How I Gave Up Busy
Life is busy, y'all. Sometimes, it's down right CHAOS. As a wife, mom of 3 (plus 2 dogs), Registered Nurse and a Jordie for life, I live in a constant state of funny farm. FOR REAL! Somedays, I feel like I'm losing my mind. Definitely losing my keys, but some days my mind is not far behind.
I need to STOP.
I want to enjoy these short years with my kids and give them all the great memories I have of a kid growing up loved - laughing, having fun and NOT screeching in to the next activity on 2 wheels with screaming kids and a dirty shirt. Nope. Not gonna do it. And my husband is totally on board.
So how do I do it?
Give up BUSY - stop doing things just to do them. We built our life around what is important to US and make those things a priority. Everything else is OUT. It's that simple! That sounds like a pipe dream, I know - but it works! I'll save you each and every detail, but here are some of the things we do instead of being busy.
I wake up before everyone else.
I can't help it. I've been an RN for 15 years, and my shift starts at 7am. I'm up before 6 - even on the weekends. No alarm clock needed (but I do set one just in case).
When I get up at 6am on a Saturday, I know I've got at least 2 hours (or more!) before the house wakes up. I get 2 glorious hours of uninterrupted ME time... and I won't give it up for anything. When my family gets up, they wake up to a happy Mom, not one who hit snooze 3 times and is racing around the house. They usually find me reading while drinking coffee - and they always say, "Good Morning." Yes, yes it is.
Seriously, if you have never gotten up before your kids, I encourage to you to TRY IT NOW. Like tomorrow. You can do it, even if it's just for one day. I'm willing to bet it's gonna be a game changer.
We eat dinner as a family every night.
Even if it is chicken nuggets and fries for the 3rd time in 2 weeks, we fill our plates and talk about our day. Roses and thorns, with questions like "What was your favorite part of the day?" It's always a contest to see who gets to ask it first. We've learned things about our kids that we wouldn't normally have even asked about - like my daughter, who's uncanny ability to take recyclables and build them into other things, led to a contest that she won at school. Mind BLOWN.
We only sign up for activities we love.
My kids (and my husband and I) love Sports, and there's plenty of opportunity to take part in community leagues, travel leagues and clubs. But we don't do. them. all. Each child can do whatever they want to do, they just have to complete the season they signed up for, whether they like it or not. Baseball and Soccer are top favorites in our house. The only chaos we have is kids on different fields at the same time. Divide and conquer!
My oldest danced for 9 years and loved every minute... then decided she was ready to be done as her pre-teen social life picked up. Perfect! That's a tough life lesson to learn....know your priorities and get rid of other things.... and she did it with a grace I didn't know she had.
We don't schedule activities every single weekend.
The SHAME! haha, you're probably thinking this lady is NUTS. She doesn't have plans this weekend? It's true... I probably don't!
My husband and I both work outside the home, and our family has plenty of other activities to keep us moving during the week. By the time the weekend comes, we are ready for a break. So..... We stay home! No plans, just good old fashion family time that usually ends up with trying a new recipe, making crafts or a family game night. Some of the funniest moments happen at home.
No, we don't stay home every single weekend..... We participate in the normal seasonal activities - trip to the water park, apple picking, fall festivals, ice skating, snow tubing, and spring carnivals.... but we don't race from one activity to the other, and many times one really fun activity has us ready to head home. We like to be home, and we like to be together. It's a win-win for everyone.
I say NO.
There I said it. I'm that Mom.... but I think you need to hear this, so Listen up!
My kids know they can ask me anything.... but they never know what my answer will be. Sometimes, they have a great idea on something fun we can do. Sometimes, that activity is the absolute LAST thing I want to be doing. Like taking them to the store "just to look" at the ingredients for Slime. Ummmm, no thanks.
So I say no.
My kids know they are not in charge, and don't ask for many things on a whim. I am not the taxi, and we have plenty of activities in our own neighborhood that don't involve driving and dropping people off everywhere. Get outside and find something to do!
Many times, I have heard them say "Mom, Lexi is going to ____ this weekend, but we went that one time and it was awful. Can we stay home instead? I want to play with Jenna next door."
YES! Yes we can. I hate those awful, awkward activities that make you check your watch every 6 seconds, too. Go play. Thankfully, we have the best neighborhood for kids to safely run between houses and over to the playground.
Sounds easy enough, right? Try it! I'm sure there are plenty of ways you can think of to slow down and enjoy life... How can you give up YOUR busy? I'd love to know your secret tips to living life on your terms - share them in the comments and we can all learn to give up the busy together!
I need to STOP.
I want to enjoy these short years with my kids and give them all the great memories I have of a kid growing up loved - laughing, having fun and NOT screeching in to the next activity on 2 wheels with screaming kids and a dirty shirt. Nope. Not gonna do it. And my husband is totally on board.
So how do I do it?
Give up BUSY - stop doing things just to do them. We built our life around what is important to US and make those things a priority. Everything else is OUT. It's that simple! That sounds like a pipe dream, I know - but it works! I'll save you each and every detail, but here are some of the things we do instead of being busy.
I wake up before everyone else.
I can't help it. I've been an RN for 15 years, and my shift starts at 7am. I'm up before 6 - even on the weekends. No alarm clock needed (but I do set one just in case).
When I get up at 6am on a Saturday, I know I've got at least 2 hours (or more!) before the house wakes up. I get 2 glorious hours of uninterrupted ME time... and I won't give it up for anything. When my family gets up, they wake up to a happy Mom, not one who hit snooze 3 times and is racing around the house. They usually find me reading while drinking coffee - and they always say, "Good Morning." Yes, yes it is.Seriously, if you have never gotten up before your kids, I encourage to you to TRY IT NOW. Like tomorrow. You can do it, even if it's just for one day. I'm willing to bet it's gonna be a game changer.
We eat dinner as a family every night.
Even if it is chicken nuggets and fries for the 3rd time in 2 weeks, we fill our plates and talk about our day. Roses and thorns, with questions like "What was your favorite part of the day?" It's always a contest to see who gets to ask it first. We've learned things about our kids that we wouldn't normally have even asked about - like my daughter, who's uncanny ability to take recyclables and build them into other things, led to a contest that she won at school. Mind BLOWN.We only sign up for activities we love.
My kids (and my husband and I) love Sports, and there's plenty of opportunity to take part in community leagues, travel leagues and clubs. But we don't do. them. all. Each child can do whatever they want to do, they just have to complete the season they signed up for, whether they like it or not. Baseball and Soccer are top favorites in our house. The only chaos we have is kids on different fields at the same time. Divide and conquer!
My oldest danced for 9 years and loved every minute... then decided she was ready to be done as her pre-teen social life picked up. Perfect! That's a tough life lesson to learn....know your priorities and get rid of other things.... and she did it with a grace I didn't know she had.We don't schedule activities every single weekend.
The SHAME! haha, you're probably thinking this lady is NUTS. She doesn't have plans this weekend? It's true... I probably don't!
My husband and I both work outside the home, and our family has plenty of other activities to keep us moving during the week. By the time the weekend comes, we are ready for a break. So..... We stay home! No plans, just good old fashion family time that usually ends up with trying a new recipe, making crafts or a family game night. Some of the funniest moments happen at home.No, we don't stay home every single weekend..... We participate in the normal seasonal activities - trip to the water park, apple picking, fall festivals, ice skating, snow tubing, and spring carnivals.... but we don't race from one activity to the other, and many times one really fun activity has us ready to head home. We like to be home, and we like to be together. It's a win-win for everyone.
I say NO.
There I said it. I'm that Mom.... but I think you need to hear this, so Listen up!
My kids know they can ask me anything.... but they never know what my answer will be. Sometimes, they have a great idea on something fun we can do. Sometimes, that activity is the absolute LAST thing I want to be doing. Like taking them to the store "just to look" at the ingredients for Slime. Ummmm, no thanks.
So I say no. My kids know they are not in charge, and don't ask for many things on a whim. I am not the taxi, and we have plenty of activities in our own neighborhood that don't involve driving and dropping people off everywhere. Get outside and find something to do!
Many times, I have heard them say "Mom, Lexi is going to ____ this weekend, but we went that one time and it was awful. Can we stay home instead? I want to play with Jenna next door."
YES! Yes we can. I hate those awful, awkward activities that make you check your watch every 6 seconds, too. Go play. Thankfully, we have the best neighborhood for kids to safely run between houses and over to the playground.
Sounds easy enough, right? Try it! I'm sure there are plenty of ways you can think of to slow down and enjoy life... How can you give up YOUR busy? I'd love to know your secret tips to living life on your terms - share them in the comments and we can all learn to give up the busy together!
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