I knew this to be true, as a full-time student, part-time reporter, freelance writer, friend, daughter, girlfriend and yogi. I have always been organized: a list-writer, an A-type superhero who, most days, can do it all. It’s tiring to think of such days, but I thrive upon being busy.
Now, I am a mother who has put her busy reporting career aside. I am a wife who tries to have supper hot and ready when he’s home from work. I am an adult who writes, draws, bakes, cooks, hikes and stretches in my little northern mountain town.
My life is decidedly un-busy. I still can’t shake that A-type busy-body living inside me, though, so lists still get written (and crossed off), afternoons get filled with baking and cooking projects and at the end of the day I am tired and ready to rest.
This house is a watermark for an ongoing mission of balancing accomplishment and enjoyment.
Being the list-writing enthusiast that I am, I wrote out our home’s otherwise unwritten, loosely-abided by rules for ensuring its ideal(ized) organization:
Before buying something, we ask ourselves, “Do we already have something that could do this?” We try to avoid buying things that only serve one purpose. Less stuff = easier to organize.
Wicker baskets. Oh my goodness, what house doesn’t look put-together when everything’s shoved into wicker baskets in the closets, bathrooms and shelves?
Toy chest. We have a big old chest my grandmother’s family brought from Ireland when they immigrated lifetimes ago, and it is our toy chest. Every few days, toys get put away in there after circulating the floor, the basement couches and the nursery. A few toys come out of the chest and it’s like magic! New toys from the awesome toy fairy/mom!
At the end of the day, it all gets put away. Away can be a cubby, a chest, or piled neatly in a corner like a toy store window.
As you can see, organization is kind of my forte, but balance must be struck. How is an A-type, list-writing mama-wife to rewind, slow down and exhale long and deep? The key is in knowing when to stop adding to a list. It is in the empty space on my daily calendar markings. It is in wandering outside in the woods with my daughter, in sipping a cup of tea nice and slow every afternoon. It is in making homemade bread, because even though it takes longer, it is so much more wholesome. It is in making forts and being silly and giggling and stopping everything for a hug.
To read more of Sarah's stories about living in the Great North (the Yukon) and her adventures of being a mama (among other things) be sure to stop over at The Cure For Boredom is Curiosity.
Thanks Johanna!! That was so much fun!
ReplyDeleteGreat feature! I'm always on the quest to have balance. Sometimes I win...sometimes I lose :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I like the tip re not buying something new if you already have something that will do the job. Sounds like you are balancing your life very well Sarah :) Thanks for your post and thanks to you too Johanna for the great idea.
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