Creating an Afterschool Happy Hour
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On a good day at our house, school wraps up by about 3 o’clock. The house is quiet. The girls are napping (hopefully). The boys are finishing their independent work. We do a quick pick up to signal the end of lessons and the transition to afternoon activities.
One fun thing to make that transition fun — and delicious — is to share an afterschool “happy hour.” You could call it a coffee break, an afterschool snack or tea time.
The important thing is that we take a moment to unwind, share a snack, and reconnect.
We do this at the end of our homeschool day, but I imagine that families who school outside the home would enjoy this just as much. It’s a great chance to catch up, share funny stories, and refuel for afternoon activities.
Take a moment to unwind
I find that school days can be full days. My kids have chores and school lessons to do. I have to hit the ground running just to keep up. While each child may not be busy the entire day, my minutes are filled, transitioning my attention from child to child and tackling home tasks.
Taking a break can be so refreshing — for me and the kids.
Share a snack
On a good day at our house, meals are planned in advance. The kids have had a good breakfast; we eat sack lunches. Dinner is scheduled for about six pm. Lunch seems hours ago, and it’s still too early to eat dinner.
So, it’s nice to have a snack to hold us over.
Some snacks we like:
- Apples and maple cream
- Cheese and crackers
- Graham crackers and applesauce
- Popcorn with butter
- Cake and hot cocoa
- Cookies and milk
Sharing Sara Lee
Recently, our happy hour featured pound cake from Sara Lee. This dessert is a sweet memory from my childhood. My mom often bought one for me and my four siblings.
I love the convenience of having this snack in the freezer. It’s a great last minute treat, especially since it thaws so quickly. I prefer it cold.
Drizzle it with an orange glaze, and it’s even better!
Orange Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 – 2 Tablespoons orange juiceCombine all ingredients in a small bowl, adding enough juice to create the consistency you desire. Drizzle over slices of pound cake and serve.
Reconnect
Even though I spend all day every day with my kids, there are still times when I feel a disconnect. If I’ve been busy cleaning or we’ve had company, I feel like I’ve been away from them. I miss them when we haven’t had a chance to talk.
Snack time is a good way for us to reconnect.
Looking at good days
The reality is that “good days” are hard to come by. At least in the “everything-is-going-as-I-planned” kind of good day.
The house might be a wreck. Tears might have been shed over math problems or phonics reading. Piles of laundry may be waiting in all corners of the house. FishChick 2 might have gotten into who-knows what.
But, hanging with my kids? Reconnecting after a hard day? Enjoying a little pick-me-up together?
That can make every day a good day.
making banana nut bread together and while its baking start on a puzzle. We add cream cheese while the bread is still warm and then add a tall glass of milk or coffee for me. It is so fun and relaxed around the table when we do this together.
We reconnect by playing a round of Go Fish after dinner. During the day if I sense one of us is getting stressed, we take a break and I go play with him- that always makes him happy 🙂
Besides eathing a snack together, my favorite way to reconeect was when we read books on the couch.
Family dinner at the table, no tv, phone, or any other toys. Just us. that’s the way we do it.
My kids are young, 2 and 4, and they stay home with me during the day. After nap time we sit on the couch and cuddle and just unwind. Sometimes we don’t get to do that(if we’ve got a busy day), so about 20 minutes before their bedtime(which is about an hour apart) my husband and I will lay down on their bed and cuddle whichever child is about to go to bed. It’s a nice way to reconnect, it gets us some definite one on one time, and helps calm that child(especially my son!) down for bedtime.
I like to go for a walk with one or more of my children, just around the neighborhood. It gets us away from the TV, computer, and general hustle and bustle.
I have found the way to reflect the day and reconnect is to get into a nice warm snugly bed and cuddle and tell each other our day Good and bad and find ways to overcome the challenges each of us have had.. Some of the best advice I have ever been given is from the mouths of children and young adults.. so ,I say connect through being relaxed and talk from the heart:)
What they have always said what the head makes cloudy , the heart makes very clear!
no matter what type of day we’ve had. we try to reconnect at story time and end the day on a good note. We also do sanck night on friday’s–lots of finger foods for dinner while we watch a movie. This is a tradition carried on from my childhood. It’s funny that you mention the Sara Lee Pound Cake. My mom always had one at our snack nite–usually with fresh fruit on it. I’d completely forgotten that piece of it. thank you for reminding me of that delicious treat!
We like to read books to our daughter and spend time with her.
My daughters and I like to read together, take walks, and play “board” games. These things are our way of reconnecting.