Is Your Weekend a Chance to Catch Your Breath, or is It Another Attempt to Catch Up?
http://www.atypicalpublisher.com/articles/261/1/Is-Your-Weekend-a-Chance-to-Catch-Your-Breath-or-is-It-Another-Attempt-to-Catch-Up/Page1.html
Amy E. Willard
Amy E. Willard is a counselor and coach who supports moms in creating lives that honor their whole selves. For further information and to access a free 5-part ecourse, please visit http://www.CourageousMotherhood.com. By Amy E. Willard
Published on 03/26/2009
Ahhh...the weekend has finally arrived. Time to breathe a sigh of relief, right?
Oh, how I wish this were always the case.
For so many of us moms, the weekend brings with it another set of impossible expectations. It is as though we are trying to make up for whatever we didn't get done during the week. We try to cram so much into this two-day period, and when it comes to an end we find ourselves even more stressed and exhausted.
Can you relate to this? I know I can.
I'll wake up on Saturday morning and find myself practically drowning in a sea of "shoulds." As the day proceeds, I never feel quite right about how I end up spending my time. "I really should get the rest of the laundry done. I really should run those 10 different errands. I really should finish that article." And the list goes on...
Then, after a whirlwind of activity, Sunday evening rolls around. How am I feeling? Disappointed and depleted. Not good feelings in that moment, and definitely not good feelings to go into a new week with on Monday.
No matter how hard I tried, how much I rushed around, how much multi-tasking I did, I still never caught up. I would go into Monday morning feeling more behind than ever. And that is definitely not how I wanted to feel.
I repeated this pattern over and over again, each time believing that somehow my approach would lead me to my desired result. But it never did.
I knew there had to be a better way to experience my weekends.
So, I began to explore how I could create a weekend that would help me catch my breath and recharge my battery. For me, the place to start was checking in with myself and identifying how I wanted to feel when Sunday evening arrived. I decided that I wanted to feel lighter, more relaxed, and reconnected to myself and to my family members. From this awareness, I then explored ways to bring about these desired feelings.
I continue to tweak my approach as I grow and change. But right now, these are the general guidelines that lead to the type of experience I want to have on the weekend:
**Less structure; my weekends need to feel different from my weekday schedule
**I need time to putz around the house.
**1 or 2 errands, at the most
**lots of unstructured time with the kids
**rent a movie with my husband
**some time alone
**minimal housekeeping
*Sunday evening planning session
Even with this set of guidelines, I sometimes find myself slipping into old patterns. This was the case last weekend. I didn't like how I was feeling as the weekend came to an end. I went into my week more tired than usual and definitely crankier. It initially took me a few days to pinpoint where these feelings were coming from, but then it dawned on me. I had once again been playing catch-up. So, I reviewed my list and made sure that the next weekend was different.
We are all unique, and what works for me may be very different from what works for you. But this is a great opportunity for you to reflect on your own situation. What are weekends like for you? Do you like how you are experiencing them, or could they use some tweaking? When Sunday evening comes, are you feeling the way you want to feel?
Take some time to consider how you would like to experience your weekends. Then begin to incorporate some of the elements that you have identified when the next weekend rolls around. Continue to reflect on how you are feeling when Sunday evening arrives, and tweak your guidelines as needed.
For so many of us moms, the weekend brings with it another set of impossible expectations. It is as though we are trying to make up for whatever we did not get done during the week. We try to cram so much into this two-day period, and when it comes to an end we find ourselves even more stressed and exhausted.
Ahhh...the weekend has finally arrived. Time to breathe a sigh of relief, right?Oh, how I wish this were always the case.
For so many of us moms, the weekend brings with it another set of impossible expectations. It is as though we are trying to make up for whatever we didn't get done during the week. We try to cram so much into this two-day period, and when it comes to an end we find ourselves even more stressed and exhausted.
Can you relate to this? I know I can.
I'll wake up on Saturday morning and find myself practically drowning in a sea of "shoulds." As the day proceeds, I never feel quite right about how I end up spending my time. "I really should get the rest of the laundry done. I really should run those 10 different errands. I really should finish that article." And the list goes on...
Then, after a whirlwind of activity, Sunday evening rolls around. How am I feeling? Disappointed and depleted. Not good feelings in that moment, and definitely not good feelings to go into a new week with on Monday.
No matter how hard I tried, how much I rushed around, how much multi-tasking I did, I still never caught up. I would go into Monday morning feeling more behind than ever. And that is definitely not how I wanted to feel.
I repeated this pattern over and over again, each time believing that somehow my approach would lead me to my desired result. But it never did.
I knew there had to be a better way to experience my weekends.
So, I began to explore how I could create a weekend that would help me catch my breath and recharge my battery. For me, the place to start was checking in with myself and identifying how I wanted to feel when Sunday evening arrived. I decided that I wanted to feel lighter, more relaxed, and reconnected to myself and to my family members. From this awareness, I then explored ways to bring about these desired feelings.
I continue to tweak my approach as I grow and change. But right now, these are the general guidelines that lead to the type of experience I want to have on the weekend:
**Less structure; my weekends need to feel different from my weekday schedule
**I need time to putz around the house.
**1 or 2 errands, at the most
**lots of unstructured time with the kids
**rent a movie with my husband
**some time alone
**minimal housekeeping
*Sunday evening planning session
Even with this set of guidelines, I sometimes find myself slipping into old patterns. This was the case last weekend. I didn't like how I was feeling as the weekend came to an end. I went into my week more tired than usual and definitely crankier. It initially took me a few days to pinpoint where these feelings were coming from, but then it dawned on me. I had once again been playing catch-up. So, I reviewed my list and made sure that the next weekend was different.
We are all unique, and what works for me may be very different from what works for you. But this is a great opportunity for you to reflect on your own situation. What are weekends like for you? Do you like how you are experiencing them, or could they use some tweaking? When Sunday evening comes, are you feeling the way you want to feel?
Take some time to consider how you would like to experience your weekends. Then begin to incorporate some of the elements that you have identified when the next weekend rolls around. Continue to reflect on how you are feeling when Sunday evening arrives, and tweak your guidelines as needed.