Take A Step Back And Reflect

Reflecting back, we all make mistakes; we all go through our stuff – relationships, financial, all kinds of stuff – and if you can grow from that and pass that message on, it’s a pretty cool thing. – Nikki Sixx

 

It’s been a long while since my last post. Lots of changes in my life from a pregnancy, new house, and now a baby. I know I don’t like to be idle, but damn! There was a lot going on in a short time period.

I know the purpose of this blog is to chronicle my life and how I manage to keep everything in sync. However, there were so many things to juggle that I really did not have time to live through it and then report what happened. Now, that things have somewhat calmed down (although I’m not sure if things are calm with a newborn), I’m taking some time to reflect on some lessons learned. Here’s what I learned during this overwhelming period:

• Chop the To Do List Down – There were days when my trusty to do list seemed like it had no end. However, I just took it one item at a time, day by day, and eventually things got done. I had minor anxiety attacks when I looked at a list with 50 tasks. Rather than keep a weekly task list, I switched to a daily task list. This made the task list and sub task list seem more manageable than the laundry list of tasks to complete. This resulted in less stress for the baby and me.
• Allow Someone Else to be in Control – I like being the captain of my own fate. I know what I need to do, when I need to do it, and how I like it done. However, you add that with a full time job, toddler, and pregnancy brain, and you need help. Fortunately, I could rely on my husband. Now, he may do things on his own time and in his own way, but HE was doing it! Assigning some tasks to him helped me clear my mental clutter and check off some things from my to do list. It was hard to let him handle things, but I had to remind myself he is more than capable of handling our business. Plus, the more he took on, the less I had to do.
• Learn How to Take a Break – This seems silly to admit, but I had to relearn how to take a break. I was so used to filling my days with researching properties, packing boxes, organizing my to do list, etc. that I didn’t take a break. I rested at work (no, I didn’t take a nap at my desk). Basically, I was able to rest at work because I just focused on one thing – my job. At home, I was juggling 3-5 things at a time. My silly self actually looked forward to going to work! Eventually I had to remind myself that even the Lord rested on the seventh day. Why should I constantly be in motion? So I slowed down. I made it a point to take advantage of my monthly massage membership, get regular pedicures, take a weekly prenatal yoga class, and gave into my Cold Stone cravings! I didn’t put everything to a complete stop, but slowing down made life a little more enjoyable.

Now that I made it to the other side, I want to continue to implement these lessons. There are lots of things to do with a new house, but they do not need to be done all at once. My husband is still with me (no, my pregnancy hormones did not run him off), so my to do list has become our joint to do list. And with the new baby, our joint to do list may now be his to do list! And, once I’m fully healed, I plan to resume the regular beauty treatments because mama needs to keep it together!

I’m only one week in to my new life, and I think I’m doing ok. I haven’t figured everything out, but I feel like I’m ahead of the game. Now, if only I can figure out how to clone myself……….