Tantrums and Tarpaulin: Ensuring Our Children Are Happy During a Renovation

Guaranteeing a healthy home for your kids is all in the home environment. If you have recently purchased a new home or you are making upgrades to make it a far more nurturing environment for your children, it’s important to understand the impact that renovation can cause in the long term. If you are anticipating a major overhaul of the property from top to bottom, you need to recognize the impact it will have on your children. What are the things that we need to consider so our children are catered for and happy during this time of immense upheaval?

Strategize About What and When You Renovate
It’s crucial to be tactical about the order of your renovations. You may want to opt for one room at a time, for example, doing the bathroom first and then having a break before you move onto the kitchen. Because having one working space that the family can use minimizes disruption and stress.

Start Smaller Jobs First
You may want to consider the smaller jobs as a way to ease your children in. If you need plaster repair services to fix up the wall and you need to do a quick paint job, all these things can be done with your children there. These are smaller jobs that are not as impactful but can prepare your children for what is to come. If they see contractors coming around and making small changes to the property, this gets them ready for the state of the environment.

Set Realistic Expectations
Renovating property is hugely destructive and if you have builders coming in and out, you have to recognize that at the end of the day nothing may be where it once was. Telling your children up front what they should expect will help them throughout the process. When your children know that there will be drilling on the weekend or they’re going to have to stay in their bedroom for a huge amount of time during the day, it will set them up for realistic expectations. As frustrating as it might be, it is also worthwhile showing them what the property is going to look like at the end so, at the very least, they can invest in the process better.

Stick to Routines
Young children are in need of routines. While there may be a lot of work to put everything back where it was at the end of the day, you need to make sure that the kids go to bed at the same time. If your children can stick to the same routines like eating breakfast and going to bed at the same time, this can actually minimize their reactions to change and stress, which can make everything easier for the entire family.

Don’t Be Afraid to Step Away
It can be an incredibly exhausting and emotional time that can have an impact on you. You need to make sure that you look after yourself as well but also understand that if you need to step away from the process and spend some time at a relative’s house, you can take the kids with you because it can help you to rest and recalibrate.