The title sounds too good to be realistic, right? And like you, I don’t have lots of free moments in my day, so I am learning to grab and cherish these fleeting breaths! And don’t kid yourself, the next post I’ll have up is how to multitask like a genie because that’s more of what I do.
Today I realized that I don’t get tickled very often. I love to laugh but I have outgrown being tickled. It just doesn’t feel good. After thinking about it, I deduced that it makes me uncomfortable because I am not in control of the tickles. Whoever is tickling me has the upper hand and I like to be the one that decides that (hence I had kids so I could tickle them). So today I am going to try and let myself relax and have the freedom to laugh loudly when I am tickled and enjoy the roller coaster of the unknown tickles!
Mr. Optimistic is always ready for a laugh!
1. Learn to sit quietly and breathe.
I know that sounds too meditative and quacky but it really helped me start getting my mind centered on enjoying the present. I may have 2 minutes to myself while I am hiding in my closet tying my shoelaces as the kids are clambering in the kitchen for their water bottles. When I (remember) choose to snatch that still moment in the closet and evaluate my breathing to see if I am frustrated and panting or nervous and holding my breath, I can then change my technique to slow my breath down and enjoy some good diaphragm breathing…more oxygen to my brain and heat to my body is a good thing!
As I exercise that habit, I am better able to think clearly and enjoy the stillness of the 30 seconds I get and rejuvenate a bit.
Rarely does Sweet Cheeks fall asleep in my lap, so I sat there and breathed and smelled her beautiful baby scent.
2. Read books.
Not kid books that you speed read through before nap time, but books that have quality and are interesting to you. I like to read more than one book at a time. I think that decision is to unconsciously give me options if one book is boring! But it’s really hard for me to chisel out time in my day, I wasn’t keeping reading a priority for myself. I finally realized the only way I would sit down was if I allotted myself a certain amount of minutes to read guilt-free whether it was articles I had saved on my iPhone browser or if it was the bedside book. If you struggle with sitting quietly and reading, set a timer (I put in 10 minutes) and sit down and read whatever is on your mind. The time will be restorative to you and to your kids!
No reading a cookbook doesn’t count unless it’s more than just recipes!
3. Read More or Less by Jeff Shinabarger. He wrote this book on “choosing a lifestyle of excessive generosity”. And no, he does not make you feel guilty! Rather, you start being thankful for all you really have.
4. Exercise.
By moving your body you generate the exercise endorphins that’ll help you persevere. It brightens my mood to workout even if it’s just a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) for 10 minutes. And if you can’t, just breathe. Find a flower and smell it.
The Third showing off some acrobat skills.
Climbing door frames is one form of exercise.
5. Enjoy the outdoors.
Find a spot outside that you can relish and find peace there. We are blessed to live right now in one of the most beautiful places in the U.S. I have no excuses for leaving my unkept house to go outside and take in the landscape art of the Creator.
One of the many views in my area.
All wonderful ideas and great advice – thanks for the reminders and encouragement!
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