MDBCs 25 Jun 24

Please Take my Children to Work Day first began as a tongue-in-cheek holiday for overworked and tired stay-at-home mothers to take a day off from their routines. The holiday is celebrated annually on June 25.

Today, as times have changed, this day applies to any parent who would like to take a break from their parental duties.

The unofficial holiday, which is not be confused with Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, was created in 2003 by Jen Singer of MommaSaid.net - a parenting blog. The holiday encourages friends and family to take care of the children so that the stay-at-home parent can have some time to relax and rejuvenate.

The holiday is also sometimes celebrated on June 30 or on the last Monday of June.

How to Celebrate?

Being a stay-at-home parent can be one of most rewarding as well as an exhausting experience for parents. This unofficial holiday is a great excuse for them to take a break and enjoy some much-needed me-time. Here are some ways to celebrate it:

Ask friends or family members to look after your children for the day. And if they can't, hire a babysitter and take the day off to pamper yourself. Go to the spa or take the day to go to the movies or shop or do anything else that you may not be able to do on a normal day.
If you know someone who is a stay-at-home parent, take this day to show your appreciation of them. Do something nice for them - take them out for an adults-only lunch or volunteer to babysit their children so that they can have some much needed time to themselves.

Did You Know…

…that a new-born child has 300 bones while a fully grown adult has 206? The bones fuse together as the child grows.

***

She's only in her 40s, but my friend Mary has bounced back from cancer, heart problems, even a stroke. Through it all, she and her husband, Mark, have kept their sense of humor.

One day she said, "You know what kills me ... ?"

Smiling, Mark teased, "Apparently nothing."

***

In the midst of a creative writing assignment we were doing in class, I asked my first-grade students to come up with a good name for the main character.

"Chicago," called out one student.

"Actually, I was looking for more of a Christian name," I said.

"St. Louis!" he yelled back.

***

"Does anyone in this room need to be dismissed from jury duty?" my father, a judge, asked a roomful of prospective jurors.

A nervous young man stood up. "I'd like to be dismissed," he said.

"And why is that?"

"My wife is about to conceive."

Slightly taken aback, Dad responded, "I believe, sir, you mean 'deliver.' But either way, I agree. You should be there."

***

Snail mail, I decided, is definitely dead. Before I left on a trip to Alaska, I promised my five-year-old grandson, "I'll write you a letter when I get there."