Permission to Sit and do Nothing

Here I sit during another naptime after a full morning, tired and frazzled. It's been that kind of week(s).

Aside from Louise's teething and oh-my-goodness-my-baby-is-now-a-toddler struggles, I'm staying up late to work on things, Ian's working long and hard, leaving him frazzled too. I've had to remind myself lots that these are the days that we can shine. Being uber productive and filled to the brim, yet I find myself so flustered and scatter brained that everything feels cloudly and time is flying by.

I am particularly frazzled because this is my favorite time of year. Old movies to watch, cookies to bake, seasonal crafts to make and books to read. I feel like the days are moving too fast, too full to really stop and enjoy.

So the last few days I've made some changes, granted myself the right to just SIT and do NOTHING. Instead of getting frustrated and trying to wrap presents or knit or sew, or organize or clean with the girls underfoot, I'm just WITH them. We dance to tunes, color slowly and purposefully, talk and pretend and play. It sounds so simple and obvious, but it's made life so much better.

I'm trying to focus, something I've lacked a lot lately. One thing at a time. I know the things that need to get done and I know myself well enough to know that they will. Right now my girls need me to be a fun mama, to enjoy this precious fleeting time of year and life with them. My husband needs me to be on, because he is SO on with his own stuff, and he always backs me up when I need to get MY stuff done (for instance, after staying at work until midnight and getting up with Louise at 6 he insists that I go running tonight "I got this. You'd better be in running shorts when I get home." what a guy I married.)

So after the girls went down for their naps and I washed dishes, switched around laundry and knitted a few rows of Ian's sweater I gave myself permission to make a cup of coffee, spike it with some delicious nog, look over the cute photos of my girls enjoying the first snow of the season that I took this morning and write this blog. Because life is too short and precious and fleeting to be ON all the time.

I hope you all take a moment today to just BE and ENJOY. I know I sure am.