Like all good mothers, I derive my best ideas from Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. Our Love-You-Loops, a cherished separation ritual in our household, comes directly from one of our favorite episodes.
If you’ve followed my blog posts, you know our family experiences an above-average travel schedule. These Loops are the best thing we have done to help our children through the days we spend apart. They are easy to switch up, so they don’t become redundant.
The premise is simple. Create one paper loop for each day you are away. Inside each loop, you’ll write a note, make a drawing, leave a clue for a treasure hunt, or write a riddle for the kids to solve.
Once per day, you unlock a loop, read what is inside, and watch the kids smile over the contents. If you add the element of a treasure hunt and hide a gift in the house, I recommend that the stationary parent or babysitter hide the gift in the proper location the night before so it isn’t accidentally discovered before its intended time.
Gifts are not necessary! Kids adore the drawings, cute notes, and visual countdown they receive until they are reunited in their parents’ arms. We sometimes give a gift towards the end of a really extended trip to help ease the burden of the final stretch. For our latest time apart, the girls will find their favorite cookies.
Materials:
- Construction or copy paper
- Pens, markers, or crayons
Tap - Optional: Tiny treasures (candy, cookies, toy cars, figurines)
Instructions:
- Cut the paper into long strips about three inches wide by 9 inches in length
- Write your note, draw your sketch, or make your treasure map
- Fold the ends so that the writing is hidden inside the loop, and tape them shut
- Repeat for each day you are away. (Pro tip: if you are gone a long time, number the back of each loop so you don’t lose track of the order if that’s relevant to your notes.)
- Link the loops in reverse chronological order and tape them from a chandelier, a cabinet handle, a door frame, or a curtain rod so that the “first day” is closest to the child.
Have fun with your Love You Loops or whatever version you make for your family. Your children will have an awesome way to count down the days until you’re reunited, and it will help the stationary parent, too. Happier kids mean a more joyful solo parenting experience.
