I know it’s not a luxury that everyone has – a partner who comes home at the end of the day and can share the load (although sometimes after a long day of work my hubby is more tired than me!). 

But last night I made the most of it and went for “option z – let someone else who has a bit more energy play with your child while you take a break”! 

I had been really tired yesterday after waking early, and hubby was working late. It had been a long day. 

When hubby finally got home, my boy and I were quiet, in the middle of our dinner of home delivered pizza (yes, it was one of those days!). 

After dinner, my boy took the opportunity for some connection with his step-dad, who he hadn’t seen all day, and a final bit of play before bed! 

Luckily, hubby was resourced enough to respond in the affirmative to my boy’s request …. “Play with me?”.

Here is a snippet of their play (link), with my boy doing a “force push” to knock the “box enemy” down (with a little help from his step-dad). 

This is another wonderful power reversal game, in which our kids can get a taste of being all powerful, like a super hero! 

Power reversal games get lots of smiles and laughs, and can help kids to offload any feelings of powerlessness they have experienced. 

They are also great for supporting kids to feel more relaxed and connected. 

As you can see, it didn’t take a lot of energy on hubby’s part, but it did take a willingness to connect and play along with a light-hearted attitude. 

And I can report that getting ready for bed is so much easier after a good play session like this. No delays, no nagging, no getting frustrated or resorting to threats.

PS We’re getting a lot of use out of these boxes lately! A couple of nights ago they were used to build a shelter in a game my son was playing with his step-dad. And the next night my boy delighted in using them to make “blockades” to trap me in different rooms of the house! 

PPS Please excuse the poor camera work and the mess!