December 2015-July 2016:
- Family
- Friends
- Sleep
This is my favorite combination. I want to live all of my days with these three things at the top priority. Give me my favorite people and a good night’s sleep and I’m one smitten kitten. One out-of-shape smitten kitten living in a repulsively dirty house with zero dollars to her name, that is.
July 2016-December 2016:
- Work
- Work
- Work
So when my friend said, “I don’t know how you do it all!” She was assuming that my children were taken care of and my house was well-kept. It was during this time that my children spent an unfortunate amount of time unsupervised in my house while I did ALL THE THINGS necessary to publish a book. They managed to remove TWO doors from their hinges during these months, successfully create 2 new pieces of Sharpie Wall Art in our house, and ate whatever food they could find in our pantry. You want a lollipop? Of course! Ice Cream? Sure, just eat it out of the tub. Cookies? Why not? Mommy will just be slaving away at her computer.
January 2017-present:
- Family
- Housework
- Sleep
It’s been a less-social couple months and a very quiet few months on my blog. But we’ve had a lot of awesome family time and my house is a little cleaner than normal. And while I could feel guilty that I’m not ‘working’ hard enough, the truth is, I’m simply choosing different priorities for this season.
Maybe you’re a phenom, and can keep 4 or 5 of those tasks on lock every single day. Kudos and gold stars to you, my friend, please advise us on your time-management techniques. But for the rest of you who feel like you’re not doing enough or feel that other women are doing it all, while you’re trudging through the trenches – don’t believe the lie. No one is doing it all at once—they are just doing it all in different seasons.
That workout mom on Facebook who produces a new video every day in her spotlessly clean house? I bet she’s not spending as much time with her girlfriends and she’s not getting much sleep.
That friend who posts her Pinterest activities with her kiddos everyday? She probably isn’t working much outside of the home or volunteering or enjoying as much time with friends.
Or how about the mom who is planning all of your playgroups and organizing your MOPS meetings? Her house could probably use a good clean and she might be getting take out for dinner.
You want to know what I would say to each of those moms? Well-freakin-done, my friend! You are nailing it!
We can run our own race here, gentle readers, and we can cheer one another on without an ounce of judgment or resentment. You do you, and I’m gonna do me. But you know what neither of us is doing? Not one of us is doing it all. And that, my friends, is the sweet reminder I needed today and just maybe it’s the reminder you needed too.
I’d love to hear form you! What three things are you prioritizing these days?!
This article originally appeared at McKinleyRich.com.
