Relaxing your rigid schedules

To schedule or not to schedule?
How much of your life is scheduled? Do you spend time making sure that everyone is where they are supposed to be all the time? Does your husband work a set schedule, always having to get up at a certain time and be out the door before the kids get moving? Sometimes, do you get the feeling that your family is “over scheduled”? We spend so much time trying to make sure that everyone is happy, enriched, and involved, that we can easily forget that spending real time with our families is the best give that we can give our children.
As mothers, we are the keepers of the family. Sometimes, we just have to say “no” to one more kid’s birthday party on the weekend, and take that time to bond with our husbands and children. And you should feel good about doing it too. We must teach our kids that family comes first. This will ensure that they grow up valuing their families as well as their parents.
This week is a good time to practice slowing down. Check your calendar ahead of time to make sure that you aren’t supposed to be at Aunt Mary and Uncle Tommy’s 50th Anniversary party, then go off the radar! Forget about the things you ’should’ do, and reconnect with your family. Don’t answer your phones(let them leave a voicemail-and they will if it is an emergency), and keep the TV off unless your whole family agrees to a movie. If that is the case, pop some corn, get some blankets and snuggle up on the couch watching movies together.
The weather is getting crisp which makes being outside more enjoyable for the whole family. Is there anything that you love to do but don’t ever seem to have the time for it? In our house, the males love to ride their 4-wheelers, but we never seem to find an open weekend. What does your family like to do? If you can’t think of anything this week you can always use items from the Fall Fun 50 List(each family member should get to look over the list), and then choose an activity that you are all interested in.
Don’t think of this as “spending” time with your family but as “investing” time in your family. The dividends will amaze you!