Are you adjusting to the rigors of the before school and after school routines in addition to your own before and after work routines?
All of our regular fall programming for the kids is not yet kicked in, and we are already feeling the pace has quickened since the summer.
Time for a check up:
Ecclesiastes 3:1 (New International Version)
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.
I think today's blog entry is for myself most of all. A reminder to take at look at life and make sure things stay on track inside our little home.
As stated in the Bible verse above, there are seasons in life. Mine is the season of participating in the parenting of two teens. It can be a busy season.
There is a saying out there that if you aim at nothing you will most certainly hit it. We don't want to do that with parenting, work, home care or any other part of life.
Take 5 or 10 minutes and write down a list of top things in your life. Mine goes something like this:
1. Faith - Spiritual nurture and health of your spirit and your family's. A commitment to prayer, spiritual growth and living out the precepts of our faith.
2. Family - Hubby, kids, and extended family. Making your immediate family a top priority. Ensuring healthy relationships, good family times, and raising up good kids who are grounded in their faith and equipped with the skills they need for life.
3. Work - This one is obvious. If you don't give your employer proper priority during work hours, you won't have a job for too long. We all need jobs to pay our bills. Make sure you continue to strive to raise your value in your boss' eyes. Don't be satisfied to coast along in your job.
4. Home - Here I am referring to the upkeep and maintenance of a home. Housekeeping, laundry, groceries, meal planning, calendar management, decorating, yard work, etc. If the home is a mess, everything starts to unravel because this is your base, the launch pad from which you and your family enter the rest of your day.
5. Friends - Make time for friends, laughter and great memories.
6. Community - The practice of living beyond ourselves. This opens up your world so much. If you only live for yourself and your family, you will eventually discover that your world closes in and becomes quite limited.
Now that I have the list of top values, these will guide the calendar for activity... calendar check up!
I can get sidetracked with many interests. It is best to take a look at the calendar and ensure the following:
1. That all the upcoming dates for each family member are on the calendar so that nothing is missed.
2. That activities we find on our calendar support our values.
3. That we schedule time for maintenance and for rest. Remind yourself to find a routine that works and try your best to stick to it without being too rigid or inflexible.
I don't think any of us ever gets our list perfect. But if we at least have a list, then we know what we're aiming for and it helps us organize our days.
We can take comfort in the fact that aligning our values and creating reasonable routines gives us a reasonable measure of peace inside.
You'll be glad you did, and then, maybe you'll feel like this little guy:
Thanks for reading.
Cassie
Today I am linked up here:
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