Nick and I just dropped Amy off at the airport- she’ll be in Birmingham and Chicago for most of the rest of the month with the cast and crew of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (thankfully, we’ll all be in Chicago together over Thanksgiving and then Amy will be back in New York for December). This leaves me and Nick home to take care of each other.
With Amy away for work, Nick and I have to take care of each other
I’ve written before (see here, here, here and here) about how Amy and I share care of Nick, and how we often flex in and out depending on each other’s work demands. Amy has definitely picked up the slack when I travel for work, and now it is my turn. Amy, to her credit, has been very selective in the shows she auditions for and the offers she accepts- this will be our longest stretch apart since Nick was born. She very much deserves to pursue this career opportunity, and since Amy and I have been sharing care since the beginning, we know that Nick will be a-ok with me.
Yesterday, Nick and I brainstormed a list of how we’ll handle things:
Let’s be good to each other- this is the over-riding rule
Allow some bending of the rules (but nothing as crazy as popcorn for breakfast)
We’ll facetime Mom every day
Don’t take 10 hours to take a shower. Don’t make dinner and homework last too long (Nick is a notoriously slow eater!)
But, don’t rush anybody
Encourage each other
Take care of your own stuff. (Both Nick and I are pretty absent-minded and we need to take better care of our stuff while the very-organized Amy is away)
Not too much screen time for both of us (see here)
Turiello’s (Nick’s favorite pizza place) at least once a week
If we have to run errands- make them “Ninja Trips” (our family term for quick trips to the store just to get the 6 things on the list), as opposed to “Samurai Trips” (in which the 6 items on the list turn into 20 more things we need)
Try to schedule time for Nick to hang out with a friend most days
Father-son light-saber battles most days
Be kind to Grandpa Joe (I have to work all day and night Tuesday, while Nick is home from school because of Veteran’s Day, so my dad is coming that day to take care of Nick)
Have fun!
…And to Jesse (Nick’s buddy), don’t to the face!!
How do you handle solo-dad duty? Anything more list items to suggest? Let’s discuss in the comments section.
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