ReShape Mondays

A handful of spinach. Some strawberries. A banana. Two scoops of protein. A splash of coconut water/milk. Six ice cubes. Yes, six to be exact. 

Hell if I Gnaw's recipe

Press blend. Watch it mesh together. First, it turns red from the strawberries. Then the spinach gets churned in, turning this breakfast goodness into a greenish, poop-ish (if that's a word) color. 

MindBodyGreen 

That described/pictured above is my breakfast each morning. It's all good for me. Believe it or not, it tastes really good. I'll bet you're wondering what is the point of me giving you my breakfast routine and how does it fit into ReShape Mondays. Well, for one thing, I just gave you a delicious breakfast recipe you may want to try tomorrow morning. The second thing, is the blend. As I blended those ingredients this morning, I started thinking about my life: family, work, hobbies, health. For so long, I have tried to balance all of these things. I thought that something was wrong with me. As I interacted with more moms and dads, I found that I was not the only one. This was a problem felt by many. I dug my heels in. I was determined to be the first person ever to be victorious in perfectly balancing my work and home life. Years later, still haven't figured it out. Don't need to. Why you may ask? "Did Tiffany hit the lottery over the weekend and now the only balance she's worried about is balancing the $$$$$$ in her bank account?!?!" Not yet, fellow gladiators, not yet. However, in the meantime, I received a game changing way of thinking. 

A few months ago, I attended an influential class offered by the organization I work for. If you've popped in on ReShape Mondays before, you may remember my mention of this class. The facilitator said a very profound statement that really made me think. I watched as she demonstrated how she plots daily planning periods for work and home on her work calendar. Why was this a crazy idea to me? For so long, I always thought that those things should be separated. Yes, I would have a calendar for my home stuff and another work calendar. And yes, at times, I would schedule things that would overlap. Hummingbird or Yogli would have a dentist appointment on a day that I was scheduled to facilitate a class at least an hour away from home. 

So, as this facilitator explained the importance of blocking your work schedule for at least 10 minutes daily for planning, I raised my hand. "I noticed that you have your doctor's appointments listed on your WORK calendar". She chuckled and then said "Yes, because I work and I have a life outside of work. It's a blend, they both make up my life." Bam. There ya go. 

With those few words, I started to see things differently. We work so hard trying to balance, when blending is what needs to take place. We cannot negate the fact that we work nor negate that we have a lives outside of work. Which one takes precedence? If you're like me, you probably like to eat and perhaps go to a movie every now and then. Those two things tell me that you'll need a way to supplement your eating and movies, so a job is probably in order. All work and no play makes somebody boring, or something like that. Nevertheless, work hard, play hard. What I am trying to say is that there needs to be something more to life than all work. We must have a way to regroup after a stressful day of work or a stressful day of hearing "Mommy, mommy." How do you regroup, is it the gym, a good run, working on a hobby, reading, listening to music? Everybody needs a way. 

This all leads us to the blend. Blending those things that make up our lives. They will probably never balance out. 

After this class, one of the first things I implemented was to block 10 minutes each morning for planning. Do I get to this every single morning, no. But at least the time is blocked if I need it. This caused me to plan more, even the little things because "it's the small foxes that spoil the vine" (Song of Solomon 2:15). Doing these few things released years of pressure. Doing these few things led to a new way of thinking, which led to better focus. Better focus that you will hopefully see in the future of this blog. 

So, as we ReShape Mondays, here's what I have to say, I have a purpose for this blog. As I strive towards blending my family, work, hobbies, health, etc., I want to grow a community of working moms, SAHM, WAHM, wherever you work. The old adage "it takes a village" doesn't just apply to children. It will take a village to inspire/encourage/motivate this type of community. 

There, I said it. Won't you join me? I am excited. Will it be easy? Maybe. Is it worth it? Yep. Game plan, check. Shields up, fellow gladiators. We are doing this.