1. Plan your time out, and involve the children

It’s not easy to juggle work and the school holidays, but by planning out what’s happening each day or week you have something to look forward to, and it also helps to set expectations. Stick the planner on the wall so everyone can see what’s going on. It can help with that feeling of a loss of routine, and it can also help children to understand and appreciate what you need to do – especially managing to juggle other work with fun things and family time. It teaches children about compromising, commitments and prioritising – all key life skills!

Try writing down plenty of ‘things to do’ ideas between you – this can get the children feeling excited and involved.

2. Team up with friends

If you have friends with children it is likely they are going to be in the same boat as you. Make a schedule with a group of friends to cycle the collective children around your houses. The kids will love being together for the summer and you can all keep your hours as normal as possible. The days you have the children might be a bit hectic, but you can always take them to the park, trampolining, or set a treasure hunt.

3. Don’t forget to plan downtime

A busy schedule can be great for both you and the kids, but don’t forget to plan in some downtime. Everyone needs some space in their days to relax and be bored. You need some quiet time without children calling your name every second, and your kids need time to be bored to learn independence and to get their creative juices flowing – they don’t need organised activities every moment of the day, so don’t forget to give yourself a break.

4. Involve the children in meal prep

Eating healthily can be a challenge at the best of times, but with a lack of routine over the summer holidays it’s easy for healthy habits to slip. Why not get the children involved in helping out with meal prep or making their own snacks – here is some recipe inspiration for DIY healthy ice lollies, a healthy treat and an activity to keep them busy all in one:

Berry Blast Smoothie Lollies:

Ingredients (serves 6-8)

120 grams fresh or frozen blueberries
120 grams fresh or frozen strawberries
120 grams fresh or frozen raspberries
120 mls coconut milk (8 tablespoons)
1 – 2 tablespoons honey (optional)

Add all of the ingredients to a blender, mix well then pour into molds and poke in the sticks. Freeze for several hours or overnight.

Fresh Orange Lollies:

Use the whole orange for these lollies, rather than just the juice, and with the addition of fresh pear you get extra nutrients.

Ingredients (serves 4-6):

3 oranges
2 pears, peeled and cored

Finely grate ¼ tsp zest from one of the oranges, then peel them, roughly chop the flesh and put in a bowl (or food processor) with the zest and pears. Blitz until as smooth as you can get it, then pour into lolly containers, poke in sticks and freeze for several hours or overnight.

Let us know how you get on!