It Has Not Been a Live Like Vacation Week: Enter Wiggle Room

The last 2 1/2 days didn't go as planned.  I was overbooked, over tired, and had to make a late evening bank run.  There was a sick kid, paper work not done.......and I was wolfing down lunch.  At least it was a salad.

Not all days are relaxing.  Some days are downright irritating.  But you keep pushing forward.  It doesn't last.  I remained focused enough today to get the paperwork finished and clean up the mess on my desk.  The recovery period doesn't take too long if you keep up with the steps.   One day isn't going to throw you off track.

This is where the Principle of Wiggle Room comes in.

If you leave space in your schedule for down time or catch up time, you can prevent the untimely melt downs that make you declare you had a bad day.

You do it for bigger events in your life, so do it for the daily plans.

When you take a long drive you schedule in time for rest stops or slow traffic.  It helps to apply the principle of wiggle room to your routine.

Melt downs can be averted.  Use the Principle of Wiggle Room.

Okay, so I don't sound original.  It's just the same as taking extra breaks during your day to relax or catch your second wind.........  if you're ready for fast balls, the minor upheavals won't sound like major upheavals.

What Does It Mean to Live Like Vacation?

What is it to live like vacation?

Well, I'm not one to rule anyone's life, but it is a choice to live like vacation.

If you want to face each moment of your day with enjoyment and peace, even if parts of that day includes work and chores, you are living like vacation.

Living like vacation means you maintain the vacation feel during your regular life.  You find meaning in everything you do.  You work efficiently with forward moving goals to prevent stagnation, and yet you find enough downtime to give yourself  more energy to jump back into your goals.

30 Days Ago I Started a Blog

30 days ago I wrote about my vacation wake up call.

As soon as I came back from a very rare opportunity to visit a warmer climate and have a full week off with nothing on my mind, I resorted back to an insane life.

That's slightly exagerated.  It was not totally insane but as soon as I got off the plane I was back to my hyperactive self.  As soon as the phone began to ring I was unraveling my calm brain trying to bend over backwards for who?  Myself I guess because I am generally an over-pleaser.  Then, I was completely exhausted the next day.

Enough of my complaining.  I saw such a dramatic change between the vacation me and the back to normal life me, I had to reclaim the vacation me and incorporate the vacation me into the everyday life.  I wanted to make daily living more than checking of a to do list and being the family taxi service.

I want to live like vacation.

That does not mean sit on the beach homeschooling my child and working some amazing home business that provide barrels of cash to my bank account.  That could be in the future, but does not sound realistic to me.

Right now I am taking small baby steps at living a less scrambled life that has more calm so I can be a better health care practitioner for my practice members and have enough energy left to be a fun mom and wife.

So, here I already see my big fault here.  I need to be an awesome wife and mother first.  Then, have some left over energy for my private practice.  How did I get so brainwashed?

Time to get un-brain-washed and live like vacation.

Yes, things need to get done.  I have to raise a young boy and help him become a decent grown up.  Yes, we have bills to pay so we are not a burden to others.  Yes, hubby and I need to have a life together that doesn't include work, bills, repairs, errands, babysitting, etc.

So a mind shift took place because I saw the different side of me while I was on vacation.  And I saw that side of me lost suddenly back in the weeds.

So, the mind-set shift continues.
The habits change.  In ways this is becoming a health makeover although I have not noted too much of that since the blog began.

Based on the principle of the domino effect.  Good habits have a ripple effect in multiple areas of life.

Anything that helps you reclaim your energy gives you better mileage.  So, these initial baby-steps are leading to other goals that are more far reaching than getting everyone out the door on time.

So buckle up and enjoy the ride with me.

One Month Progress Report

It hasn't been quite a month yet, but we did leave for vacation Feb. 20th, and today is March 20th.  Once I completed the 2 week pre-vacation preparations, I was ready to start our trip to Florida.

I have made a small dent in my procrastination since I returned as this was a goal of mine.  To live like vacation, I wanted to do more than get through each day.  I want to add new approaches to my business and I want my home life to be more relaxed, yet accomplished, rather than a home being a drop off point where I just lay around in exhaustion with no real motivation to do things besides, well, lay around.  (How'd you like that wild run on sentence.  That run on sentence is an example of the run on life.  This is so funny I am not changing it.  Nope. No editing. )

My mind was generally in "sit and mope" mood, and usually in front of Facebook.  What a waste of time.  I used to tell myself I was resting, then the hours flew by.  Like I said.  What a waste.

More on this later......I have to get ready for the day.

***********I'm back **************

The day is over.  Work was steady and lunch was at 3:20!  But it was not the brain drain I usually feel.  I didn't let myself get worked up.  I took the break when it came up and I was ready for the rest of my afternoon.

I am going to bed by 9:30 tonight.  I am sticking to the sleep routine.  It has proven to be a smart change.  I had my relapse and, wow, what a difference.

And, another observation:  When I eat carbs or sugar, my sleep is disrupted as well.  So, diet and sleep are your two very important partners in the Live Like Vacation Mind-Set.  In fact, they are baseline.

I haven't done any real recreational things that are "vacation like" or renewing.  That is one criticism I have for myself.  I could blame the weather.  But I can't change the weather.

Another criticism:  I didn't exercise enough in the last 2 weeks.

Your Live Like Vacation plan doesn't have to be exactly like mine, but you have to decide what goals matter to you.

What things do you want to get away from when you go on vacation?
Work chaos?
Disruptions?
Family fighting?
Everything in the house that's broken?

What are your favorite things about vacation?
Ahhhhh......Sleep,....quiet.......leisure activities.......someone else cooking for you.........

Keep it a work in progress. But feel good as you do it.

Good Morning Day #3

Today is my busy day.  I have to head over to the next town at 8:30, so as soon as I drop off hubby and son to their work and school, I am on the road.

Waking up early was so easy.  But I know it's not easy when your sleep schedule is a mess.  Sometimes we have rotten sleep schedules that appear to be normal.  I thought I had a fairly decent sleep schedule.

My recent state of calmness these last two days pretty much proves I was not doing well in the sleep department.  And when we say we'll catch up later, or one late night during the week isn't so bad -- it really is bad.
----------------------Later in the day entry:
The rest of my day did not go as planned.  I was stuck in the sleety, snowy driveway.  It took a while to get out.  Thanks to some friendly neighbors, they pushed my car out.  I was stuck at the end of the driveway because I stopped.  People up north know that stopping is a risk.  I saw a neighbor leaving his driveway, so I stopped and it turns out if I just rammed it out onto the street I would have been fine.  But when it comes to high snow banks blocking your view, you can never be too careful.  This time it got me stuck.

I cancelled my evening appointments and I was okay with that.  I usually don't like changing other people's plans and I feel awful about it, but the weather was bad.

Now, my calmness about the situation.... was that because I had an authentic good night's sleep?  It can be up to debate but I'll say yes.
SLEEP MATTERS!

Now, you may think I am a horrible, out of control, witch.  I keep mentioning how calm I feel.  It's not that I was always over the top anxious.  I just don't know what other word besides "calm" to use to describe my journey.

The "vacation feel" is certainly nice, comfortable, relaxing.  This is the feeling I want to keep in my back to non-vacation life.  It feels very calm.

I kept my breakfast ritual simple again.  Doing so helps me feel less uptight about squeezing in a workout.  I truly loved my work out days.  I have been very lazy and in a rut for at least 1 1/2 years, so I miss it.  I'll go into more detail with that as well in future blog posts.

I will also talk more about my Paleo cereal.  It's a new favorite.

The clock says 8:56 PM. Time to turn in.