Wasting Time

I'm good at wasting my time. I'll admit it...I can find 100 things that I would rather do than clean my house or take care of things that need to be taken care. I can easily curl up with a good book under a warm blanket with a cup of hot cocoa in the winter or take the kiddos to the pool and sit on a warm towel next to a pool of sparkling water in the summer instead of gettting my responsibilities done. I have an uncanny knack of overlooking the mess, the chaos of the house and find the one thing that is done...as if to say...see there is a good spot...your good Erin, your good, go have fun.

Well that really isn't good, it's really not working. I will be honest, it's stressful. Very stressful. My marriage suffers for it, my kids suffer for it, my esteem as a wife suffers for it. I don't think that it does but in reality it's true. My husband doesn't like coming home at night after work to a messy house. My kids don't like not being able to find things. My kids also don't like a stressed out mom who is overwhelmed and frustrated all the time.

My pastor talked this morning about Time. Everyone gets the same amount of time every day. It's up to us to use it in a way that is honoring to God, honoring to each other, and fulfilling. I could waste my time and blame others for the way the house looks or is. I often do this...I say well, if Dan helped more, this wouldn't be a problem. Or I say...if I had more space the house would be neater...no, I would just be able to fill it up with more junk. I also say....well, I work at school all day I don't want to work at home too.

Where is my priority? How do I shift my thinking? How do I make Time work for me rather than just wasting my time with a whole lot of nothing that doesn't do me any good or bring me any lasting peace or joy? This is the task that I am embarking on this year. To not waste Time. To make the actions I take to make my house and life better work in a easy, time fulfilling way. So we have more time....together as a family, as a mom in helping with homework, more fun in our life. This is my challenge this year.

So I am off to fill up my time doing things that will help the greater good of the family. That isn't to say that it is the only thing I will focus on but it's on my mind and I Will be more productive with my time.