Between household tasks and shuttling the kids to violin lessons and soccer practice, weekends can be, well, not so stellar. According to a recent Hampton Hotels survey, people with children are more likely to be anxious at the start of the weekend than those without (25% vs. 18%). To rediscover the thrill:

Schedule it. Put special Saturday/Sunday plans–the zoo, the natural history museum–on the calendar so the whole family can look forward to them.

Skip the Sunday blues. Do your scheduling for next week’s homework and tasks on Friday rather than Sunday, to open up your weekend for together time like a family movie night.

Set up simple things. Even if you don’t plan on going out, you can make weekends more relaxing and fun by cooking a pancake breakfast or baking cookies together.

Source: Christine Carter, PhD, author of Raising Happiness