THE ROCK FATHER is participating in The Every day, care™ Project from Whirlpool® as part of a sponsored campaign for Socialstars. #EveryDayCare
I think it was last year that I said it (being nearly six years into parenting, things blur together), but I’d referred to the mid-year months as our “first true summer break.” Thing is, it’s not really a “break” at all. Gone are the true three-month runs of warm weather adventure that my wife and I knew as children – the ones filled with days that seemed to last forever. My first “back-to-school” pitches were hitting my office before June 1st, and the reality of the matter is that with kindergarten ending in June and the kids back at it in August, the summer is a blip, and a busy one at that.
Our girls will be kept busy with activities (theatre, swimming, gymnastics) and family adventures. But before long, the long yellow bus will be back at the front of the house.
As a mostly-work-at-home dad, the summer months mean amping up the “care” factor, and that all comes back here to the daily routine at Rock Father HQ – our home. Meals need to be cooked (the grill is getting a workout), the house needs to be cleaned more often (four humans + two canines + in-and-out all day = big dirt) and even the toys themselves need cleaning to keep those priceless “lunch parties” happening.
And the laundry? It piles up quicker than one would even deem possible. Laundry…my arch nemesis. Seriously, I’m fairly certain that new piles begin while my head is turned as I sort the existing ones. Imaginative little girls sometimes require upwards of a dozen “costume changes” throughout the day – a side effect of the “stage” we call life. And they don’t wash themselves.
And their rooms? I’m sure most governments would declare them to be disaster areas after just a few hours of play.
But, in the interest of making things easier, we’ve started involving the girls more in their own care – the stuff they can help with, like sorting and putting away certain laundry items, and cleaning up their rooms… which they’re either really good or totally against, depending on the day.
Taking care of a family and home is work. But I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Whirlpool® has launched The Every day, care™ Project to showcase how small, simple acts of care can make a huge impact on our World. From packing lunches and getting the kids off to school, to having the house cleaned up and the laundry done, the little things can make a big difference. Visit The Every day, care™ website and see how simple acts of care have the power to change the world.
