The Schedule Situation

By Aria Walerski

If you are anything like me, September is one of the busiest times of the year. So much so that it rivals the holidays! Between kids sports practices, Back to School nights, work commitments, and plans for Fall family fun, my calendar can make my head spin when I look at it. It honestly can overwhelm me at times!

I was venting to a friend about a week ago about just how crazy this time of year is for my family. Her children are older and in high school but she reminisced about the busyness with me. I asked her, half jokingly, how she made it through without losing her mind. Her answer: Scheduling Downtime.

I paused after she said it and looked at her, almost waiting for the other shoe to drop. Is it really that easy?! She went on to say that she protected family downtime in her calendar, as if it was another appointment or practice. She stated that if she didn’t, it simply would not have happened and that was not ok with her and her family. When I asked what would happen if something came up during that slot on her calendar, she said that unless it was really important, they would decline. 

It sounds so simple but it does take work. I tried it this week and am protecting some of the open space in my calendar. I’ve already had something come up that our family simply had to say no to for our own sanity and to not overextend ourselves. Thinking of that time as an appointment really helped me schedule it in and keep it a priority.

I understand this may not work for every family or even in every season, but it has helped us so far. Does your family do this? If not, how do you protect your family time and not overschedule yourselves? I’d love to hear more tips and tricks from some seasoned parents - email us at: dtownctc@gmail.com to share!