Have you ever come across this sight? If you have small kids (or a dog?) I guess you have.
Little A sometimes gets into a frenzy of "tidying", which essentially means that he throws everything out of a cupboard/drawer/shelf with wild enjoyment. This has really frustrated me (a lot) in the past, but recently, when I saw how he had thrown all of my winter scarves on the floor, I imagined what he might be thinking. "Mamma has this many scarves! I can throw them on the floor! I can make a mountain of them! I can swim in them!"
I know that I have a lot of scarves. I love them. It makes me feel good and cosy to wrap myself in a soft scarf, and I like to match them to my clothes. When you add the fact that Norway has scarf weather from August to May, you can imagine that I have had plenty of opportunities to buy and wear scarves. However, when I saw the pile on the floor, and knew that these were only my winter scarves (not the spring/autumn ones), I decided to take the hint from Little A.
Nine scarves went to charity straight away, and I'll have another look when winter comes and I see what I'm actually wearing.
A few days later, Little A threw half our DVDs on the floor. Making me realise how we don't even have a DVD player anymore... so why do I have two cupboards filled with DVDs? Most of them will go as well.
So, I have realised that I should see Little A as my decluttering assistant, instead of a clutter monster. Decluttering and more peace of mind, wrapped into one.
It's Monday, the first day of the school year, and a rainy day. Little A and I had pizza for dinner, and it felt pretty great eating pizza in front of the TV (watching Dora the Explorer) after a long day at work and in kindergarten.
Some would say I should feel guilty because I fed my child pizza, and let him eat it in front of the TV. But - I don't.
There are many reasons why you shouldn't feel guilty about taking some short cuts here and there in your daily life.
First of all: Nobody knows what it's really like to be you, and what is going on in your life. For me, this was being awake for hours in the night, trying to get Little A to go to sleep, the past two nights.
Secondly, you can make a really good pizza, that is homemade (and really not that unhealthy) in only 15 minutes. Convenicency and home cooking in one!
And last, but not least: You can have a great time together, watching TV, singing along to the songs and hugging as you're watching. Nothing wrong with that.
What short cuts do you take to get days that are slower and more enjoyable?
Wishing you all a happy, guilt-free Monday!
Ane :)
PS: In case you're wondering about the pizza... The key is to make the dough in advance. We had pizza for Sunday dinner, and we made a double portion of dough, that was kept in the fridge overnight. The sauce was also a doble portion, so when I came home from work, all I had to do was: Turn on the oven, flatten the dough onto the baking tray, add the sauce, some cheese, ham and paprika, and bake for 10 minutes. Done!
How often are you checking your mobile phone with one eye, while using the other on what you're supposed to be doing? I do it all the time. And - I have noticed that it's getting worse. During the summer holiday, I have been checking Facebook and my email far more often than is really necessary (or healthy...) for anyone.
This especially happens when I'm waiting for the metro, or riding it. Riding the metro from my home to the city centre takes only fifteen minutes, and the ride to my son's kindergarten is only four. Perfect for checking email and catching up on what's going on, right?
The only problem is - I'm missing the ride. The views of the valley outside the windows. The flickering lights in the tunnels. The other people sharing the ride with me.
My son, Little A, knows how to appreciate a good metro ride. He shrieks with pleasure at the opening and closing doors, lets out a bubbling laugh at the sight of people with wheelie bags, and thoroughly enjoys the darkness of the tunnels. Shouldn't I be enjoying all of this with him?
When he was younger, I did. But then it all got repetitive and, frankly, I got a bit tired. Had he been able to have a conversation about the metro, it might have been different, but his vocabulary of words and signs is limited.
Today, though, I put away the phone. And for five minutes on the metro, I crouched down next to his stroller, and saw the metro from his point of view: The doors open with a beep, and people come rushing in from all sides! The doors close with a thud! The metro train swooshes through the tunnels! I looked into his face and he was smiling, laughing, enjoying the ride. He pointed out to me that the tunnels are dark. That the doors say bang. That the people with wheelie bags are going to fly on a plane.
If I put away the phone while I'm on the metro (or any type of public transportation, really), I get to:
- Join in Little A's world
- Take a few minutes to do nothing
- Let my thoughts wander
- See the people around me (at least the faces that are not lost in their phones)
- Read a book (if I'm taking the metro alone, that is)
There are many other things that could be said about smart phones and what they do to us, but I will get back to that later. These are tiny steps, so let's keep them small and easy:
- I will not be doing random stuff on the internet while riding public transportation.
I'll let you know how it goes!
What about you? Are you constantly checking your phone to see what's going on? Or do you know someone who loves the metro as much as my kid does? Let us know in the comments below!
