Tag Archives: goals

The Cure for Do-too-much-itis

January 16, 2014Generalgoals, God, new year, reflectionComplete Mama

Life never really quite works out the way we plan, does it? I have noticed that every time my to-do list gets ambitious, I end up humbled. The beginning of 2014 has been no exception.

The holidays have wound down, and the past couple weeks were what should have been the return to regularly scheduled life. Well, regularly scheduled life, with backlog. You know how it goes. Some things get neglected due to holiday plans, and there’s catching up to be done. Oh, and then throw in all of those New Year goals in addition to the things you normally do in a week, and… the to-do list fills up!

I had plans to hit the ground running the Monday after the holidays were over, but God had other plans for us.

My daughter got sick, and we had to take a break for a few days. Just as my daughter started feeling better, my son got sick, and we had to take a break again.

Though I had so many good intentions of doing more and doing better, I had to stop, look at what was before me, and surrender to it. That happens all the time, doesn’t it? We get carried away making plans, and roadblocks get thrown in our way.

In hindsight, I had a case of do-too-much-itis, and these roadblocks made me reevaluate my priorities.

My family’s illnesses made it impossible to accomplish all that I wanted to get done. I had to narrow my focus and just do what was absolutely necessary. Even then, I still could not get everything done myself and had to ask for help. (Confession time: It really went more like — got in over my head, panicked, and then asked for help at the last minute. I definitely need to do better at recognizing when I am going to need help.)

So 2014 has not started out as planned. I tried to reflect and pray and learn some lessons. Overall, it was not a big deal that we were slowed down for a couple weeks, and we are lucky that these roadblocks were just temporary. Now we are back to regularly scheduled life and can plug away at the backlog. (Knock on wood.) I am sure I will have more cases of do-too-much-itis in the future.. that’s one lesson I will probably never learn.

Do you ever suffer from do-too-much-itis? How do you handle it when roadblocks get put in your way and you can’t get everything done?

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The above explains why I haven’t been writing much. It was nothing earth-shattering; just life getting in the way.

I just wanted to thank everyone who has been so positive and encouraging since I have started writing here. I have even had a few people request that I write about certain topics. I am working on them!

Can You Be Joyful Everyday?

January 5, 2014Spiritualblessings, goals, gratitude, joy, quotes, reflection, religious, self improvementComplete Mama

The rising sun. A new day. A breath of fresh air. A child’s laughter. Food to nourish. Warm clothes. A home to shelter. Family. Friends. Neighbors. A church community.

These are just a few of the blessings that have been part of my day today. The list of blessings is endless, and these blessings surround us everyday. What is on your list?

How often do we take the time to experience joy, true joy, in all of the blessings, large and small, that surround us?

How often do we get so consumed by all of life’s challenges that we forget to notice and give thanks for all of the blessings in our lives?

Even for those who are good at gratitude, it can never hurt to have an extra nudge to take a moment and reflect on those things for which we are grateful.

Are you noticing all of your blessings? Are you experiencing all the joy you can?

And what about life’s challenges? We are all fighting a battle. Perhaps we or our loved ones are not in the best of health. Perhaps there is conflict in our lives. Perhaps we are busy and overwhelmed. These things can consume us if we let them. They can put on our blinders. They can make us forget that even being given this day is a true blessing.

No matter what challenges are happening in our lives, we can still experience joy in our blessings.

I’m not writing this because I am a master at this. I am writing this because I fail all the time. I am writing this because I want to do better. I am writing this because I know I can do better.

When I wrote my post reflecting on the New Year, I wrote that I had many goals for areas in which I could do better, and this is one of them.

I have always tried to appreciate all of the beautiful things in life, but at times I get consumed by life’s challenges and I let that focus rob me of the joy I could be experiencing. At times I forget that I can still take joy in life’s blessings, even if I am not at my happiest for other reasons. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. At times I focus on what’s wrong or missing and forget to give thanks for the multitude of blessings in my life.

Life is so beautiful, I don’t want to miss any chances to experience its joy.

To become more mindful, I have decided to write down one blessing each day. (I started on the first of the year.) Every month, I will share the blessings I’ve captured in a series called Everyday Blessings. The blessing I share may not be the biggest or most important thing that happened that day. The idea is to capture joy for all the little things that make life beautiful. I invite you to capture your daily blessings as well and keep your own list.

By the end of the year, there will be 365 blessings to be thankful for on the list, and the number will only keep growing. What a great and tangible reminder of life’s joys!

What is one thing you are grateful for today?

Ringing in the New Year: 2014

December 31, 2013Generalgoals, God, new year, quotes, reflection, religious, scripture, self improvementComplete Mama

Well, the New Year is upon us again. I’ve been thinking a lot about the past year and all that has changed for me.

"There are years that ask questions and years that answer." ~ Zora Neale Hurston

I just love that quote by Zora Neale Hurston, and I think about it with every changing year. While there were some questions this year, overall I believe there were more answers, and for that I am grateful.

Reflections

In February, I resigned from my job to become a full-time stay at home mom. It was a huge and difficult decision that I agonized over. Staying home was the path I felt I needed to take for the good of my family, but it was not at all easy to decide to take a break from my career. I do think it was the best choice, but I still regret my inability to be in two places at once. (Darn it!)

A lot of other things changed as well. I started running again and ran a half-marathon in October. I found a groove with taking care of the kids and have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of time I’ve had with them. I spent more time outside than I have since I was a kid. I made some new friends. I started reading more. We joined a new (to us) church and have gone (almost) every Sunday. We continued to make improvements in eating healthier.

There were a couple of challenging things about this past year also. This isn’t the right time to write about them, but I felt the need to acknowledge that not everything has been sunshine and rainbows. But God gives us challenges to help us grow, right? I am learning everyday.

The Coming Year

I have never been one for making “resolutions,” but I do have a number of goals I am working on. Initially I made a list of about 25 goals to share in this post, but I think I will keep them to myself for right now and share them in pieces over time.

All of my goals for the coming year can be summed up in 2 words anyway: Do Better.

Everyday I strive to be a better mother, wife, friend, and person. Everyday I pray for God to show me the way.