Catch Up or Fall Behind?

2016.

It doesn’t feel much different than 2015. I didn’t make resolutions, I didn’t tell myself that I need to lose 20 pounds (because, honestly, it hasn’t worked for me the past 10 years so why would it work now?), I didn’t wake up on January 1st and race around organizing my life. I took the first few days of the new year and did, well… nothing.

I went to bed late and woke up late. I sat around on the couch watching Harry Potter movies with the kids. We ate out a lot because I didn’t want to cook. We probably ate more junk than we normally would have, but not one of us mentioned eating healthier. I didn’t do laundry or bug the kids about cleaning their rooms. And it was perfect.

I can’t remember the last time when I did nothing. Working in social media means that you are always doing something. But not this year. I scheduled posts and didn’t check my email 24/7 like I normally do. I actually put down the computer and cell phone more than I usually would. I’m not crazy… it’s not like I abandoned them altogether. I didn’t turn the sound up on my phone so I might have missed calls. I didn’t get any emergency texts, however. (I do periodically check for emergencies.)

We woke up this morning and David and I kind of complained about how much catching up we had to do today… but really… so what?

One thing I’ve learned is that there never really is as much “catching up” as you think there is. And taking a few days OFF to do nothing is perfectly fine. We tend to over-schedule our lives way too much. If we aren’t working or cleaning or cooking or doing something productive at all times, then we feel that we’re falling behind. So not true.

We never really get “caught up” so how can we possibly “fall behind?” I think my big goal for the new year is to not get caught up in the falling behind of life. Sure, we have responsibilities, but other than paying bills and meeting work deadlines, what else needs to stress us out? The laundry? The messy house? The holiday cards you didn’t get around to sending out?

There is so much more to life than being busy… and sitting on the couch watching Harry Potter movies with your kids is probably the most productive thing I did. Because spending time just being with your kids… giving them your time (and your cuddles) is the absolute best thing you can do.

So no resolutions for 2016, but maybe a few family-oriented goals.

1. Spend more time doing nothing with the kids.
2. Schedule a date night at least once a month.

That’s it! Those are my goals. Everything else will just fall into place.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!