Bring the Hype!

Today is day 2 of my 31 day challenge and so far, so kinda... okay.

I'm doing my best to stick to it, but I guess my kids haven't quite made the commitment yet. Sunday night I was up at 11:00, 1:30a, 4:14, and 5:30. Monday night, 2:13a, 4:15, and never got back to bed.  One kid has a hacking cough, the other has gas... pleasant combination. As soon as Kaylin isn't contagious I'm getting to the gym, as soon as Jordan is sleeping I'll get up in the morning.

If a picture says 1000 words
- this is my day in two words
 "Help, ME!"

Hoping the next check in shows a little more progress. :)

Today I was completely wiped out but still needed to parent.  Since watching Sesame Street for 8 hours isn't an option I had to be intentional about getting off the couch and out of the house.  So we combined our errand today (going to the grocery store) with an outing (having a picnic at the park).  It helped to have a plan for the morning and feel like I was doing something with my day instead of letting it do it's worst to me. We waited out Jordan's nap with a Sesame Street and played play dough, but then we were off and out of the house enjoying a beautiful fall day. This did wonders to wake me up and pick up my sleep deprived spirit.

Lesson take away- When exhausted, make one choice that can help take control of your day.

Later today as I was watching the clock and counting the minutes till Dad would be home, I got the call that could have made my train come off the tracks...  Dad needed to stay and work late to get a project done.   Arghhh!  I'm tired, have been on the job all day, and just wanted Jody to be home to tag in and take over.  Okay, deep breath, I can do this.

I let Kaylin sleep extra long, made an iced coffee, and moved the lap top down on the floor to get some work done while entertaining Jordan. When Kaylin woke up she played kitchen while I cooked dinner. Jordan went down for a cat nap and we rode out the early evening.  I fed both of the kids and got the call Jody was on his way home- Hallelujah!

I was still exhausted, still not very excited about the fact I had to do an extra hour on my own (really not that big of a deal, but remember I'm running on fumes) I needed to change my attitude and make dad coming home a fun event for the kids and the dad. So, I started to do a cheer ... "15 minute clean sweep, 15 minute clean sweep, 15 minute clean sweep" ... I was hyping up the kids, things were getting picked up, dad coming home was becoming the event of the day, and my attitude was completely changed.  We danced, giggled, raced around... and in the end had a really fun time.

Lesson take away- I need to decide to do things on the outside that help change my attitude on the inside.

Being with the kids all day when I'm really tired is trying, but I know Jody faces stuff all day at work that can be trying too.   I want to make sure that when he comes home at the end of the day he has a happy wife and kids to be welcomed by, and that the house isn't a complete pit. :) Another benefit of the 15 minute clean up- the toddler feels like a big girl because she helped get work done.  When she feels useful her tantrums aren't as frequent or as intense. Win, win, win- all the way around!

So, that's the check in and what I decided to do with my less than ideal situation, and crazy lack of sleep.  I guess, if I was hoping to be more intentional, that I'm doing it- even if it's taking a different form.

Plugging away at it- Hope your month has started well!

31 Day Challenge

Okay, it's time.  I'm ready to tell you what it is I'm going to be doing in the month of October to try and become more intentional in my life.  I've thought about it, I've talked about it some, but now it's time for the rubber to meet the road.... Drum Roll Please.....

(insert cymbal crash here)

For the month of October I will be;

Waking up an hour before my kids:
I need to wake up for my kids, not to my kids.  I will spend this time to get ready, read, pray, possibly journal, most definitely drink coffee, and go over the schedule for the day.  This way I'll be ready to hit it when the kids rise and shine.  (For those of you wondering, I'll be up around 5:00)

for this reforming, non-morning person this will be a tough goal but if I can do goal #2 I will help my self... help myself. :)

Going to bed by 9:30:
I've got in the bad habit of staying up to 11:00 or later these last few months.  Couple this with the shaky sleeping habits of both kids, and still having to get up earlier than I'd like- I'm pooped, all the time, every day, all week long.  This leads to all kinds of bad habits like eating way too much chocolate and other treats to stay awake, drinking cups of diet coke that are bigger than my head, not working out, and generally being a slug when I'm not working or hands on with the kids.  I can make myself keep going for my job and with the kids, but outside of that there's not much left in the tank to take care of me.

Again, this is a hard goal because I find all kinds of fun ways to eat up my evenings, surfing the net, watching TV, writing a blog.... uh, yah... I need to just go to bed.

And for my last goal....

I will go to the gym 3 times a week:
Oh my how the mighty have fallen! I used to run marathons, play ultimate frisbee, hike, bike and dance.  Now I chase a toddler, lug a big baby around in a car seat, and drag them both up and down the stairs at our condo.  Not much exercising going on here.

I have no excuse to not go to the gym since there is built-in child care with the cost of membership, and it's literally just down the street and around the corner. Hopefully getting active again will help clear some of the haze and bring back the energy I used to enjoy. If you're wondering I'm only committing to 3 times because I work early mornings two days a week, and 3 seems worthy of a 31 day challenge but still manageable.

there it is, that's the plan.  not very flashy but little, intentional, things that I will need to choose to do.   I'll keep you posted on how it's going and hopefully I can share any benefits I'm seeing too.

So how about you? Any choices you need to make this October to get back to being more on top of, and in control of your life?  Fill me in, I'd love to know what you're up to and know I'm not in this thing alone.

Thanks so much!  Bring on October!

P.S. Amazing husband is setting up a new blog for me using Word Press.  He's been teaching himself web design and development and wants us to work together to build Two Tootsies into a great blog.  We're still working on getting it just right before I make the move but wanted to give you a heads up that a change is a coming. :)

Getting to Intentional

For the last 6 months I feel like I've been living in a bit of a fog.  Even before Jordan was born I had some interesting side effects of late pregnancy that put me on semi-bed rest which was next to impossible with Kaylin running around.  So I started off my motherhood of 2 tired and kind of hazy.

Ever since I've been feeling like I'm surviving, sometimes with glimpses of brilliance, but mostly just getting through the day.   I feed, change diapers, run errands, keep house, pick up, and fall exhausted (and way past my night night time) into bed. Yes, I've experienced God's sustaining me, and Yes! I'm loving this time, but I don't have the energy, drive, and personal purpose that I enjoyed before the two tootsies came along.

I know that this is a season that won't last forever, but after 6 months I'm starting to develop habits that could be come a lifestyle.  When I was single I would say that I didn't want to be that person that "used to" do a lot of things but then forgot that part of themselves as life continued on.  But here I am on the verge of becoming a "used to" person. What do I need?  I need to get back to being intentional.

There are some things that I need to start doing again to help myself and, in turn, my kids and husband as I start living life on all cylinders again.  I've decided that I'm going to use the 31 days of October to get into some healthy patterns and get out of this haze.  I know my limits and am very aware that I don't have the time to make major, drastic, marathon sized changes, but I can start making little steps and see where they take me.

So, here's the deal, I'm going to tell you what I'm going to try and accomplish, then I'm going to report back and keep you posted on how it's going.  Hopefully the accountability of having a bit of an audience will keep me honest and on track. :)

I'm working on coming up with the things I want to do differently for the 31 day challenge, but will post those later this week.  I want to pick goals that are manageable, and hopefully make a combined impact of getting me back to a place of having energy and drive again.

Okay, so some questions for you:
What are some things you do to be on purpose in the season of life God has you in? what's working?  What results are you seeing in your life?  I'd love to know so I can learn from you, and be encouraged to do what I say I'm going to do.  Hopefully we can all cheer each other on!

Thanks  and I hope to hear from you!