It's About Time

One thing that we share rich or poor is that we all have 24 hours in the day. How we use those hours is up to us. I've been reading the Little House books to the kids in the evening and love hearing stories from an earlier era. Things were so much simpler back then. But then again, they had so much work each day just to exist. In our society we don't have to replant the corn 4 times after the prairie dogs eat the first few plantings and we don't have to grind the wheat to make our daily bread.

We have more choices of how we want to spend our time. Still, there is only so much time and not enough to do everything that I want to do. I look at my life as having different seasons. Whenever I feel bad that I don't have time to do something I would like to do...such as going out to lunch with a friend or practicing the piano more, or fitting regular workouts into my day, I have to tell myself that I have had that season in the past, and I will have that season in the future. This season is for raising my children. There are challenges along the way, but oh, such rich rewards as well.


I think the best reward will be looking back and having no regrets.

There are a few things that I have learned along the way about managing my time:

1. Multitasking is essential. If I can kill 3 or 4 birds with one stone I am thrilled.

2. I can't do everything so I have to choose carefully what matters to me. Prioritize, prioritize, prioritize.

3. Each week I need to do something that is just for me, so that I don't lose myself. I have to keep my own separate interests. For me that includes music, books, and time alone.

4. Plan ahead. This applies to planning out our meal calendar, making school assignments in advance, making time for my church calling as well as setting goals for each week and deciding the night before what I want to accomplish the next day. I don't get everything done that I intend to do, but I get the most important things done when I make a plan and stick to it. This does require discipline.

5. I can't be so rigid with my schedule that I lose sight of opportunities to build relationships whether with my children, neighbors or friends and family. I think that Elastagirl is the perfect superhero for a mother, because we must be flexible.

6. Each season is wonderful. I think it's important to savor the time we have at each stage of life.


7 Finally, it's important to have a healthy sense of humor. As long as we can laugh each day I am happy.