One. That’s how many days into the school Easter holidays we were before I felt like I was going batsh*t mental.

It’s the weather’s fault – it’s been raining here for what seems like weeks and we’ve slowly but surely started climbing the walls.

The trouble is there’s still another two weeks of the school holidays to go, so drawing on what I’ve learnt so far I’ve devised an Easter holiday survival guide in a bid to get me through the rest of it.

The ultimate Easter holiday survival guide

1. Let them do things you wouldn’t normally allow. Like draw on each other with biro. If it keeps them quiet, what’s the harm?

2. Factor in some me-time. Like a trip to the hairdressers or beauty salon. (I highly recommend doing this over tea time and/or bath time – preferably both – so you don’t have to deal with it).

3. Avoid Plaster of Paris at all costs. It ruins crockery, renders cutlery useless and you’ll be picking it out of the carpet for months.

4. Ditto glitter. Except you’ll be picking that out of the carpet for years, not months.

5. Share the pain. Organise as many play dates as you can cope with. Because if you have theirs the chances are they’ll have yours.

6. Don’t be afraid to camp out in cafes. If they’ve got a good play area, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with staying for at least two meals.

It’s a typical British bank holiday in our neck of the woods so we’re hiding out at our local cafe eating chips & wondering if it’s ever going to stop raining. If it’s going to be like this for the rest of the school holidays shoot me now #rainraingoaway #easter2018 #goodfriday #bankholiday #bankholidayfun #family #fun #motherhood #motherhoodunplugged #coolmumclub #capturingtheday #oureverydaymoments #documentyourdays @thebigbeachcafe

A post shared by Natalie Brown (@confessionsofacrummymummy) on Mar 30, 2018 at 5:05am PDT

7. Plan as many free activities as possible. Like visiting the pet shop and plane spotting. Because otherwise you’ll shell out money hand over fist.

8. Eat their chocolate. There’s a lot to be said for hiding behind a kitchen cupboard and biting the head off a chocolate bunny.

9. Invest in a whistle. Because if you’ve got more than one child like me you’ll be playing referee.

10. Bring bedtime forward as early as you can get away with. And if you haven’t got blackout blinds, why on earth not?

And here’s some tried & tested advice from other bloggers…

1. Avoid the chocolate. “We avoid refined sugar at all costs now at home so we aren’t giving the kids chocolate Easter eggs this year,” says Victoria at Healthy Vix. “When we did give them chocolate we would ration it and be strict with it otherwise they bounce off the walls and misbehave!”

2. Run them wild. “The more I can tire them out the easier my life is,” says Laura at Five Little Doves. “The poor kids are knackered!”

3. Take them out every morning. “Even if it’s just for half an hour,” says Kate at The Mum Conundrum. “A bit of fresh air and a run around, and they’re far less likely to be ratty/whiney/mental in the afternoons.”

Are you in the throes of the school Easter holidays? Do you have any survival tips? I’d love to know what they are!

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