Living a balanced life + homeschooling = Oxymoron?
Lots of juggling. With lots of interruptions. And lots of skirmishes.
So how to live a balanced homeschool life?
Too busy, they say. (Hard to argue.)
Not a lot of hours in the day unaccounted for. (Definitely true.)
A generous share of the time is devoted to kids’ struggles, complaints, and arguments.
And a generous share of the time devoted to…
Oh, and laundry, dishes, sweeping floors, sanitizing bathrooms, making food, I could go on (but you already know that).
Aspirations to get out of sweat pants and t-shirts before an afternoon trip to extracurriculars, but first, shift laundry from washer to dryer again, and LOOK for more dishes.
Aspiring toward balance is a challenge.
- What’s the perfect balance between activity and rest?
- A balance between focus and interruption.
- The balance between my needs and my children’s needs.
- The balance between noise and quiet.
- A balance between tackling the present activity or planning for the next day.
What principles help us work toward a balanced homeschool life?
1. Intentionally include mama.
Include the stuff that mama likes to do that is separate from the kids. Also, include the stuff you discover you’re interested in when you’re learning with the kids.
You are on a lifelong learning journey too. So keep your world interesting. The longer you homeschool, the more you identify your own curiosities and interests.
Pursue your as well as your kids’ interests.
I like to include many snippets of reading and writing time in my day. I like to walk outside, sometimes do yoga, pilates, and meditate.
If you could fit in a few fifteen-minute snippets, what would you like to do?
2. Purposefully include activities with the kids.
If you’re feeling like your kids always want your attention, I’m going to tell you a secret: they grow up.
- They will not always want your attention.
- They will want to hole themselves into their rooms for a solid four years, if not more.
- You will have time to yourself.
3. I’ll tell you the secret to getting time to do your stuff when they’re younger: give them eye-to-eye, fully engaged attention, for as long as it takes to satisfy their little hearts.
Then they’ll wander away to play Lego or Barbies by themselves, they’ll want to go outside to play on the trampoline, or to their room to read.
I’ll tell you the secret of getting time to do your stuff when they’re really young: there isn’t a secret. Unless someone is coming to look after those little ones, I got nothing for you.
Expect toilet assistants.
4. Start on the non-negotiable.
If you just have to get something done, do it first, or do it before the kids are awake, or park them in front of Curiosity Stream.
Do whatever it takes.
5. Be present.
Somehow the mere act of being present in the moment, whether you’re in the grocery store line or playing another round of Uno with the kids, makes you feel more satisfied in your life.
Practice presence.
6. Determine what wellness support you need to augment your experience of happy in your life.
Do you need someone to walk alongside you to offer regular conversations to help you clarify what’s most important? You’re invited to consider coaching with me: book a conversation with me here.
7. Do a people audit.
Not everyone was meant to be part of your life. Just because someone wants your time or attention doesn’t mean you should include them.
Hard words right there.
However, we know it to be true. So consider doing a people audit. Who do you WANT in your life?
8. Do a time audit.
How are you using your time and are you using your time as you’d like?
Consider doing a time audit to learn where you’re using time in ways you don’t want to use it.
9. Do a priority audit.
10. Don’t multitask.
The research is in! Multitasking doesn’t get you doing more, but it does get you feeling like what you’re doing is unsatisfying and scattered.
There is a myth of multitasking.
As much as possible, try not to practice multitasking.
Oh, I know you will, because kids will demand you turn to look at them or respond to them when you’re in the middle of something else; however, if you are able, try not to multitask.
11. Do exercise.
12. Work on your relationships.
13. Create space for your emotions.
14. Create spiritual practices.
Feeling connected to something bigger than you will help you feel
Keep working toward balance in your day-to-day.
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Teresa Wiedrick
I help homeschool mamas shed what’s not working in their homeschool & life, so they can show up authentically, purposefully, and confidently in their homeschool & life.
Great post! Yeah, 4 & 5 can be tricky at times! I’m thinking of when my son cleans his bathroom vs how I clean. But it’s good that he can do it to his standard at least!
thanks for this helpful post! Staying calm, firm, and getting them to help more…stuff to work on!
I love these ideas. I’ve been homeschooling for over 6 year and recently I find that I’m losing my steam…I’m tired and out of new ideas. We are definitely stuck in a rut. This post really struck a chord with me today. Thanks for writing it!
You’re welcome! Reality: even the most wonderful things in life get dull. Shake it up! And roll with your interests.
I love the idea of choosing subjects and doing things that enrich mom’s intellectual life too. I amreally enjoying doing science with my daughter because we have all these DK eyewitness science books, and sure as a kid I touched on both store all of these subjects, but it’s not like I remember all this stuff. So while my daughter learns about the kinds of mudslides there are, I am too.