over scheduled

A few years ago and still today, parents were being criticized for over scheduling their children. Multiple sports activities, music lessons, debate..., their lists would go on and on. The idea behind it all is to ensure they are thriving adults in a more competitive environment. But what about parents being over scheduled? These thoughts come off of a conversation that I recently had with my sister in law who began to tell me all the things that she spends her time doing, there were the usual, time with kids and helping here or there for a friend or neighbor, but her list went on and on as well. I wondered how many other grown ups felt like they were "spread too thin" and I wondered why they did this. What are we competing for? Do we not feel secure in our own life? What are we trying to prove or who are we impressing?

I know that it is important that we have other responsibilities other than __________ (a mom, an employee, a wife, or whatever title you have), because we need to have things to teach to our children and that allows us to grow and challenge ourselves too. The challenge comes though when the things that we are doing may or may not be leaving enough time for the things that do matter. So I have a story that I got from a friend a while back that I'd like to share.

A professor stood in front of his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked his student if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes'. The professor then produced two sodas from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed. 'Now' he said, as the laughter subsided 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things, your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions, and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else, the small stuff. If you put the sand into the jar first there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls'. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

A Marriage Report Card

I have to say that I feel really blessed in my life. And not because we have an abundance of material things (we still have one car and may go with out cell phones) but because I feel like we are in a good place in our family. Even though I struggle to potty train Adlen and Tysen is teething which makes for long days of hearing him fuss, Justin and I have managed to keep it together. Fighting isn't something we do often but just the other day Justin said "we seem to be having a pretty good routine these days. We seem to be connected these days". Which I'm sure comes from the fact that we have a bit more of a schedule with having two kids now, I have things that I go do on my own to maintain balance (I've been working out, well at least when my friend is in town, I don't do it alone, and a few months ago started selling Mary Kay again), and Justin has been trying to find the time to golf more regularly. Although we are spending more time apart it helps us feel grateful for the other one when we have our own time alone, making things a little sweeter!

Sorry, forgot pictures!

St George and the Park

Last weekend my mother in law came into town and she and I with the kids headed off to St George. We stopped by the Williams farm. The farmer back in 2000 had discovered dinosaur tracks and they have opened it up to the public, so we went to check it out.
Today, we went to Floyd Lamb State park and had a picnic and let Adlen chase the peacocks around. They also had riding stables there so we went to see the horses!

So much to write

There has been so much happening that I'm not sure what to write. So here it is: Adlen had her first sleep over a few weeks ago. Usually I think 3 is young for a sleep over but it was just two homes away so I thought I'd give it a try, and why not allow Justin and I a chance to have some time to our selves. We thought we'd put Tysen down around 7 and have a few hours of quite time before we went to bed, but Ty had a different idea and finally fell asleep around 8:30. We went camping last weekend and as it was a last minute trip it actually didn't turn out too bad. We left Friday after Justin got home and said "lets go camping". It put us on the road around 7:30 for a 4 hour trip. We pulled into Lone Pine around 11:30 and thought "we don't want to set up a tent" and we got a hotel room for the night. In the morning we went to the camp site, and set up then spent the day fishing, which Adlen loved! She was always asking to go fishing and when Justin would catch one she would scream and laugh and hold it, then throw it back. We made chicken and potatoes for dinner and then started to get ready for bed. Tysen was really unhappy and crying for a good 20 minutes and I was getting nervous about the night ahead. So we thought maybe one of us would sleep in the car with him and the other in the tent with Adlen, but we eventually all slept in the car! It was especially fun for Justin when Ty needed his bottle at 2:30, which could only be warmed up by making a fire!

All in all it was fun and worth doing again!

PS- We caught Adlen reading my magazine one day!