I heard about this Oprah on "Feeling Overwhelmed" from Kami's blog. With conference this weekend, I found this quote struck a chord.
Norman says busy moms should stop trying to reach perfection and focus more on their happiness, attitude and state of mind. "I think that the first thing we've got to do is recognize that especially as mothers, but all of us, our state of mind and our attitude is our most precious gift that we give to each other," he says. "Every day, we ought to wake up and we ought to say: 'How is my state of mind today? Am I losing ground?' If I am, I better address that first because the rest of the stuff I do won't be worth anything if I'm harried and hassled and in a bad mood."
The other night, I was bathing the kids and Doug came over with a digital recorder. He recorded the sounds of the kids splashing, blowing bubbles, laughing, talking. After the bath, he captured the sounds of them building legos, eating, and pitter-pattering across the floor. As I listened and watched, I was overwhelmed with joy for how much those sounds mean to me. It made that night so memorable.
Yet yesterday, I found myself doing too much. After the kids naps, I was determined to go grocery shopping, come home and have a quick dinner, then head to the gym with the kids for a weight class. Doug was on his way home from school, so I called him and asked him to come meet us at Wal-Mart so we could be faster.
When he arrived, I told him my plans and he said, "Why are you so busy all the time?"
I stopped. I was furious at first. But then I knew he was right. I'd planned too much to do. So instead, we had a nice dinner, and we stayed home. The kids weren't so flustered, I was more calm, and the family was more calm! Imagine that!
So I've realized: Why not make every day memorable? Simply stopping and taking time throughout each day--taking time to ENJOY my family and friends and blessings I have--gives me SO MUCH happiness. May we take the time to watch General Conference this weekend, and to boost our spiritual happiness as well.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Overwhelmed?
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6 comments:
Thanks for sharing these wonderful thoughts. It's so easy for me to be overwhelmed/ feel underappreciated/ dissatisfied with all that I do. I think I need to realize that I will never be perfect as a wife & mother. I need to just take a step back & enjoy the time that I have with my family. Thanks again. :)
Oh my goodness do you live in my head? Today has been a very trying day. Well, this week has been very difficult and I just wanted to go and hind under the blankets. I do need to slow down and enjoy all the wonderful blessings I have. It is amazing how much your attitude affects those around you especially your kids. Maybe that is why my oldest hasn't stopped crying for like 3 days. He gets it from his mother. Thanks again Janae. I really needed to read that.
Beautiful post Janae! It is so easy to feel overwhelmed, I needed this today! Thanks for sharing the great reminder!! :)
Thanks for the post, Janae. That is a good reminder for all us mothers. What you stated here reminds me of what President Monson said during Conference. He said that we need to appreciate and enjoy our children now, because they grow up all too soon. I think he also said (if I can recall correctly as 2 children were demanding my attention all throughout conference) that we'll even miss the messes, the piles of laundry, and all those other things that are difficult that come with Motherhood.
Great post, and certainly something I've been working on as well!
I do that too - John is always telling me to slow down and give something(s) up. It's so hard to do though... especially when the things I WANT to give up I CAN'T give up, like working. *sigh* Balance will come someday, eh?
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