Skip to main content

Not Having it All..........



I have a terrible habit. I want to be great at everything. I'm good at a lot of things,,,but I want to be great at everything. It's exhausting. And since I'm always trying to juggle a million things, I inevitably drop a ball or two or sixteen.

I want to be a great mom, like a fantastic one. I want to write an epic novel and a critically acclaimed film and produce thought provoking documentaries. I want to be a psalm 31 wife. I'd love to have an actual social life and let's not forget that mandatory "me" time. I'd love to have all of this while impeccably dressed in a size 4. That's my version of having it all. I'm sure"all" is not one size fits all.

Here's the problem. I suck at having it all. I mean I don't suck at all these things individually. If I put enough energy into one or two goals, I can be pretty amazing...when I start adding all my dreams goals to my regular list of to do's and I wanna do's, that's where it get messy.

If I meet all my writing goals and deadlines for the week. my house is probably a mess and we had takeout and PBJ for dinner. If I make every appointment with my trainer this week. I'll miss a PTA meeting or fundraiser. If I make it to ever band recital and every ball  game this week. I probably missed something for work. Getting to that birthday dinner or girl's night out means missing the one night my husband and I might be awake and home at the same time. And if I want an actual 8 hours of sleep forget it, nothing is getting done. I have tried organizers, and to-do lists, apps, reminder calls everything I can find in the search for the right tool that will help me do well, EVERYTHING! I can't help but wonder, how the heck other women are dealing with having it all. I think I want to give some of it back.

Since I was a little girl, I've been told. You can have it all, you can do it all. I'm starting to believe "all" isn't all it's cracked up to be. I'm thinking I'd like to have some....and I only want it sometimes. I'm going to start cutting myself some slack because hell no one else is gonna do it. Instead of panicking because half of my to" do list" has to be carried over to the next day, I'll treat myself to a smoothie because only half has to be moved over to the next day. I'm going to stop doing everything at once and start doing one thing at a time, in one moment at a time, without worrying about what I need to finish next. This is going to tricky because I am a habitual multi-tasker. But I'm hoping stepping back and refocusing my energies will help me enjoy having a little bit...instead of scrambling to have it all.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Letting Go of Happily Ever After and Embracing Happy Now

Like most young girls, I was enthralled with romantic fairy tales. Who wouldn't want to have Prince Charming to show up with that glass slipper that would undoubtedly fit just right? Or maybe have him ride up on his noble steed and wake you from some mysterious illness with true love's kiss? These ideas of romantic bliss are drilled into little girl's heads from very early on. There's nothing wrong with fairy tales, they are entertaining and fun and they make great Disney movies. While I outgrew my princess obsession, I didn't quite give up on Prince Charming. Why would I? Every movie I loved assured me he existed. Of course as I grew up, my ideal prince changed too. So while I didn't expect him to show up at my door with a glass slipper, or rescue me from some isolated tower. I was pretty sure my high school  crush would serenade me with his boombox outside my window like in "Say Anything", or maybe I'd ride off on the back ...

Super Mom Guilt

In the internal (and sometimes external battle) of Stay at Home versus Work Outside the Home moms. I was pretty sure I had won the war when I became a Work at Home mom. I figured that a flexible schedule and a low minimum of time requirements would allow me to contribute financially to the household, take care of my family and leave some time to pursue my writing. I win right? Umm Nope. I wonder if everyone isn't losing. When I'm working, I feel like I should be playing with the kids (actually they are standing there telling be I should be playing with them). So I never put in the time I promise myself I'm going to put in. When I am spending time with the kids, my mind constantly wanders to that pile of dirty laundry that's been giving me the evil eye for two days or the scene I promised my writing partner I'd have finished tonight. And if I buckle down to write that scene, I'm haunted by the money I'm not making chasing a dream instead of putti...

Before Autism.....

Before Autism touched my life, I considered myself the kind of mother who pretty much had it together. Before Autism, I worked a full-time executive position, where my obsessive and control freak tendencies served me well. My three children were used to the daily routine of full-time school or daycare. Weaning, potty-training, bedtime issues, discipline, those were things  OTHER mothers struggled with, for me it never seemed like a huge deal. I managed to sail through the first 9 years of motherhood without wrinkling my designer clothes, mussing my perfectly relaxed hair, or chipping a french manicured nail. I could never understand what other parents complained about. I was so smug and arrogant. I could not imagine what must go on in the houses of the lady behind me in the check out line with the screaming, rebelling children. I would think to my myself "home girl needs to get it together". I thought I was done having kids, so my fourth pregnancy was a huge surprise i...