Silly Thoughts

I had a really wonderful conversation with a friend about not letting ourselves get caught up in keeping up with the Jones'.  We talked about why we do that to ourselves.  Is it a woman thing?  A wife thing?  Just a human thing?  Why do we feel like we have to do and be everything?  We have these unrealistic expectations for ourselves.  That we need to be perfect in every, single aspect of our lives, no table left unturned.  We came to the conclusion that there is no crime in wanting the life we create to be beautiful, as long as it does not consume us and that we remember what matters most. This has been in my heart pretty heavily lately, and I've really been trying to remember what matters most.  I came across a quote in the Pinteresting world that said, "Create a life that feels good on the inside, not one that looks good on the outside."  I want to create a life that feels good on the inside.  As I've tried to keep this on the "front burner", I've realized that when I take care of what matters most, which for me is connecting with God, reaching out to others (even in tiny ways), giving Reese all my love and attention during her waking hours, and spending quality time with Buns...when I do those things, I hit the pillow at night a happy woman.  BUT of course there are still duties around the house and at work that need my attention and let's face it, have to get done.  How do I balance everything?  That was my biggest concern after I had Reese...HOW THE "H-E-double hockey sticks" do I get done everything I need and want to get done?  How do women do it?!  I've finally learned that the most effective and realistic way for me to get things done, feel accomplished, and at the same time, not totally lose it at the end of the day, is to set small, attainable goals.  Ones that aren't going to make me feel like a failure if I don't finish.  I decided to say to myself that THIS is the ONE THING I want to accomplish today. If I accomplish THIS ONE THING, then I will be happy with myself at the end of the day.  So far, so good.  Not perfect, but good.  As I put the things that matter most first, everything else really does fall into place, even if that means not everything gets done.  Make sense? 

If it doesn't, there is this blogger I love that really hit the nail on the head for me...

"a few years back, as i was driving home from work, i had a silly thought that suddenly turned straight genius on me. i realized that all i really wanted was for my life to be beautiful. i wanted my home to be beautiful, i wanted my thoughts to be beautiful, i wanted my feelings to be beautiful. i wanted to create beauty in my life. if it was worth doing, i wanted it to be done beautifully. life didn't seem beautiful at the time, but i wanted it to. it was silly and shallow, until suddenly it wasn't. god created for us an insanely beautiful world. beauty around every corner. music, art, science. all beautiful. and loving families, a passion for learning, and a sense that we can have an impact on what surrounds us-- to me, that is beauty. and holy, for sure. so i stopped considering that desire shallow. i started to think of it as a way of honoring god, who is the one who created beauty to begin with, after all." 

via Natalie

I want to do just that...Honor God by creating a life that not only looks good on outside, but by creating a life that feels good on the inside.  I have things I enjoy and am passionate about, and by developing those passions, I am honoring God.  By remembering what matters most, loving my family with all of my heart and all of my time, I am honoring God.