Monday, March 17, 2014

Making Time for What’s Important

A few weeks ago, I felt kind of sorry for myself on a Sunday night as it seemed  my entire weekend was filled with “work.” Well, it was filled with quite a bit of actual work as I spent several hours grading papers and prepping for my classes.

But I spent the rest of the time doing housework (laundry, cleaning, ironing, organizing, etc.), going grocery shopping (at the store and the Farmers’ Market), and prepping and precooking food for the week. I also walked a lot, something I truly enjoy. Still, somewhat frustrated, I said on Sunday night to Andy: “How do people do it? I seem to spend my entire weekend doing work. And there is hardly any time for fun.”

Meal Prep 1027

As soon as I said that, I actually realized that it wasn’t entirely true. First, I actually enjoy cleaning and organizing the house. And I like the feeling when everything is “the way it should be” even more. It makes a HUGE difference in how my week will be. When things are nice, clean, and organized, I feel much more in control. When things are out of order, I get easily overwhelmed. Spending the time to get everything organized is worth it every time and an absolute necessity for me to live the life I want to live.

Second, I enjoy selecting healthy foods and prepping and precooking these foods. I feel connected to the food we eat, and when I do a lot of precooking on the weekend, we eat a lot better. It also helps me feel a lot less stressed and overwhelmed during the week.

Ultimately, I believe creating an organized living space and having plenty of healthy food options available has helped me lose weight and then maintain my weight, and allowed me to be as healthy as possible. It’s a priority for me, and it is who I am today. In the end, I know that I am a much happier and healthier person when I spend the necessary time to get these things done. We all have the same amount of time each day, and we all decide how to spend it (this is especially true on weekends or during time off). How we spend our time shows what is important to us and can have huge consequences for our health and happiness. Doing the Conscious Cleanse numerous times over the past year has helped me to become even more organized and focused on health and well being.

This past weekend there was definitely not only work but also lots of fun as we spent Sunday at the beach. The kid has been to Natural Bridges in Santa Cruz on two field trips, and Andy accompanied his class on one of them. They both had been talking about how much they liked it. And I agree. It’s a wonderful beach with a nice little walking path through the monarch butterfly habitat. Plus, there is plenty of street parking close by, so you can avoid the parking fee and get some steps at the same time.



Questions: How do you feel about doing a lot of housework and prep work on the weekend (or during the week)? Do you have any tips and tricks to make it any easier? Organizing our lives is high on my priority list; knowing that I’ll be my best self with the boys once everything is organized makes it easier. What was the highlight of your weekend?
 
Be well,
Andrea