De-Funking

I know that it is January, and that it is "normal" to have cabin fever or find ourselves in a funk. But I don't like it. It feels like depression. For me, I think it is aggravated by birth control issues, potty training, and cold weather. After feeling sorry for myself for several days, I decided I needed to de-funk my life.

So I started thinking of things I could do. I thought I would share what has helped the most in case any of you find yourselves in a similar situation...

#1: Sunshine/Exercise! I know that it was cold on Friday. It never got over 34 degrees. But that isn't really that cold, we bundled up lots and went for a 3 mile walk/jog. AMAZING what that did for all of us, espcially me.

#2: Organization. It might seem like it would stress you out more, but having a plan and following it, feeling like my house/family is in order, makes me happy. I found a website, Household Management 101, that gave me a lot of great ideas. My favorite were the cleaning schedules. Just doing a couple of things everyday is much less overwhelming than looking at your house as a whole. And it is fun to try to get all my chores for the day done before lunchtime so I can enjoy playing with my kids the rest of the day and not feel guilty. I also love the household notebook idea. Brilliant! You all probably know this stuff but it was all new to me!

#3: Serve. I know we've all heard this many times, but when I start thinking about others more than myself, I feel better. It doesn't even have to be a big thing. On one of my hardest days I got a phone call from someone who just needed to talk, who needed me to say a few things that I didn't know I was going to say. And I got off the phone thinking of this person, feeling so much better, and grateful that they were willing to call me and give me the opportunity to serve.