As a woman, I sometimes feel pressured to be extra productive throughout my day. I blame Facebook and the status updates I sometimes come across where a friend mentions she has a day filled with carpool-errands-dusting-vacuuming-laundry-cooking-working out-priming and painting the family room-sewing a new dress-repairing a car engine-building a log cabin from scratch-meetings at church-teaching the kids' program-homework-baths-storytime, etc.
I read those status updates, glance at the breakfast dishes still in my sink, and wonder how I will ever measure up.
So when we have the *opportunity* for a lazy day, I try to take hold of it instead of feeling guilty or pressured.
We had a day not too long ago in which all the stars aligned and we had no plans. No errands to run, no obligations. Nada. Zilch. Nothing.
I let the girls watch TV. In their pajamas. For more than one cartoon.
Just because.
I cringed at the mess, but I let them pull out the dreaded Play Doh Cake Makin' Station and create fabulously unedible works of pastry art.
Then they asked if they could eat lunch in the dining room to be "fancy."
It was on the tip of my tongue to say "no" because I didn't want the hassle. But then I reminded myself that they won't be little forever. So we did away with the plastic lunch plates and dug out my "fancy" ones.
Peanut butter and Jelly sandwiches are so much fancier on nice plates, no?
And we ate our fancy lunch in the dining room.
Just because.
It was a great lesson for me to learn to say "yes" more often. I get so wrapped up in the errands, the laundry, the emails, the carpooling, the blog comments..."no" is the reply I'd like to use a lot less.
Wouldn't it be nice to look at a Lazy day as a gift instead of a drag? To enjoy some free time with loved ones instead of going over your mental to-do list all day?
I know next time I will. Just because.
*I hope you'll come back later this week because I'm going to start a short blogging series on Commenting 101!*
