{"id":771,"date":"2014-12-23T20:48:05","date_gmt":"2014-12-24T03:48:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/?page_id=771"},"modified":"2015-05-20T10:51:34","modified_gmt":"2015-05-20T16:51:34","slug":"adrift-on-a-sea-of-to-dos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/adrift-on-a-sea-of-to-dos\/","title":{"rendered":"Adrift on a Sea of “To-Do’s”?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"shipadrift\"<\/p>\n

When we have little ones in our home, or are homeschooling our children, it can feel like we don’t have much time to call our own. Sometimes I feel like a ship adrift, being tossed around on the waves of all the things I have to do. <\/strong>I can’t ever get to the end, no matter how frantically I paddle. Have you ever felt this way?<\/p>\n

Throw an anchor overboard! It can stop the tossing tide from making your life crazy.<\/p>\n

There are anchors in every day. They can be mealtimes, or baby’s nap, the time your husband comes home, or when your teenager leaves for work. These are pretty stable, even if they don’t follow a specific clock time. Even when your day is unpredictable, those anchors nearly always happen and they can help keep you on course. <\/strong> Here’s some of mine:<\/p>\n

Family scripture study
\nLunch
\nNap
\nDinner<\/p>\n

Moms are hard-pressed to work on a punctual time schedule, but we can use those anchors to get control of our time<\/strong>. I have decided that between our early morning family scripture study (my first anchor) and lunch (my second anchor of the day), I need to exercise and I want to teach homeschool. Those are my top priorities. I have a very long to-do list that tries to wiggle its way into that time . . . making phone calls, checking email, helping my husband with the business, grocery shopping, doing dishes or laundry, mending, church work, going to dental\/medical appointments, reading the book I am interested in, etc. But if I focus on those two priorities during that time slot\u2014exercise and homeschool\u2014and accomplish nothing more, I will have had a very successful morning!<\/p>\n

As each day passes by, if we focus on the most important “to-do’s”, all the extraneous and less important time-consumers just end up falling away<\/strong>. There is no time for them. Even though I enjoy several of those activities, or feel obligated or pressed to do all those things on my endless “to-do” list, my priorities cannot\u2014 they must<\/em> not\u2014take the place of what is truly important in my life. Besides, doing lesser things does not give the satisfaction that comes from making progress on the things you value most.<\/p>\n

It helps to get a clear perspective on what really matters<\/strong>. I ask myself questions like this: “If I were to die in 2 weeks, what would I want to do with my final days?” It also helps to pray about priorities, getting another viewpoint than our own. Heaven’s light shed upon our plans makes us think clearer. Another consideration is that some things can only be done once in life, and you cannot go back and re-do them. Such things as marrying the right person, having children during your childbearing years, giving your children a happy childhood, teaching good habits to your kids, training them to love God and be good Christians, etc. are one-shot deals, and should receive top priority.<\/p>\n

Did you notice that bedtime is not on my list of anchors? That is because it needs working on at my house! But, it should be the most important anchor of the day<\/strong>, because it determines how you are going to feel the next day! If you have young children, it is crucial to set a bedtime as an anchor that you can depend on. Even the most loving mother can turn into a witch as the hour gets late and too-tired, accident-prone, crying children are still running around. If you can set a bedtime, both for yourself and your children, life gets in control much faster!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jot down your anchors on a piece of paper, creating a time block between them, and you will have a great guide for each day. Reality sets in when you can see on paper that if you do your priorities, you can’t stretch yourself much thinner!<\/strong> The page you create could be a template for a daily calendar. If you can’t fit something in without bumping out your priorities, it probably isn’t realistic to say “yes” to that time commitment.<\/p>\n

Here’s how it looks:<\/p>\n

\"stormsoflife\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

May I recommend:<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\"\"
\nWorn Out From Teaching
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

\"susanna-wesley\"
\nOh, Susanna!
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

\"desertimage\"
\nDesert Thoughts
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When we have little ones in our home, or are homeschooling our children, it can feel like we don’t have much time to call our own. Sometimes I feel like a ship adrift, being tossed around on the waves of all the things I have to do. I can’t ever get to the end, no […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[47,182,101,104],"class_list":["post-771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-how-to-homeschool","category-homeschooling-method","tag-dedication","tag-priorities","tag-schedule","tag-self-control","entry","has-post-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6IrRN-cr","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":749,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/jump-in\/","url_meta":{"origin":771,"position":0},"title":"Jump In","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"My son is making goals. It gives him a lot of satisfaction to think and plan about the goals he wants to set. It almost makes one feel the satisfaction of accomplishing something, doesn't it?\u2014just to dream and plan about it. But planning to do something is not doing it!\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "How to Homeschool"","block_context":{"text":"How to Homeschool","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/how-to-homeschool\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"ammon_cornstocks2010","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/ammon_cornstocks2010-224x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":751,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/what-do-you-want-mommy-to-do\/","url_meta":{"origin":771,"position":1},"title":"What Do You Want Mommy to Do?","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Working on a quilt with my daughter Julianna Years ago, I made a list of all my duties I was attempting to keep up with\u2014which can be voluminous when you are a young mother! It looked something like this: Nurse the baby Wash the clothes Fix meals Keep the house\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "How to Homeschool"","block_context":{"text":"How to Homeschool","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/how-to-homeschool\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"whatmommytodo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/whatmommytodo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":638,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/project-twig-furniture\/","url_meta":{"origin":771,"position":2},"title":"Project: Twig Furniture","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"I shared with you the cozy country cottage that Louisa made. Come with us to build some charming twig furniture to go inside! Here's how: 1) Just gather twigs. (These are cherry and peach branches recently pruned from our orchard.) 2) Plug in a the low-heat glue gun and get\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Fine Arts"","block_context":{"text":"Fine Arts","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/what-articles\/fine-arts-articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"twig1","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/twig1-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1047,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/what-to-do-with-baby\/","url_meta":{"origin":771,"position":3},"title":"What to Do with Baby?","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: This will be my first year to homeschool my 6-year-old. What can I do with my baby while I teach? The baby is one year old. I did read your Best Homeschool Secrets (thank you for the valuable tips), but I don\u2019t have other children to help me babysit,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Concerns"","block_context":{"text":"Concerns","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/how-to-homeschool\/homeschooling-concerns\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Rebekah ","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/rebekah-258x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":807,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/what-do-preschoolers-need\/","url_meta":{"origin":771,"position":4},"title":"What Do Preschoolers Need?","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"What do preschoolers need? That's an easy answer: #1 they need YOU! Yep: they need Mom, in all her constantly loving glory, with lots of hugs, snuggles, toe-kissing, hand-holding, hair-tousling, kisses, pats, holding-on-her-lap and listening. That's the #1 need. And in your moment-by-moment interaction, be sure to lead them to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Preschool"","block_context":{"text":"Preschool","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/what-articles\/preschool\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/rebekahpuzzle.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6790,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/plan-b-difficult-pregnancy\/","url_meta":{"origin":771,"position":5},"title":"Plan B: Difficult Pregnancy","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I am going through a difficult pregnancy and cannot manage all the subjects, preparing lesson plans, trying to get them to do their schoolwork\u2014I\u2019m just so tired. Any help? Answer: Pregnancy and birth: can there be any more pertinent lessons that these?! There is some real life educating going\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "How to Homeschool"","block_context":{"text":"How to Homeschool","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/how-to-homeschool\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/hands-105455_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C870&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/hands-105455_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C870&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/hands-105455_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C870&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/hands-105455_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C870&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/hands-105455_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C870&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=771"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6951,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/771\/revisions\/6951"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}