathroom into like a day spa once every few months. Take a hot bath w/ a glass of wine, bubbles, music,dimmed lights and an eye mask. And a sented candle or 2 but that's all or insents. Then give myself a manicure/ pedicure. Put lotion on me and body spray. A mud mask or facial mask on my face.Stuff like that. It's so relaxing and makes my day feel stress relieved. I pamper myself because I beleive a women should be pampered now and then especially moms. To relieve some of that stress we have often. We deserve a break now and then don't you think so?

tj, shopping @ Costco is not that BORING if you are shopping by yourself and not in such a hurry...sometimes they have really good books and DVDs and all that yummy food! :)

Usually, my husband and I go out for dinner. Whenever, my boys have a playdate on the weekends or a party to attend, my husband and I definitely try to catch a movie or just grab some lunch. But recently, my boys' tennis instructor asked me to join her tennis club. I was skeptical, but I had a blast with that bunch. A very educated group of fun loving ladies who all play tennis just to have fun! I'm now hooked on tennis...every tuesday nighht for 90 min! :) It's nice to play without constantly running after the ball as I have to do when I play with the boys.

remember this is no_uniforms sister she told me i could take over this account because she just got married and she wont be able to be on for a long while. well anyway once a week (usually on Tuesday afternoons) we go out to have lunch or go shopping or something really fun. or go see and "R" rated movie.

Though I find spending time with my two children delightful, there comes a time at the end of the day when i am sooo glad that they are sleep.I think that even though we are parents and our children do come first we must also take time out for ourselves as well. Rather its going window shopping or to the movies we ALL need "me" time.

Mothers and fathers are great when they take time to take care of and enjoy themselves. I read newspapers or magazine on bed most of the morning and a book before I sleep. I visit a library weekly just to read some pages of the book I am reading for a month without children.We see a movie at least once a month without children. We work out together in the GYM a least 3X a week without children. We watch Saturday Night Live without children. My husband watches a late night movie and talk on the phone with his friend most of the night. He plays tennis and visits bookstore occasionally for fun. My friend gets a massage twice a month. She said, she enjoys this special time without her children. We enjoy our special time and the benefits are great for our children and family. Please note, our children are 4 and 8 and I work a little during the summer and my husbands job is flexible

Is there a way to get your daughter looked after?
You could meet up with friends for lunch or in the evening. Have a girls night out.

If any of your friends also have little kids invite them over , while the kids play or watch a movie or something on that line, you adults could hang out and just chat.

Pamper yourself. Send you daughter to grandma, or daddy if hes around and have a spa day to relax and have time alone.

Take just one day every now and again to party the night out. Just because your a mom now doesn't mean you life has to suddenly stop, your young so take advantage while you can.

Thats pretty much what I did when my son Jamie was a toddler

at this age its hard to think of many tings because you will need to be by her side pretty much %100 of the time..

I miss dancing. I used to go to night-clubs on the weekends, even after my daughter was born, and dance dance dance! I miss it! Dancing was my life! I didn't drink, I just went and danced. And I had so much fun. It was as if I'd go into a trance with the music and the movement and that was my release.

Once I met my husband (when my daughter was 18 months old), everything changed. I've been dancing once since then and it wasn't as fun because I knew he was sitting at a table not enjoying himself.

I'd much rather go alone or with someone who enjoyed dancing and leave him at home, but that doesn't work for our marriage. If I did that, sadly, there would be repurcussions in our relationship because he'd be resentful of the fact that I went out without him. I'm sort of trapped in a catch 22. I could take him with me and not have fun, or I can sit at home and not have fun. :-)

I've sort of gotten used to it over the years, I suppose. But now that I'm 34, I'm beginning to get antsy. I want to dance again before I'm too old and too crippled from my disease to do it anymore and still look young enough to fit in with the crowd!

Fun?? I rarely get 2 minutes to myself. But when I do, I take pictures of nature, develop them, matte and frame them and submit them to a local gallery. (Every 3 months or so... sometimes longer) This rarely occurs.
I used to make jewlry a lot, and I suspect that once my son is in preschool, I'll get back into that again.

Of course, your first visit to Disneyland would be with your family. Those of us that live as close as we do end up with yearly passes, so for us to go without our kids would be a sanity day--but wouldn't cost a dime.

A quiet cup of coffee in the morning sounds great but I'd have to get up soooooo early! Disneyland sounds amazing too but I couldn't go without my family and enjoy myself.

Last weekend I was able to have brunch at a friend's house. I left my daughter at home which was really nice because I could relax and sit still for a minute. I was also able to spend time with my friend's new babies which I can't do when my little one is with me just because she's always on the move. ;-)

There's that half hour or so after everyone's out the door in the morning, and I'm still in my pajamas and I read the newspaper with a cup of really good coffee in hand...

And several of the moms at my daughter's school are threatening to drop our kids at school one day and all go to Disneyland....WITHOUT the kids. I'll let you know how that ends up.

Healthy, I definitely realize that fun has taken on a whole new meaning now that I am a mom. I'm not missing the days before I had my daughter was born either, on the contrary life has never been better!

I've just noticed in myself that my focus is constantly on my family, which is great and where I want it to be for the most part, but sometimes the "me" in me gets lost. I'd just love to know what other moms do to focus on themselves as individuals. For example, going out to dinner with some of my girlfriends would be something I would consider fun while at the same time focusing on myself.

I'm sorry, but I think there are times in one's life (aka, when you have youngsters) when you need to realize "fun" is not likely to be the same as you were used to in your pre-children days. (Unless you're like Britney Spears, who doesn't appear to be taking motherhood responsibilities seriously.)

Eventually kids do grow up, and maybe then you can return to whatever you used to enjoy for extended periods of time, but while they're young, I think "fun" is more "relaxation in small doses." Hiring a babysitter and going out with your spouse to a restaurant or movie can be fun. Going shopping without a child in tow can be enjoyable, if you've got someone to watch the kids. Maybe after the kids are in bed, you can curl up with a good book, watch a favorite TV show, phone an old friend, take a long hot bath without interruption, or work on "scrapbooking" or some kind of art or craft project. While it's not exactly "fun," I make it a point to go to the local YMCA and exercise a couple times a week, and usually that's good for stress relief, too.

I am not a mother myself, however I have observed my own mother who knows how to have fun and take care of herself. She really loved to go out dancing. First it was square dancing and then she got into western swing. She got so good that she actually competed a few times!

She also loves to paint and sew (which are things you can do with your kids too!). I used to sit on the floor coloring while she worked on her latest project.

I think the thing is to find something that you love to do or have always wanted to try that doesn't require a huge time commitment. Then set aside certain times each week that are reserved just for that hobby.

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