Forged In The Flames

Today I called a time out. I am calling a time out from talking about all the medical appointments. I had a wonderful and positive weekend filled spending time with family and friends. I felt such a peace and joy this weekend that I cannot describe. Today, I woke up early after not sleeping super well (thank you steroids) and was able to relax and just enjoy the morning as my family slept in. When my 8 year old decided to crawl out of bed at 10:30 am (yes, he decided to sleep in today!), I decided that I was going to do something different.

Time out. Time out from what we have been doing and shifting to something different. As a parent, I have always thought that summer time should be a time of play- but also a time to be productive. But, sometimes merging them together in harmony can be difficult. We live in Arizona, so its not like I can send my son outside to play in the middle of the day unless he wants to swim. I decided to try a few things and be a bit more interactive. Working in healthcare and shift work, I often find myself just wanting to veg out when I am off, but this does no service to my family. I’ve been wanting to change this for some time, so today was the day I put my foot down and decided to actually do something about it- more talk and procrastinating.

I had my son help me make him breakfast and then we got to work on doing some chores together. My chores involved wiping down counters as I can’t do much lifting at the moment. His chores required him to pick up all of his toys that somehow migrated all over the house, including those lovely nerf darts that find homes in every nook and unseen spot. After that, we decided to color together and then sit outside and read. I found that this was so much fun! Spending more time with my son (not that I didn’t spend time with him already), like really spending time with him, brought so much joy to not only myself, but to him as well. It hurts to admit that sometimes I feel I have slacked as a parent. Life gets busy and sometimes I don’t stop to really spend the day with my kiddo. Sure, we do things together throughout the days, but today was different.

When life gets busy and crazy with work – throw in a massive medical issue, I am realizing that those are the times I need to call a time out. Time out and spend time with my son and my family- more time than normal. They need extra TLC too, and being busy is not an excuse to give them what they need.

My son and I finished the evening by working on dinner a little together and watching him eat the veggie he chose for the night- peas. Time outs are important in life, and I am slowly learning this. I wish I had taken more time outs before now. When I stop to think about it, I think that while yes, I spend time with my son, I do not spend nearly enough time as I should.

As I challenge myself in this, I also challenge you, reader….how much time do you spend with your child/children, or family? It hurts me to admit that I have slacked in this. Yes, we spend time with our family and children, but there are days when they need extra time and we need to give it to them.