Do you want to stay busy forever?
Dumb question, right?
But are you actually doing what it takes to un-busy yourself?
Just saying you want a more intentional life isn’t going to automatically get it for you. No, we have to do some mindset work (plus, of course, those schedule changes) first.
Keep listening for the three tips you need to implement a slowed-down #momlife today.
Don’t resist the #slow
First up, don’t resist slowing down motherhood, thinking you won’t like that life.
Look, your day-to-day experience is how you make it – just because you have two kids not four doesn’t mean you can’t make yourself busy!
Go to the park every day if you want to. Schedule arts-and-crafts time each morning if you feel like it.
Their definition of slow doesn’t have to be YOUR definition.
So what does slow living mean to you? Better yet, ask this: what does intentional living mean to me?
- Maybe it’s not having to rush between activities because you only schedule one per day.
- Perhaps it entails hour-long lunches for your kids since you don’t have to rush off anywhere.
- Or maybe you just want the freedom to randomly go on a walk because the food prepping never takes up your entire “make dinner” time block.
Whatever sounds light, fun, and intentional to you – that’s your kind of slow living.
Make a list and start living it.
Get yourself some support
Now, the second problem you may face with intentional living is not getting enough support.
It looks as if all your friends and their kids are going at that hurry-scurry pace, into ten different things, and accepting this as normal.
But there you come, pushing back on the “why four sports?” and “why not a break from dance this semester?” or spouting some “I’m not taking my kids to the park every morning” heresy.
Guess what? You’re going to stick out like a sore thumb.
You can still talk about your kids, hear how they’re doing, etc. – you’re just not going to be up for that birthday-party-every-weekend lifestyle anymore. (Or three sports practices Tuesday night.)
Expose yourself to a constant stream of inspiration – lightning will strike.
No, you’re going to find yourself – at the very least – an online community of intentional living moms, because you need people around you who understand WHY you’re….
- Not running out to the zoo every Saturday
- Choosing to sleep in and make waffles each Sunday before church
- Or even blocking off five evenings a week to just be home for the baths-and-homework routine (they don’t have to know you can’t stand being out of the house three nights in a row!)
Find some slow living friends so that you don’t feel like giving up when you’re the only one in your mom circle who’s ditched the hamster wheel.
Nothing changes if nothing changes
And lastly, not trying different strategies to get change will also trip you up.
Sure, this or that person’s advice may not be the be-all, end-all hack for you – but it’ll get you thinking.
Sooner or later, if you expose yourself to a constant stream of inspiration, lightning WILL strike.
And that’s all you’re after, isn’t it? That one hack, tweak, or routine that will suddenly make everything better?
But you won’t know till you try a new way of doing things. Several new ways.
And that means actively asking what other moms are doing, listening to likely podcasts, or just plain doing some internet research.
- Get that inspiration bank going with several different “school mornings for kids” ideas and try them, one after another.
- Consult your Pinterest board of saved recipes and make all the under-thirty-minute ones (to see how that shakes up your rather lengthy “cook supper” routine).
- Grab a book on kids cooking at the library and flip through it to see if any recipes really jump out at you (for the kids’ next “nothing to do; I’m hungry” time).
Whatever your life needs – whether it’s removing a bunch of calendar activities, or adding a daily outing back in – write it down and get it on your calendar.
Admit that you’re not a “take the kids on walks” every morning kind of mom. (But you DO love to let them loose in the back yard with mud.)
Decide that if you really want to do only easy suppers from here on out, you’re worth it – and collect the potential recipes to go along with it.
Where do you need to add some intention to your day?
Is it your morning, your afternoon, your evening, or all three?
And what are you going to add – or take away from – your current schedule to make that slow living feeling happen?
