10 Daily Tasks

 When I first got married and moved in with my hubby, I went through a period of slight depression. All my old friends were either in Korea, Canberra or the Eastern Suburbs (I was living in the Inner West area  of Sydney then), and I wasn't yet confident driving. I had resigned from my teaching job in Canberra so was just staying at home. It didn't help that winter had just started and our tiny unit did not have heating. I felt unmotivated and useless. Thankfully, with the help of my loving hubby and much prayer, I was able to overcome that dark period. But when I had Hazzy, knowing that I will be staying home with him, I had to make sure I didn't fall into that dark period again. So I made a list of ten daily tasks that I will do to keep me sane.

10 Daily Tasks

1. Spend time with God
  I try to spend at least 10 minutes a day reading the bible and praying to God. This time reminds me that I am loved and there is a purpose to my life.

2. Plan the day
 I make a to-do list or a time schedule for the day, even if it's just in my head. This really motivates me to get out of the bed (even when it's really cold out).

3. Play with Hazzy
 I spend the whole day taking care of Hazzy, but sometimes I forget to just play with him. I try to remember that my child will remember the times playing with me rather than how clean the house was.

4. Talk with hubby
 This is a task that is surprisingly hard to do. I realised that I can spend hours talking at my hubby instead of really talking to him. I need to deliberately try to share my thoughts with him rather than just discuss plans for the weekend etc.

5. Talk to somebody besides family members
 Sometimes I can go through the whole day without having spoken to anyone except my hubby. So now I make a point of speaking to at least one person, even if it's a call to the doctors to make an appointment.


6. Do at least one house chore
 I noticed that a cluttered house can trigger irritation and negative attitudes. To avoid becoming a crazy, mean wife, I try to do at least one chore even if it's just making the bed.

7. Spend time on a hobby
 Whether it be knitting, reading or watching a DVD, I make sure I spend some time doing something that helps me relax.

8. Do some kind of exercise
 It could be just stretches at the end of the day, but I found that an unhealthy me meant less energy for my family. Especially being a mum of a boy, I better get my body ready to chase after an energetic toddler.

9. Study
 This is the most hardest task to do, but when I began struggling with the simplest arithmetic, I knew I needed to keep working my brain. Studying a different language, researching interesting topics, and reading difficult books all help me use my brain on something more than, 'What should we have for dinner?'

10. Get out of the house
 It's so easy to just stay home all day when you have a baby to carry around everywhere you go. Besides, it's tiring enough having to lift your baby up and down the cot, change table, high chair etc. But a breath of fresh air always lifts the spirit. It reminds you that the world is bigger than you and that you are surrounded by the beauty of nature.

Today's outing was to the local library

Do you have anything that you do everyday to keep you sane?