Redirecting

So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye. More accurately --- see less of you for the next few months.

There's only so many areas in which one person can direct their energies. When that person is a working mom, two of those directions are non-negotiable. The limited time remaining becomes very precious. Any time taken away from parenting better darn-well be worth it.

So here's the deal - I have been spending some of that time blogging & on Twitter. Time I am about to lose. You see, I have been on a leave from my Masters in Public Health program. There were no more regular classes to take, and I couldn't take my final exams till June. But now, it's time for me to start working on my final paper and studying for said exams. So ... I have a studying & writing schedule. I strongly believe scheduling the time early and sticking to it, will allow me to feel like I have time do other things I care about.

If I want to maintain adequate time for the family & career, and maintain some sanity, something needs to go. So I will be taking a leave from the blog-o-sphere for the next few months. So the biggest redirection for the next six months: Study more; Social media less!

Of course, all work & no play just doesn't work for me, so -- I will also spend time on other things too.

I firmly believe that where you direct positive energy, you create positive energy. So -- in addition to my Masters work, here's where I'll be directing my positive energy these next few months.



1. Special time with my daughter.

• I've never considered myself a crafty person. You should see the baby blanket I made my cousin's daughter some years ago. I dropped a stitch nearly every line, and it looks like a pennant. But kid crafts - I can handle. And they're a hoot. My daughter always comes up with some spin on my plan that is totally unexpected & way fun. Weekends will still find us up to our elbows in paint or pouring corn from one container to another.

2. Special time with my Hubben.

• You can laugh all you want that this mainly means watching science fiction series after getting our Munchkin to bed, but it works for us. We also plot out home improvement projects, mainly at my nagging. We debate about where to go on future trips & reminisce about past ones. We even occasionally go on a real date.

3. Special time with my dog

• Our dog & I have been a bit on the outs since I had my baby. He's kind of a butt to her, and it just drove me crazy. He felt my annoyance. And ... he became more annoying. I got more annoyed. And so on & so forth. A few weeks ago, for whatever reason, I decided to start walking Bernie after putting the kiddo to bed. I started calling it our special time. He instantly loved it. He's more calm. He even seems more tolerant of our daughter. This has made me feel better toward him, and he's continued to respond to that. And so on & so forth.

So ... that's where my energies will be going the next few months. I will admit that I've gotten a little addicted to blogging. I wouldn't be surprised if something comes up that I just have to write about. I also hope to keep up with some of my fave blogs as well. One of which is Liberating Working Moms, where I just linked up. Won't you check them out?


Above all, I will not overextend myself. I love my life best when I stick to this -- it leaves me rested & energetic, able to fully engage with the most important "directions" in my life.

Happy New Year!