7 Ways to Beat the Worst Hour of your Family’s Day

The Witching Hour. You know what it looks like for your family. For us, it starts around 5pm, the last full hour before Daddy gets home. Our last hour of just the three of us. The last hour of them outnumbering me. When the baby is starting to get extra fussy and bedtime can’t come soon enough for him. When the toddler is hungry and restless. When my patience is now threadbare, and I’m just trying to keep them both alive and happy while also getting dinner on the table without losing my mind.

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Some days are worse than others, but you know how it goes. The kids get unreasonably whiny, clumsy, messy, and on your nerves (yes I said it). Your ability to reasonably, lovingly and patiently work through problems is faltering. And you just wish you could flip the switch on this difficult hour.

Here are seven simple ways to do just that! Turn around that worst hour with something novel–something out of the ordinary that gets everyone outside of their cranky selves. Here’s the key right here: For little ones, a change of scenery or a change of sensory cures the crazy almost every time.

The one catch is that each way to beat the witching hour requires that YOU, the parent, stop trying to accomplish adult tasks no matter how necessary (cooking dinner, cleaning house, clutching your phone–you know what this is for you) and go all in with your kids. So will you go there with me? Check the list:

1.) Just add water.
Children are like opposite of gremlins on this one. Get them wet and suddenly they’re wild and happy. If it’s a hot day, get outside with a goofy sprinkler, baby pool, or even just a big bucket of water and some cups to scoop it with.

If the weather does not permit, get the kids in the bathtub. If they already love baths, AWESOME, that will work. If they’re not so keen, add some FUN to the bath. Shut out the lights and try this party bath light. Bust out some bath crayons! Change the color of the bath. Or make it a musical bath and try playing a water flute!

2.) Crank up the tunes.
Music sure can change a mood, can’t it? I mean, that’s true for me, so it certainly must be true for my kids. Have a dance party! Sing along! Play percussion. Be a rock band!

And when I just want to put good things into my children’s minds, I reach for this. It is quickly becoming our family’s favorite way to memorize Scripture AND have a dance party at the same time.

3.) Build a fort.
I don’t know what is so magical about a blanket draped over a couple of chairs, but it WORKS. Something about having a small, secret place is so special to kids, especially if you join them in it. What might’ve been meh to do out in the open is now a riot to do in the fort. Go Fish? Have a snack? Tell a fanciful story? Have a tickle fight? <–all 10x better inside of a fort. That’s a proven statistic, y’all.

4.) Get outside.
Okay you probably KNOW this, but sometimes we need the reminder when we’re in the middle of the crazy. The Witching Hour tends to hit us the hardest when we’ve been cooped up all day. GET OUTSIDE. Strap the kid(s) into the stroller and just walk for a while. We love bike rides with my double seater bike trailer. Head to the neighborhood park for a bit. Kick a ball back and forth. Throw a frisbee. Do a scavenger hunt (make it up as you go, the kids will love it!)

5.) Turn out the lights.
Take out vision. Eliminate everything around you and then focus in on one awesome thing. Make shadows with a flash light (BOTH my baby and toddler think this is enthralling.) Have a glow party (combine with the aforementioned dance party for optimal entertainment return.) Anything that glows is a win: glow sticks, glow creatures, glow balloons, glow bouncy balls, even glow face paint–try any or all of it when you need it most.

Also, do you remember LITE BRITES? I LOVED them as a kid and now, so does my 3-year-old (not baby, cuz, ya know, little choking hazards.) Another excellent thing to do in the dark!

6.) Pull out a secret special stash of toys or crafts.
I’m a big fan of rotating toys. (I have to be due to my season of small space living.) I keep bins of toys out of my kiddos’ reach and pull them out no more than once a week. It keeps their interest fresh. We rotate toy categories such as puzzles, blocks, Legos, trains, Noah’s ark animals, play-doh, crafts etc. Bottom line: pull something out that they can rediscover and then get down and join in the fun!

7.) Make a video.
Ahh, these children of the new millennium have entertainment beyond our wildest dreams. My kids really enjoy making videos in Photobooth with me, and I love that we get to keep a little time capsule of a completely ordinary moment together. We usually lip sync to a current favorite song. When they get a little older, it would be fun to read a story or act out a scene with puppets!

And there you have it, seven simple ways to change the direction of that difficult hour in the day. Because when we tweak the trajectory for the evening, the whole family gets to enjoy each other more. No meltdowns, no meeting your husband with frustration, no crying in the bathroom by yourself. All’s you have to do is recognize that you are IN the worst hour and then DO something about it. Best of luck, friends!! I’m right there with ya!

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