The Children Are Out Of School: Time to Lighten the Load

Being a stay-at-home mother with four boys, I realized before school let out that I had to scale back on my personal projects (like book writing, typing, organizing and selling things online) to make more time for them. I have found that it has helped me somewhat manage the children. So I encourage anyone who is trying to balance multiple projects in addition to children, if you find yourself stressed, scale back not from the children, but your projects!

Some people love saying that word, "busy" whenever you ask them, "How are things going?" Some people are sincerely busy while others, dare I say it, are not. At the end of a workday, many are at home watching TV or surfing the net -- I know because some of these people have been customers of mine. Their idea of being busy is watching television on weekends. Last I checked, that's called, "Relaxing." Men usually know how to relax, but women, not hardly!

So I looked around at what I considered a priority in my personal life. I found that my hobbies were running into my priorities. As much as I like to do certain things like Twitter, blog or even check my email, they aren't as important as checking in with my children. I am learning quite a bit when I step back from the computer, television, radio, and phone. In addition, the ripping and running here and there to do one thing or another also had to be decreased. I started by calling people in advance and letting them know I had a lot of plans for my children and wouldn't be on the phone much. I also put projects I started in a folder to be done later. I delegated household responsibilities to all able-bodies. Lastly, I utilized paper and pen and wrote notes wherever needed so that everyone was on the same page and I wouldn't forget promises. I explained everything to members of my household. Making sure I included how they would benefit from the changes.

I realized that all this "stuff" we think we need to do now, now now... is not what I would care about when the day comes for me to shut my eyes and say, "Goodbye world!" Instead, I rather reflect on the conversations I had with my children and the things I taught them.

May God bless you and your children this summer and please do attempt to scale back from all that stuff!

Nicholl McGuire