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| It poured ALL day today! |
I read something recently that suggested to wake up, before the rest of your family if possible, and start your day with purpose. When I first read it I didn't really see how I could benefit from any less sleep than I already get. The reasoning behind it was so "you can control your day instead of it controlling you." I know I am not alone when I say that more often than not, the day gets away from me before I have had a chance to get everything done. There are a few great days sprinkled in here and there but for the most part, I struggle to keep up with everything that needs to be done. Part of this is just my personality. I make big plans but when it comes down to it, I really live in the moment and often lose track of time. Ayden and his moods also have a lot to do with how the day unfolds. But, I think the biggest part of all is just what the article says. I let the day control me. All of the big decisions in my life are so intentional... Why aren't the small ones? I always feel SOOO much better on a productive day so why can't I make them all productive? I've thought long and hard about these questions and I think I can sum up the answers in two words: habit and routine.
I am a very routine oriented individual. If something happens that throws off my usual routine, you can guarantee something will get forgotten or misplaced. It is a little bit of a challenge for me to incorporate new things but it's manageable. My biggest issue is with CHANGING the routine. I love the idea of change and know that most changes are for the best, big picture wise, but my reality is that change is hard. I get myself into ruts sometimes and have a hard time getting out.
The answer to my problem is the same tactic that I use for any big decisions in my life: living intentionally. I took a step back and thought about all of the aspects of my daily routine that suck away productivity or fulfillment. I concluded that those were sleeping in with Ayden (though this one feels AMAZING at the time...), a few iPhone Apps (Facebook, YouTube and Pinterest) and loosing track of time. I also thought about what my routine was missing and decided that exercise, reading and an earlier bedtime needed to be added.
With my new plan in place, I made my to do list, deleted the afore mentioned Apps from my phone, set out my exercise clothes to put on first thing and went to bed knowing that I would wake up intentionally and spend the entire day with that mindset. Low and behold, I woke up before Ayden and got ready, I had half of my to do list crossed off by 10:30am, including the entire hour of the P90X shoulders and back workout.
I felt energetic and accomplished all day! Anytime I would get sucked into Pinterest or Facebook before, which always prolonged my putting Ayden down to sleep, etc., I have read my book on my Kindle App. I can pull myself away from a book much easier than the never ending feeds of those Apps. I also wore my sport watch which, in addition to putting the digital time right on my arm, has a stop watch and a count down timer that I can use to help me be more efficient, or even help me remember to go check for bubbles when the diapers are rinsing. Once new habits are established, I won't have to use timers and such but I feel like I need reminders to succeed. Overall today really was a great success but doing anything once is easy. I am on a mission to form new habits and routines for my days!
I wonder why we always fall back into old ways, even when we know they aren't as fulfilling. I got so much done during the day today that it has freed up time tonight to build bee hive frames with David, browse Pinterest, Facebook or watch a YouTube video or two (and on the actual computer which is always more fun!). David came home to a living space with everything in its place and dinner ready to eat. This is exactly how I pictured our life with me staying at home. I have achieved it off and on in the past year but I have always struggled to make it a habit. I hope that this time I found the key!
What changes do you make to enable yourself to dig out of a rut? I think taking the time suck Apps off of my phone will prove to be a good move for me... Once I make it through withdraw, ha!
Here are a couple of cute clips of Ayden today. In addition to this cuteness, he has started signing please and banana! Sooo cute :)
~Sarah
It is so brave of you to admit these weaknesses to yourself (and all of us) I have noticed I'm easily distracted by the same things and that I struggle with curve balls in my day. I have also had to evaluate what I need and want to accomplish each day because I worry I will really struggle once number 2 arrives. I always feel better about myself after reading your blog because its reassuring to know I am not alone in these struggles.
ReplyDeleteI could have easily written this post myself... I read an article recently that said, "Wake up for your children, Don't wake to your children." As in, yep... get up BEFORE them so you can start your day right.
ReplyDeleteI deleted facebook (except my business page) about two months ago. It's cut back on a lot of messages with people I barely have a real relationship with. But I find myself blogging more, but I love the world of blogging it's very different than facebook.
But here I am... up late. I feel like it's the only "me time" I get, but then I'm sleep deprived the next day. I really need to be more intentional.
Keep it up! They say after the 30 day mark it becomes a habit!
In a perfect world I would mediate before bed and first thing in the morning and exercise 30 minutes per day. Geeze, sounds so simple writing it out!
I also have four new books and three new magazines just waiting to be read!
This was a great blog post. One a lot of us needed to read.
I've tried & tried to take control of my days. I do well for a few days and then completely fall off the bandwagon. My biggest downfall is the internet. I get sucked into it for hours at a time. Good luck on your journey. If you find they key to success, I'm definitely going to give it a whirl.
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