It is that time of year again. The very busy holidays are over, and my mind is on next month. Decorating for the holidays, baking, shopping, and having company occupied my every thought. Things are slowing down now, and I can catch my breath. My routines are out of whack, and I look forward to evaluating the last year and laying down plans for the next year.
I want to take a closer look at how we spend our time during the day. With my husband being away at work more consistently this semester, I need to make sure we are using our time wisely and not kicking back too much. While I may have become an unschooler in the education realm of our lives and to some extent outside of it, I feel almost like we are slacking. I don't have a list of expectations or standards. I don't believe my kids are "behind." I do feel our lives have become uneventful and in some ways unfocused when it comes to what really matters. I feel like I am not giving enough to the unschooling approach. I have been too focused on getting settled after the move. I have been trying to get my house in order and organized. I have put some really important things too low on the priority list.
That is what I love about the new year. It gives us an excuse to start fresh and to do things differently. Many make new year's resolutions. I can't say that is what I am looking for. I just want a new perspective. And the first place that will happen is putting things back in place after the Christmas decorations come down. Since we have not yet decorated our home the way we want it, it gives me a blank canvas to imagine and experiment. It also motivates me to reorganize and change what has not been working as far a where things are. Six months living in our new place has given me a chance to think a lot about it, and I am ready to shake a few things up, although I need some downtime to consider what I want to do.
When is comes to my kids, I want to get back into our reading routines. It has been too easy to let this slide with everything else going on and the kids being involved in other things. But I believe they are missing out on a lot, so I need to get this back. And it is something they enjoy too. I need to play more preschool songs for my daughter. She loves to sing and dance, and I am not doing enough to engage with her on this. I need to pull out the board games my son so loves to play and get back to enjoying spending time with him instead of just taking care of him. I need to dive into Cub Scout stuff. It has been a rough year for it, so I have not been very committed. And while my son enjoys it, he does not ask to do it. I also need to step out into our new community and become more connected and involved. 4-H has been a good start, but I need to do more. (hmmm, I am noticing a pattern of things I "need" to do...nothing like putting pressure and stress on myself!)
I don't do well with making things happen without planning. I prefer to at least have a tentative weekly schedule. It helps me stay focused and use my time more wisely. It gives me direction and a goal of sorts. It helps me think about what I want to accomplish. I think my resolution for this year will have to be going back to using a calendar. It helps me get my household chores done. It helps me plan meals. It helps me stick to a routine. It helps me see what I have planned for the kids. It helps me be accountable to something. It can be easy to get lost in just being mom without it. But with planning, our lives can be more enriching and experiential. Of course, keeping it updated is the real challenge, but hopefully I can find the commitment to stick with it because it will have such a positive impact on our lives.
What do you plan to do differently this coming year?
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