As 2014 is coming to a close I have been thinking long and hard about the way I want 2015 to go. I realize that I do a lot of things around my full-time work schedule in the name of my girls. However I have recently realized that they probably won't even remember everything we did, but they will remember just having time together.
I have found myself often times feeling like an outsider, around people that I have seen on several occasions. I have had to stop and question why this is, and I realize it's because we don't have time to truly connect or talk. I need to slow down and focus on what is important. It is not the amount of people I meet, the amount of events I can attend, or the number of people I can call "friends". It is my family, our relationship with God, and our happiness.
I recently read an article, I believe it was from Hands Free Mamma, talking about how her life was more of a schedule, and one that always ran late with them rushing everywhere. She stopped "listening" to her kids, her husband, and felt like they had cold relationships. I realized that I am not too far off from having that type of lifestyle. In fact, we were pretty close to what she was describing. We are almost always running late and sometimes even rushing from event to another worried about hurting someone's feelings etc. What time did we have to wind down, spend time together, or take care of our own home for that matter? I don't want cold relationships in my house, which I believe would've been the next step. This article actually made cry as I wondered if my kids felt the way she described. I had turned it into what I thought we should be doing, instead of what do my daughters really want to do. I have found that rushing around constantly makes me crabby and quick to bark at my kids. They don't deserve that, not when they didn't make the schedule, and even if they did, I am the parent who should be showing them love at all times. I need my rest just like they need theirs. I have found that the older I get, the less I can run on little sleep. This is another thing I don't want my kids growing up doing, is running themselves ragged. There is enough out in the world that tears down our immune system, we don't need to add to it.
2015 is about making sure we put God first, our marriage, our kids, then family and friends. One of the things that has definitely slipped is making sure that my husband and I have time together. This is something that we have tried with a date night here and there, but not regular by any means. We recently took a marriage class that made me realize how important it is to have a regular date night, to make sure we have time every day to chat, even if it is 5 minutes of quiet time, we need time every day to connect. Date nights are important to keep that spark.
This next year is about making our marriage stronger, our family stronger, and relationships with others stronger. I want my kids to know the value of quality vs quantity and want them to remember the quality time, not rushing around because I don't want them to lead a life that is full of rushing around and no time for themselves.
Remember as we go into the new year, it's a time for you to make changes, for yourself, for your family, and most importantly for what you feel God is putting on your heart to do.
I hope you all have a blessed 2015!!
