Aaahh...Fall. Love everything about it.
The change of seasons is always a good time to take stock of what is working and what isn't working in your life, to clean out the fridge and toss the junk, to recommit to fitting in a form of fitness everyday, to touch base with yourself & your partner about where you are at.
Will and I had a long conversation the other night about being realistic, about making up our own rules/systems of creating our fun life, about being creative in the ways we'd like to approach our family life so that we can maximize our time together with the kids while still tending to our passions and our businesses. The point is to clear out a lot of the unnecessary stuff so we can find better ways of being together...because our relationship is either moving forward or not. So, lets move it forward. When things get crazy, instead of just going 'ARGH,' we sit down and say "We're going to find a way to do this (or get out of doing this)." We also planned a few date nights...
Part of all of this is that I've discovered that I'm at my best when I engage everything - the mind, the spirit and my body. So I try really hard to schedule "ME-time" throughout the week to encourage sanity.
I encourage you to take some time this week or over the weekend, as a family, to set some intentions for the upcoming school year - figure out just how we want this school year to look and feel. And if there is something that isn't working, sit down together and figure it out.
So, here are some things we are incorporating into our fall family schedule.
1. Schedule in family time - family dinners (we aim for nightly while the kids are young), family movie nights (Friday night), special breakfast (Saturday mornings), Church (Sunday mornings), etc.
2. Schedule in daily ME-time. This is key for all of you moms! After you get the kids off to school, do you have 1/2 hour before heading into the office to have a cup of coffee or go to a yoga class? Do you have an hour in the morning before the kids are awake to go for a run?
3. Schedule in a weekly family volunteer project or outing (Thursday afternoons for us).
4. Leave a few afternoons open with no activities where kids can just be kids and relax at home or play. (Monday, Tuesday & Friday's).
5. Limit the afterschool mayhem. We typically only allow Sam to be involved with one activity/sport outside of family things a week and have one playdate a week (eg. she can choose from art class, soccer, gymnastics, swim team, etc.) She can pick whatever one she wants, but just one. (Wednesdays she has gymnastics and Tuesdays is generally open for a playdate afterschool). We've found that anything more than that just tires her out and makes life crazy. Simple is better.
What are some of the ways you are getting into your fall routines?
image via here.
3 comments:
Great goals and tips on organizing. It is always important to take inventory and figure out what is working and what is not. I just wish there were more time in the day, or wish I didn't need to sleep! :)
i read this the other day, but wanted to let you know that you definitely got me thinking. seth & i sat down & had a similar conversation (thanks to you!) & agreed that there is more that we could be doing to bring our family closer. we have the same rule about only having 1 outside activity & only 1 playdate per week. the tv stays off mon-fri (until the boys go to sleep, which we will be working on in the future...no bachelor this year for me!), & after dinner we usually try for family time. we've gotten a little bit tired lately, which has meant sending the boys outside after dinner, but you helped remind me that we need to get back into that groove. thank you...as always friend!
hi karen - glad it helped you & seth! have a great weekend! xo, J :)
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