Slowing Down

There was an article posted a couple weeks ago that really caught my attention. It is about a mom who was constantly telling her daughter to "hurry up". It was only when her older daughter made a comment about her sister being slow did the mom start to realize she was " a bully who pushed and pressured and hurried a small child who simply wanted to enjoy life." 

This article really made me think about how I try to keep to somewhat of a schedule throughout the day and got frustrated when things don't go according to my plan. Then I thought about how much time is taken out of each day to be WITH my children. Sure we are "with" each other all day every day, but how much of my time is devoted to them and what they want to do instead of what I tell them we are doing. Now in my defense I have had 5 babies (one in heaven, 4 on earth) in the last 7 years and I am busy! But none the less, they needed my attention more, so I decided to devote (and this sounds lame, but) at least 15 to 20 minutes a day doing what THEY want to do. You guys want to have a water fight? Okay, the dishes can wait. You want to play Legos? Okay, I guess dinner doesn't HAVE to be at 6.  I could go on and on... These changes have really improved my relationship with them. I see how God created them each differently. They all have different interests and it is fun to see and play with them. Tony, 6, always asks to play sports. John Paul, 4, wants to pretend or read a book and Jimmer, 3, wants to be pushed on the swing. I try to divide my time and sometimes we even all play together! You should see me trying to teach them how to play baseball, classic!

I should note that this was just over the summer and now I have started homeschooling again. I have found that I have a much better attitude during our school day and I don't worry about just "getting it done". My oldest just started 1st grade and so the work load is a full day, much different from an hour of kindergarten last year. We are about to start our third week so we are still getting back into school mode. I have lots to learn about managing a household and school, but thankfully my husband is 100% behind me and is patient with me as I try to manage everything. Please keep us in your prayers.

Here is the website the article was on (you might have to copy and paste):
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/3624798

Scheduling Time for Prayer

I recently resolved that I need to give my prayer life a "makeover".  My son is over a year old and I have yet get the hang of fitting prayer into my busy mommy lifestyle.  We try to make it to daily mass a couple of times a week and I say (but not always pray) some prayers out of habit, but it is not enough for me.  Here are my first two goals, maybe you can help keep me accountable!


1. Morning Offering

This seemed so much easier to remember when I had control over what time my alarm woke me up.  These days I try to squeeze in as much sleep as possible before my baby wakes me up.  Once he is awake I must immediately tend to his needs and often postpone my morning prayers until...well, naptime or sometimes even bedtime. 

The morning offering is so important however, especially for moms and anyone with a busy schedule.  When we pray the morning offering, we offer everything-- our joys, our sacrifices, our work, our relationships and our actions-- to Jesus.  In essence, our entire day becomes a prayer, offered up to God.  This is such a gift for moms who do not have time to spend kneeling in a chapel, because suddenly the little things like our chores, the sacrifice in our constant exhaustion, and the love that we share with our children becomes a prayer to Jesus.

Here is an example of a morning offering:

 Oh Jesus, through the immaculate heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day, in union with the Holy sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world, in thanksgiving for your favors, in reparation for my sins and for all the intentions of my relatives and friends and especially for those of our Holy Father.  Amen.

2.  Time Management

I used to consider time management one of my strongest skills.  During high school and college, I spent half of my waking hours in class and the other half training in dance.   Any spare moments in between were used for homework, studying and some socializing.  Most importantly, I knew what I would be doing at any given time, and could more easily plan my prayers accordingly.  Nowadays my schedule goes according to others, and for this reason it is easy for me to feel unproductive and let my prayer life to slip.  For this reason, I have decided to reevaluate my time management because it should help me to accomplish one primary goal:  to do God's will. 

I have found several tricks of the trade that seem to be helping me use my days in the fullest way possible.  The first one is creating detailed to-do lists.  If a project can be broken down, I list each part separately.  This helps me be most productive, because I feel as though I am accomplishing a task along the way.  I use my cell phone to keep track of one "master to-do list" that I add to constantly and check off items as I finish them.

The second tool that is helping me immensely is to set timers.  When I only have a given amount of time (during my son's naps) to accomplish several things, I literally set my kitchen timer and work on one project at a time until time is up.  This helps me to stay focused on my task, move on to the next job on my list, and to avoid running into distractions.  More than anything, it is helping me to prioritize taking time to rest and pray.  My personality does not like to relax until all of my work is done, but this is virtually impossible with little ones because let's face it, the work never ends.  Designating fifteen-minutes of play time or ten-minutes of constructive rest has helped me find a better Martha vs. Mary balance to my life. 



These ideas might not work for everybody, but I feel confident that by my prayer life will benefit from making my morning offering a priority and attempting to more effectively manage my time.  Perhaps as I strengthen my one-on-one time with Jesus, He will guide me in new ways to deepen my relationship with Him.  How about you, do you have any advice/suggestions for scheduling time to pray?

When Life Gets Crazy...

I am sure that many young adults can relate to hectic and overwhelming daily schedules. Between being in escrow for a home, working 2 jobs and being pregnant, while my husband is juggling work, grad school and taking care of his exhausted wife, life for the past couple of months has been absolutely nuts in our novice household. We've tried to cut out some social activities, but even so, it seems as though we don't have time for LIFE right now, nevermind cooking and cleaning the apartment.

Does anybody have any suggestions for quick and budget-friendly meal ideas? Our take-out bill is getting out of control. I would greatly appreciate any organization/time-saving tips that might help us out until things cool down a bit!! Also, any suggestions for keeping up our prayer/spiritual life...Sadly it seems like that this always one of the firsts to get put on the back-burner!!