Staying Present to Your Kids When You Travel–Guest Blog by Dave McClow, MDiv, LCSW, LMFT

How do you stay connected to your kids when you travel?

Here’s 7 things to do.  Written to Dads but works for traveling Moms too!

Your kids still need to experience your presence even when you are out of town. Here are 7 ways to extend your presence when you are traveling. Connecting with them in multiple ways can help your wife manage them better.

1) Obviously, plan phone calls, but do Face Time/Skype, and texting. They need to see your face and you may get 30 seconds rather than 10 with 1-3 year olds.

2) Send pictures of what you are doing, where you are going, what you are seeing. “We have the technology,” use it!

3) Do a voice recording or video of yourself reading or telling the kids’ favorite story(ies).

4) Give your kids a “transitional object,” like a teddy bear that you hug and give to your kids, so that whenever they need a hug from daddy, they can hug the bear. Other examples could be a rosary, a medal, a rock, your picture or a picture of you and the in individual child together. Pray over the object in their presence and give it to them. They know it is from Dad and carry it with them and pull it out when they want to connect with Dad.

5) Make sure to put Dad’s picture in the kids’ bedrooms. And Mom could put Dad’s picture at the dinner table or on the counter while he’s away.  Another visual cue that Dad is still present even when he is not there.

6) Write a loving note to each of the kids that lets them know you’re thinking of them while you’re gone, love them, are proud of them, etc.  They could open it on a particular day or if they have a time when the miss Dad.

7) Make a ritual of lighting a candle at Church that represents your prayers and protection of them and you while you are gone.

What do you to extend your presence when traveling?

Dave McClow, M.Div., LCSW, LMFT  is a clinical pastoral counseling associate of the Pastoral Solutions Institute.  To learn more about making a marriage, family, or personal counseling appointment with Dave or any of the associates in our tele-counseling practice, please visit the Pastoral Solutions Institute online or call 740-266-6461 today.

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