I Heart Routines

Vacations, weekends away, visitors coming and going, adventures and such are super duper fun. They are the best; wonderful exhaustion. But I am a person in love with my routines. 

My dad came to stay with us for two weeks which was awesome, because we had a lot of help with stuff around the house, but sharing your space is tough, no matter who you are. And I certainly know he was ready to go home by the time he left.

Disrupted routines are difficult for me, even though I'm so "resilient" because I'm such a creature of habit. This isn't to just admit that I'm uptight and unwavering, also attributes I have, but just saying that "going with the flow" only takes me so far. At the end of it all, I just hit a wall where I wanted to not be afraid to walk around my house in just underwear if I was rushing, not have to feel the need to "engage" and "entertain" and eat popcorn in my bead while watching too much Netflix.

There were also really silly things I couldn't indulge in, like face masks and hair tweezing, when you have company. Those are like, before bed things, not things to do when you have guests. 

I always forget how much children need their routines too. My daughter was just all over the place. Every morning my daughter rushed to check on grandpa, have breakfast with grandpa, talk to grandpa. And the evenings were about time with grandpa too. She had so much fun bonding with him, but needed her run of the mill routines to keep her grounded. This all happened around her birthday, too. What a whirlwind.

For me, it always amazes me how I can share my space well with "my people" but with others, everything irritates me. Like I have some secret space for endless patience and understanding with anyone related to me, like immediate family, but anyone else pushes me over the edge. 

My visit with my dad was good and productive. He hadn't been to see the "new" house and I think he taught hubby a few things about using what you have around the house to make what you need, and making it "look pretty" can come after. It's function and frugality over what looks best, especially on a budget. 

It was most important to me that she have some adolescent time with her grandpa. I feel like she's finally old enough to do more stuff. She's interactive, she's fun, she's smart, super aware and hilarious. Even with the six year old maintenance, she's mostly a precious joy...mostly. 

Luna, much like her mother, needs a picture of her day, she needs to stick to the same routine and plan, and deviating from it can be difficult. Some leniency with this can come with age, but for now she needs her schedule. 

Currently she just had a major meltdown and hit a wall. She is decompressing in the tub and we had to rearrange activities. I was the one easiest to say, "Go with the flow," for this change of plans and the little one brought out all the "hurting my feelings" and "breaking my heart" lines to sway us differently.

Sometimes you have to give up, stay home and reboot to be able to kick off the great routines again. This goes along with saying no to certain things and saying yes to others; to being a little anti-social and a little more self-care conscious. 

Routines are my favorite and I love them dearly. I hold them close in the chaos. I open up the forum to hear about yours, what works for you, and what rocks the boat a bit too much. Because I will forever heart my routines.