- my iParenting
- quick clicks
- moms today articles
- moms today q&a
- message boards
- research baby names
- prepare a birth plan
- content channels
- ip channel rss feeds
- read birth stories
- read parenting stories
- recommended books
- e-newsletters
- safety recalls
- ip diaries
- ip store
- mom of the month
- dad of the month
- editor's letter
- letters to the editor
 |
- e-newsletters
- Sign up to receive our free weekly e-newsletters
- award-winning products
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families.
Stay-at-home Moms with Toddlers
A Survival Guide to Help Keep Your Days a Little Less Stressful
By Shannon McKelden
Jump says that sometimes she even gave them "assignments" to keep them busy so they'd let her work. "They felt included in my world, and I gained some time to get some work done!" she says.
This would also work when moms need time to work at a desk or computer paying bills, etc.
Stay-at-home moms feel stress just like working moms, and so do their toddlers. One of the best stress relievers is exercise. But who has time? You've got a household to run, a toddler to chase and too little time to work in an exercise routine, right?
Not according to Debbie Mandel, a stress-management specialist and author of Turn on Your Inner Light: Fitness for Body, Mind and Soul (Busy Bee Group, 2003). "You need exercise to stay healthy and energetic, and your toddlers need to get their energy out," Mandel says. "So exercise together. Put on music and do jumping jacks, run in place, leap frog it, run relays and let them win!"
Also inherent in stay-at-home moms is the tendency to think they have to do it all. But that's not the case. "I think every mom needs a break, and dads can really help out with that," says Kelly McGovern, a mom from Wakefield, R.I. "My husband gets [our kids'] jammies on and reads stories to them almost every night. That really helps."
