Dealing With It All

Wow it really is 2018 isn’t it.

I hadn’t intended to down tools on blogging over the festive period too much, in fact I saw it as an opportunity to have a bit of time to write some post ready to hit the new year running. But, it didn’t quite work out like that and I just enjoyed some down time. I was still posting to Instagram though.

I read a post over at Dad v World earlier that I replied to (go check it out but finish reading this first please). Only after reading back my reply did it dawn on me just how busy I/we are for the first quarter of 2018. Then I remember Helen telling me that between the new year and the end of March we have just one solitary weekend where we have no plans! Madness! This isn’t quite the new year post I had started writing already, but my reply on Dad v World made me change direction – thanks for the inspiration.

So here’s what on the agenda:

  • Panto rehearsal and performance run for the two young girls – meaning lots of Dad’s Taxi and assisting with chaperone duties
  • Dance school showcase for all four girls – meaning lots of rehearsals, Dad’s Taxi, helping back stage/front of house.
  • Two dance festival competition for the youngest two – meaning rehearsing at home and spending 4 weekends at the comps.

On top of this my day job as an IT manager is crazy busy and the company I work for is in it’s busiest period of the year from January to May. But it doesn’t stop there…

Social media profile photo.pngOn May 6th it will be the annual Kirkbymoorside 10k. This annual charity road race raised funds for local school and I am the race secretary/directorย  looking after entries, health & safety, website, social media, promotion, traffic management and the course itself. It’s a massive volunteer undertaking by a dedicated team. We start taking entries in October but things start to hot up from an organisational point of view in January. Head over to kirkbymoorside10k.com to enter – it’s a great event.

I am also still planning to run a spring marathon so I will need to cram in the training for that along the way – oh and I’m writing a book (more on both of those another time)!

So you could say we’re pretty busy and I am looking forward to summer already! We do have a BIG family holiday in September for a wedding that is the big thing we’re looking forward to this year but until then it’s busy all the way.

Please hassle me - I thrive on stress.jpgI actually thrive on being busy and up against it. I’ve always been the same. I thrive on tight deadlines and being a bit last minute and taking on more that I really should. But I do recognise I need to take some days easier and find some downtime. I really do.

I’m not ashamed to say that many years ago now, during my first IT management job I was diagnosed as having stress by my GP. That made me change my ways massively. At that time I was going to work early and leaving late. Once home I was continuing to work. Something had to give and it sure as hell wasn’t me and there and then I decided work stayed at work. I’ve relaxed that a bit now, but maybe that’s because I’m 10 years older and better tooled up mentally to cope with these things.

In a nutshell I love being busy – but in a controlled way that works for me, Helen and our family.

I think as parents you somehow develop this amazing control mechanism that allows you to deal with all the coming and goings that come with having kids. I sometimes see posts by friends on Facebook who have just the one son or daughter and catch myself thinking how simple that must be. But then I love, love, love having a big family. Yes, it’s stressful and challenging at times but our house is also filled with love and laughter (okay we have two teenager so it’s also filled with hormones and attitude).

I’d love to know what you think in the comments below.

Thanks for reading.

8 thoughts on “Dealing With It All”

  1. Haha I’ve a 15 and 2 year old so it’s the best and worst of both ages.

    I thought we were busy but I think you win ๐Ÿ™‚

    Great post have a good 2018 and take some more time out to yourself. Come for a long walk one day .

    1. That’s why I run – that’s my time!
      Thanks for the comment – appreciated. I like to walk – spoils a good run though ๐Ÿ˜‰

  2. Always have to find the balance between the stress and the down time. I like a little bit of it, too much bad stress and I’m done

    1. All about balance I guess (oh my next post is about balance of a different kind – out tomorrow ;-))
      Cheers for reading and taking time to comment.

  3. Love the way you slipped in the teenagers with their hormones and attitude towards the end โ€” we have one teenage girl and the attitude is something else. Actually she doesn’t live with us anymore: she has a one-bed apartment in our house that she leaves every now and again for food and vital supplies!

    1. Oh that’s so true. Our two seem to spend their whole life in their room – although I don’t think they actually talk to each other much. They come out for feeling and toilet activities. Actually, it’s so reassuring to know it’s not just our girls and we’re not the only ones with teenagers that act like this!
      Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment.

  4. Wow! That is a busy time, finding the balance is so important. Have a great 2018 Thank you for linking to #Thatfridaylinky please come back next week

  5. Pingback: Happy Anniversary

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.