Busy Time

     Lately, I have been fairly busy trying to get our school year off to a good start and getting us back into a routine.  Schedule is very important to my household.  I am often asked how do I do it.  I wonder that question on a daily basis.  Keeping up with my home, land, and homeschooling my two children has become a more than full time job.  Having a set schedule and routine is key.  When I waiver from it in any fashion, my kids behavior reminds me.  

     Every year I come up with some kind of chore chart or new found something from the internet.  Nothing compares to this Mom just sitting down and personalizing your own.  I have found that my kids respond to a small allowance the best and privileges taken from them if not completed.  Screen time, TV or computer,  is a great starting zone of getting their attention.  When one person in our household doesn't help out, it means more work on all.  I have explained how important their help is to Mom and that I depend on them tremendously.  My kids love feeling important.

     I am trying to bring "fun" back into our family time.  I tend to get preoccupied with all that has to be completed in a day and forget to be spontaneous.  Kids don't need you to jump from an airplane, but maybe extend their bedtime by 20 minutes.  My kids want to ride horses all the time, so I am trying to make more time.  I realize my stress level drastically reduces when I have a little fun.  Being a widow, I think I tend to overcompensate for both parents when I need to remember one person can only do so much.  My kids will not like Mom being part of their fun forever, I must enjoy them while I am still considered "cool".

     I read a scripture that I felt really describes my path now.  Matthew 7:13-14: "Go in through the narrow gate.  The gate that leads to destruction is broad and the road wide, so many people enter through it.  But the gate that leads to life is narrow and the road difficult, so few people find it."  As  a younger widow, I am going down a path few people my age must travel.  Through my experience, God has given me the courage to embrace my path and not be scared to continue walking down it.  I trust in Him for the outcome.  Even though it is difficult, and no one close to me understands what I face daily, I will seek His will and not be afraid.  He is working and restoring happiness in my life.

"Cheap Fun"- courtesy of UPS