It’s SO EASY to get caught up in daily routine’s and to do lists that I miss the best opportunities to stop, drop and live. I was reflecting on my own childhood recently and it dawned on me that my best memories are the ones not planned. The random moments at home playing with my siblings or the times we played at the ball park waiting for another sibling to finish their game. The trips camping and traveling in our RV that we had for a couple years growing up. The animals we loved and cared for.
When I ask my kids: “what is your favorite thing to do?”
My oldest who is almost 16 loves to skateboard. What means the most to him is us watching him skate or taking him around town and videoing him doing different tricks in different places or taking him to a skate park.
Then Lyra who is 7 is generally happy regardless loves reading with me or ‘shopping’ and anything that has to do with animals. She loves when I color with her. Pretty much anything as long as I’m sitting with her giving her my attention.
My youngest literally only wants me on the floor playing with him.
These things should be top priority for me.
It’s so hard on days when: those floors are covered in dog hair, food and goodness knows what else, I need to cook dinner, I have 10 phone calls to make, I have to finish the math and grammar lesson, we need to spend time outside, we need to have time reading, the animals need us, we have a co-op or meet up with friends later and I probably really need to pick up a shift at work that night…. to just stop and play. But those times when we spend an hour coloring or building legos or hanging in the back yard or on a hike are where their best childhood memories will be made. Not in the math lesson I just had to make her finish despite the tears, not in the clean floors and nice home cooked meal. Those things matter don’t get me wrong. But I need to remember each day isn’t a to do list. My life is caring for people and people’s needs and moods are not the same every day. I’m learning to be more laid back in our home and our school. Taking those moments when they are needed give us all a freshness when it’s time to actually get that math done or cook something for dinner.
