Laurie shares with us one goal she is making for herself.
Schedules—why do I cringe when I hear that? But goals? I love goals, dreams, and lists.
Schedules are important. Imagine how hodgepodge life would be if we all did whatever we
want whenever we wanted without discipline. But I wonder if sometimes we put too
much emphasis on keeping a schedule. Trying too hard to be scheduled can
cause extra stress. If my husband is late for supper or the baby has a fever and needs
held for hours on laundry day, the strain is much worse if I am schedule driven rather than
schedule guided. However, if I haven’t done laundry for days because I didn’t feel like it and
now we’re out of clean clothes, the day holding a sick baby is much
more stressful.
Years ago I admired our neighbor family for their
scheduled, disciplined life. During one January snowstorm, our barn roof came crashing down
from the heavy snow. Our herd of dairy cows was trapped beneath, and we had no idea of
possible injuries or fatalities. My husband asked our neighbor for help. The
neighbor said he was just sitting down for lunch and would come as soon as he was finished.
Suddenly, his schedule didn’t seem very nice to me.
We need to find rest midway. And that is probably different for different people. Personally,
I confess I need a lot of improvement. When our children were young, the school schedule nine
months out of the year helped to keep us on track. Usually by the time school started again in
the fall we were happy for the way it forced it’s schedule on us again. But for us who no longer
have school children or for those who homeschool, the “school schedule” safety net isn’t there.
I think the best place to start (for me, at least) is to have a scheduled bedtime. And this is
something that I really need to work on right now. If I have a regular, early bedtime, I feel better
and my whole next day goes better.
No, I still don’t like schedules so I don’t want to think of scheduling an earlier bedtime. But I do
like goals so my goal is to get to bed earlier tonight. And then, because I will start my day
earlier tomorrow, it will help me reach my next goal—to get to bed earlier tomorrow night!
- Laurie Lehman - Washington
What about you? Do you find it important to have a bedtime for yourself?
Monday, January 13, 2020
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I do try to have a regular bedtime for me because if I go to bed too late, in the mornings I'm just too tired. Currently my bedtime is between 11 and 11:30. I have sleep issues and when that happens, I don't sleep at all. I'm in tears most of the day because I'm so tired and sleepy. Those nights I go to bed before my husband around 9:30.
ReplyDeleteI will sometimes take melatonin to make sure I get to sleep but occasionally that doesn't work.
All that to say, I think it's important for us all, especially if we are mothers to have a regular bedtime and a good night's sleep.
I agree with this so much that we must find a midpoint between the extremes of schedules/routines. I knew a family once where the parents had such a strict down to the minute routine that it sucked the joy & life out of the family and did such harm to the spirit of those children. It is important to remember that the purpose of a schedule is to improve daily life in our family. Getting everything done off the checklist is pointless if everyone in the family is angry, sad, and hurt. There must be a balance.
ReplyDeleteI’m enjoying this series. Trying to glean something from each writer that can perhaps help me out in this full season of my life.
ReplyDeleteThanks to all of the writers.