Hi there! Welcome back to Joyful Mom Mondays! I've been MIA for a few weeks, but sometimes, real life must take precedence! Who would have thought? However, that does go along with today's Joyful Mom Monday topic. How do you remain joyful in the busy times? Of course, holidays and special days seem to be the busiest days for us moms who tend to be the orchestrator of all things special! But sometimes, we can take the joy out of those special days by becoming too consumed with details and forgetting to enjoy the relationships. So, how do we avoid making our special days or just plain busy days a big catastrophe? These are a few things that I try to do. I emphasize the word try because I don't always do them, and we still end up with some catastrophic days. (We just had a catastrophic morning on Saturday, and it was due completely to my becoming too consumed with details!) Here is my mental check list as I plan for busy days - whether they are special days or just busy days!
1. Plan ahead as much as possible. Here is where I fail the most because I tend to be a fly by the seat of your pants person and not so much an organize every detail person. However, the more children I have, the more I see the necessity for planning ahead. Bake the cake the night before the birthday. Wrap presents and hide them in the closet. Lay clothes out the night before. Here's a big one - PLAN ON LEAVING 20 MINUTES EARLY - then, hopefully, you get out the door only 5 minutes late! :)
2. Lower your expectations. During busy seasons, the house will not always be immaculate. (Okay, who am I kidding....my house is never immaculate, and so during busy times, it will be even worse!) During busy seasons, all the schoolwork may not be accomplished. During busy seasons, we may not be able to participate in every activity. We will have to say no to some things. I always make a list of my expectations, and then I put a big X beside each activity that does not absolutely need to be done. My goal is to get it done, but I have already mentally prepared myself that life will go on if it doesn't get done. I find I accomplish many of the things that I had an X by, but I don't feel as guilty about the ones that I do not get to.
3. I really think this next one is THE MOST IMPORTANT! On especially busy days, I try harder than ever to make my quiet time a priority. I know that Satan would love for me to ruin the entire day with my list of good deeds. It is important for me to take time to welcome the Savior into my life that morning and to ask the Holy Spirit to guide my decisions. There are some days this means getting up earlier than usual on a horrifically busy day, but I find the adrenalin of the day usually keeps me going just fine, and I never regret that quiet time I began the day with.
How about you? What are some things you do to help these busy times remain joyful times? Link up below and let us know. As we are preparing for Christmas and planning all the many special things we want to do for and with our families, I hope you will be able to carry the joy of being a mom with you. Take time to enjoy the special moments. Let the dirty dishes sit in the sink. Have your kids jump in the laundry basket to make it hold more laundry so that you can put it off a little while longer! ;) Skip over the unimportant things, and take time to enjoy these moments with the special people in your life. They won't always be here. Let's enjoy every minute we have with them, and leave them a legacy of a mom full of joy and love.
Wishing you a
day full of blessings,
Christy
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