Every year, on January 1st, it's the great parade of family resolutions stated with conviction (faster than we recover from the hangover of New Year's Eve 🤣), but whose accomplishment sometimes seems as distant as the summer holidays.
This year, to take the pressure off you, we have decided to put together a top 10 of the best parents' resolutions ever kept .
1 – Take time for yourself
“This year, I'm taking time for myself” , this resolution remains in 2024, true to its reputation: as illusory as not gaining 1 gram during the holidays! Between the early morning wake-ups orchestrated by impatient little feet, the marathons to juggle professional and personal life, the idea of a break for yourself fades away every time the word “mom” or “dad” is uttered. Maybe in 2025?
2 - Stop comparing my life to that of Insta moms
Stop comparing my life to that of those Insta moms who seem to manage to juggle an immaculate house, children who are always smiling, polite and clean, gourmet meals, all while having time to take perfect selfies. Let's be honest, the reality is often closer to a battlefield where “bath time” looks more like an aquatic circus show than a glamorous movie scene.
For the rest we can't help you, but for the bath we have what you need: My Lavante whipped cream ! Farewell, epic battle to get your children to take a bath with it, they will be the ones to ask for it 😉
3 - Cook good, balanced meals
Healthy, balanced, local, organic and so on! And no, unfortunately frozen foods don’t count… In reality, the famous “Knacki/mash” will continue to be the best seller for dinner 😉
4 - Organize the last 10 years of photos
We all dream of a shelf reserved for photo albums for family afternoons remembering good vacation memories...
Stop dreaming ! First, you'll have to embark on a treasure hunt where each click opens a new Pandora's box filled with questionable selfies 🤳 and blurry photos, worthy of an abstract art museum.
One hope: that by next year technology will evolve enough for our computers to store photos by themselves while we watch Netflix!
5 – Less screen time for children
TV: this incredible survival tool! It's a bit of a magic wand: as soon as children start to stir like boiling potions, television suddenly becomes the spell that will transform them into the “king of silence” for a few precious minutes.
Guaranteed hypnotizing effect, worthy of the great Kaa (the snake in The Jungle Book for the uneducated 🤪). So let's face it, when your patience gauge has reached its maximum after a busy day, nothing beats a good little cartoon in front of the TV!
6 - Stop suggesting to your children that they “Change mothers” every time they get upset
After hearing your 6 year old daughter tell you that Jade's mother, SHE, accompanies all the school outings, we agree, it's tempting to blurt out a little “You just have to change mothers” .
As if you had an army of replacement mothers in the garage, always cooler, letting you eat candy before dinner or even being able to spend hours watching Paw Patrol without complaining.
The truth is that none could come close to matching you, you are the undisputed star and an incredible mother!
7 – Stop buying all editions of vacation notebooks
As the summer holidays approach, each bookstore becomes a real danger for a parent! The holiday notebooks call to you from the back of the shelves, convincing you that they are THE key to getting your children into HEC. But now, children want to build sandcastles rather than arithmetic on the beach. And between us, wouldn't you rather take a nap in the sun than play teacher? Finally, if these vacation notebooks don't end up in placemats before the end of summer, you will have already won a victory 🏆
8 – Stop holding that basket of single socks
It's an adventure full of mystery and despair, we grant you that! But do you really think that these missing socks 🧦 will miraculously reappear one day to reform perfect pairs?
These socks seem to have followed a professional runaway program, preferring to hide in the most inaccessible corners of the house rather than returning to their original basket. Dear parents, we are sorry to be killjoys but we will have to resign ourselves to accepting this (harsh) reality: they will never come back.
9 - Stop holding out hope: Your child's blanket will never be clean
Every parent has already experienced this epic struggle where the simple act of offering a bath for the precious cuddly toy triggers screams and tears worthy of a Shakespearean drama.
This constant companion is better at accumulating stains than at remaining radiantly fresh, defying all the laws of cleanliness!
Know that the cuddly toy always triumphs, remaining faithful to its mission as guardian of secrets and cuddles, even if it retains its patina of past adventures. 🤣
10 – Take up sport
Between juggling homework, meals to prepare like a star chef for capricious palates and moments of extreme solitude during arguments between brothers and sisters over who touched the remote control last, the idea of slipping into leggings for a session of yoga or lifting weights seems straight out of a fairy tale. After all, squats to pick up scattered toys count too, right?