Life. It goes by so stinking fast, doesn't it?
And it gets clogged up with so much...stuff. Parties and sports and dance and commitments and meetings and appointments and this and that and OHMYGOSHLEAVEMEALONE. Right?
I mean, seriously.
When I took my new job, I was really looking forward to the extra family "down time" we'd have on weekends and evenings. Family meals are so important to the Mr. and I and so often, when I was working a weekend, I longed to be home with my family. Doing whatever it was that they were doing.
I have those weekends free now (well, most...I'm still picking up an occasional weekend at the hospital) and guess what?
Ain't no downtime to be had. Feels like we're busier than ever before! It's constant...and I'm wondering, did life get busier or did my new weekend availability now create a debacle in which we say "yes" to things that we would've said "no, I'm working" to before?
There's a part of me that thinks life has just gotten, legitimately, busier. The kids are older, more involved in activities. Pal is a senior so there are a lot of "It's his last ______ (fill in the blank)" that I feel like we can't miss.
But then, I wonder...I don't recall being so blasted busy on weekends before. So many commitments and obligations...and I think, many of the "commitments" are things that, when I was working weekends, we were "validated" in saying "no" to them. Now, however, when we don't have a legit reason to say no, I think we feel guilty and like we "have to" go to commitment X, Y, or Z because we don't have a reason not to.
Know what I'm saying?
Add in our vacation and our annual couple's night out in the Big City and our kids are ready to tie us up and never let us leave the house again! I feel bad, because we're not normally big "go-er outers" and lately it's been SOOOOOOO often.
I need downtime. I CRAVE downtime. I don't like being so busy and having my kids feel like we're leaving them all the time.
And I just can't help but wonder...are we TRULY busier or are we just more AVAILABLE now?
And it gets clogged up with so much...stuff. Parties and sports and dance and commitments and meetings and appointments and this and that and OHMYGOSHLEAVEMEALONE. Right?
I mean, seriously.
When I took my new job, I was really looking forward to the extra family "down time" we'd have on weekends and evenings. Family meals are so important to the Mr. and I and so often, when I was working a weekend, I longed to be home with my family. Doing whatever it was that they were doing.
I have those weekends free now (well, most...I'm still picking up an occasional weekend at the hospital) and guess what?
Ain't no downtime to be had. Feels like we're busier than ever before! It's constant...and I'm wondering, did life get busier or did my new weekend availability now create a debacle in which we say "yes" to things that we would've said "no, I'm working" to before?
There's a part of me that thinks life has just gotten, legitimately, busier. The kids are older, more involved in activities. Pal is a senior so there are a lot of "It's his last ______ (fill in the blank)" that I feel like we can't miss.
But then, I wonder...I don't recall being so blasted busy on weekends before. So many commitments and obligations...and I think, many of the "commitments" are things that, when I was working weekends, we were "validated" in saying "no" to them. Now, however, when we don't have a legit reason to say no, I think we feel guilty and like we "have to" go to commitment X, Y, or Z because we don't have a reason not to.
Know what I'm saying?
Add in our vacation and our annual couple's night out in the Big City and our kids are ready to tie us up and never let us leave the house again! I feel bad, because we're not normally big "go-er outers" and lately it's been SOOOOOOO often.
I need downtime. I CRAVE downtime. I don't like being so busy and having my kids feel like we're leaving them all the time.
And I just can't help but wonder...are we TRULY busier or are we just more AVAILABLE now?
Everything is much busier here, too but I think it's because I've added school and work to my list of things to do in addition to all of Baby A's new doctors and specialists. Perhaps it's also the season of Spring that increases the crazy! :)
ReplyDeleteI think you just have to learn how to say NO and be OK with someone getting their panties in a wad about it. My husband would go go go if I let him, and i would stay at home and sit on the couch all day if he let me, so I feel like we balance each other out well in this category. Hopefully you'll figure out what balance works best for your family... it's all so hard!
ReplyDeletei always think when summer hits i will have time because we are not doing school and then i have no time. i try not to plan things for sundays and it seems like we have so much to do around the house we still do not have free time.
ReplyDelete