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Subject: 🧭 When Your Kids Need You And Your Parents Do Too

Stuck in the Middle News — Issue #238 — December 11, 2025

👋 Welcome (and how to get every issue)

If you’re new here, welcome to Stuck in the Middle News — the newsletter for people caring for parents and kids while trying to keep work, money, and relationships from falling apart.

If someone forwarded this to you and you’d like your own copy, hit reply and type “SUBSCRIBE” so you don’t miss future issues.

🧠 Big Thought — Your Kids Aren’t “In the Way” of Caring for Your Parents

Today’s focus: Kids & Family Balance — what happens when you’re trying to be a good parent and a good adult child at the same time.

Recent data says almost 90% of parents are losing sleep because of caregiving stress — juggling kids, aging parents, and everything in between.Parents Add in rising costs and limited backup, and it’s no wonder so many of us feel like we’re failing someone every single day.

Here’s the quiet lie a lot of us absorb:

But you’re not fighting a calendar problem — you’re fighting physics and math.
Two generations + one you = somebody will be disappointed sometimes.

A healthier goal for this season isn’t “make everyone happy.” It’s:

1. Keep everyone safe.

2. Protect the essentials (sleep, basic health, finances).

3. Let go of the rest (perfect meals, every activity, never missing anything).

Your kids don’t need a superhero. Your parents don’t need a miracle worker.
They need a human who’s still standing, still loving, still showing up — even if dinner is frozen pizza and the laundry’s in a pile.

Today’s issue is all about buying yourself breathing room — with simple, kid + parent logistics that don’t require you to clone yourself.

🧰 Money Moves — A 5-Step “One Calendar, Two Generations” Game Plan

This week’s checklist is all about practical scheduling + support, not perfection. All resources below are free and publicly accessible.

1️⃣ Do a 15-minute “everything on the table” brain dump
Grab a piece of paper or notes app and list out:

• Kids’ recurring stuff (school, pickups, sports, activities)

• Parents’ recurring stuff (meds, appointments, calls, bills, meals, check-ins)

• Your non-negotiables (work hours, sleep, therapy, exercise, or one tiny hobby)

If you can see it, you can start to move it around instead of trying to juggle it in your head.
For structure, skim this short guide on creating a family caregiving calendar:
https://caringseniorservice.com/blog/family-caregiving-calendar/ Caring Senior Service

2️⃣ Pick ONE shared calendar for the whole crew
Don’t try to manage five different apps. Pick ONE “source of truth” that everyone uses for both kids and parents.

A simple option with a free version is Cozi Family Organizer, built specifically for busy families juggling overlapping schedules:
https://www.cozi.com/ Cozi Family Organizer

Put in:

• School start/end times

• Sports/lessons

• Parent appointments

• Medication reminders

• “No schedule” blocks where you refuse to book anything (guardrails for your sanity)

3️⃣ Download a real caregiving planning guide (for your parents)
Instead of staying in crisis mode, use a plug-and-play guide to get ahead on your parents’ care.

AARP’s Family Caregiving Guides walk you through planning, organizing documents, and finding resources — free and well-structured:
https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/prepare-to-care-planning-guide/ AARP

Print or save the guide, and schedule one 30–45 minute block to start filling in the basics with your parent or siblings.

4️⃣ Create a “help calendar” and let people self-assign
You do not have to personally handle every ride, meal, or errand. Two free, simple tools that let friends and family sign up for tasks:

• CareCalendar – free, online help calendar for meals and other support
  https://www.carecalendar.org/ carecalendar.org

• Lotsa Helping Hands – create a community page where people can claim tasks (rides, meals, visits)
  https://lotsahelpinghands.com/ Lotsa Helping Hands

Set up a basic calendar for your parent and/or your household and send the link to siblings, close friends, or faith community. One ride a week from someone else is one ride you don’t have to scramble for.

5️⃣ Protect one small “kid-only” and one small “you-only” moment weekly
Your kids need time with you, not just “rushed chauffeur you.” And you need time with you, too.

• Pick a small, predictable kid-only ritual (Saturday morning pancakes, evening walk, 15 min LEGO or card game).

• Pick one you-only block (20 minutes reading in the car, a walk, or a coffee alone with your phone in airplane mode).

Those little rituals are what your kids will remember, not whether you made it to every theme day at school.

🛠️ Tool of the Week — Cozi Family Organizer (Free Version)

If your life feels like 47 overlapping group texts, Cozi can help.

What it is:
A free family organizing app with a shared calendar, to-do lists, and reminders designed for families with chaotic schedules.Cozi Family Organizer

Why it’s great for “stuck in the middle” people:

• You can color-code kids vs. parents vs. you.

• Everyone who needs access (spouse/partner, older kids, even a sibling helping with Mom) can see the same schedule.

• You can drop in links to parent portals, telehealth logins, or school calendars so they’re not buried in email.

Check it out here:
https://www.cozi.com/

📰 Reads — All Free, No Paywalls, All About Kids + Parents + You

1️⃣ “Caregiving and the Sandwich Generation” — Mental Health America
Clear overview of what it means to be in the sandwich generation, why it’s so exhausting, and signs you might be burning out.
https://mhanational.org/resources/caregiving-and-the-sandwich-generation/ Mental Health America

2️⃣ “Sandwich Caregiver Tips: Managing Kids and Aging Parents” — Thrive USA Homecare
Short, practical tips specifically for caregivers balancing childcare and senior care (including emotional burnout).
https://www.thriveusahomecare.com/sandwich-caregiver-tips-managing-kids-and-aging-parents/ Thrive USA Home Care

3️⃣ “90% of Parents Say They Are Losing Sleep Over the Stress of Caregiving” — Parents / Care.com Cost of Care report
Validating (and sobering) look at how intense caregiving is for today’s parents, and why your exhaustion isn’t a personal failure.
https://www.parents.com/2025-cost-of-care-report-8779080 Parents

🤝 SKOOL COMMUNITY — Come Sit With People Who Get It

If you want more than a newsletter — actual faces, voices, and support — our SKOOL community is where we talk about the real stuff: guilt, money, boundaries, parents, kids, and everything in between.

Join here (it’s the same link every time):
https://www.skool.com/stuck-in-the-middle-community-1730/about?ref=4956bcfb588b4962b89c23002360ff83

💬 Connect With People Who Get It
Caregiving can feel isolating — and so can relationship stress.
Join our private Facebook group to talk to others who truly understand.

👉 https://www.facebook.com/groups/stuckinthemiddlenews

💬 Reply & Engage — Quick Question for You

Hit reply and tell me (just one sentence is fine):

Your answers help shape future issues, checklists, and tools.

↗️ Share the Relief

If you know another person who’s caring for kids and aging parents, forward this email to them.

You might be the only person in their life who says, “You’re not crazy, this really is a lot.”

📌 P.S.

Next issue, we’re going to talk about year-end boundary setting — how to say “no” to holiday expectations that don’t work in a caregiver household, without starting World War III at the family tabl

💬 Connect With People Who Get It

Caregiving can feel isolating — and so can relationship stress.
Join our private Facebook group to talk to others who truly understand.

👉 https://www.facebook.com/groups/stuckinthemiddlenews

THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT BOOKS YOU CAN READ IF YOU ARE FRUSTRATED WITH A PARENT OR OLDER RELATIVE

grab a copy here https://amzn.to/3QIhlx7

If you are in this situation I think you will enjoy it!

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