Deferred Gratification

Deferred gratification--the ability to resist the temptation for an immediate reward and wait for a later reward.

This Spring Break week has certainly been a lesson in deferred gratification for both me and my kids.

Thank goodness my kids are not yet on Facebook, because if they saw all the cool vacation pictures the locals are posting, I'm sure this week at home would be even harder. (But I still love looking at everyone's photos!)

I've had to remind my kids (and myself!) that we are not traveling or doing any "cool" things this week because we are saving for a bigger trip this fall. And because my husband is recovering from a surgery where he can't walk or drive for 6 weeks and he needs me around to drive him to therapy and help him out at home.

Luckily, the weather here has been nice, so we've spent time at some parks:

Feeding ducks:

And skipping stones at the creek:

We even made it to the free library event this week, where the kids made colored bubble solution and used it for artwork.

Tomorrow is our big splurge--I'm taking all 3 kids to a movie.

The week is almost over and we survived--but when summer rolls around, we will have to remind ourselves again about the benefits of deferred gratification because we are staying put at home the entire summer.

I know with my kids, we have to get out of the house at least once a day or there will be large-scale fighting and bickering. Planning for how to occupy and enrich my kids for 10 weeks of summer starts now!

Is anyone else laying low at home this year for Spring Break or summer? What are your survival strategies?