Margin

Today I'm wondering just HOW many activities are healthy for a child (and by default, ME) to be involved in. Combined, my two kids play soccer, take piano, do Taekwondo, sing in our church's kid's choir, attend chess club, and run cross country. And they still have to do homework, practice piano and read every night. We're addicted to activities. And so are most other families I know. They are all positive, all good things. It's the grand combination that's overwhelming me. Translate...we're too busy. Today a friend asked about our plans next Weds. I looked at her blankly and said, "Um, I have to consult The Calendar."

The school year JUST started and I'm already tired of The Calendar ruling my life. We are so thickly scheduled, that there's no room for spontaneity. I'm always packing snacks for the next event, telling my kids to hurry so we're not late, and dragging them kicking and screaming out of bed in the morning to do it all over again.

Our lives need to be more like a Word document. Hear me out. The margins are set beforehand. You fill the page with content but leave a wide margin on both sides. Small margins make a page too overwhelming to process. Lately, I've been messing with the margin settings on our lives. We have too much text on one page.

So, today I decided to cancel everything we typically do on Fridays, to build a little margin back into our lives. Fridays are our activity free family fun zone. Well, after this Friday. We have an Ice Cream Social at the kids' school. Starting next week, we begin Margin Fridays. Really, I'm not going to schedule anything on Fridays. I promise. I swear. Give me a chance. I don't have a problem, I can stop anytime I want.....