17 December 2013

Doing it all

I've been thinking a bit about doing it all. How we have this message that we can have it all and do it all. We browse Pinterest and read blogs and it seems that other people do do it all.

Here's the thing: nobody does it all. And if they do, they end up burning out.

If I browse through my feed reader I'll see plenty of blog posts back to back. One blogger might show how she's decorated her porch for Christmas; another shows the cookies she's baked; another shares her Elf on the Shelf antics; another will talk about her cookie swap party; another will share a favourite Christmas recipe; another will show a Christmas craft.

Seeing these posts throughout the month gives the impression that women out there are all decorating AND baking AND hosting parties AND doing Elf on the Shelf AND cooking AND crafting. It's rarely true. It's just the impression gained from reading blogs simultaneously, or browsing Pinterest boards. (Just because they're pinning it doesn't meant they're doing it.) Each different blogger is doing a couple of things, I really don't think everyone is doing everything.

It's okay to pick one or two things and leave the rest. Please don't feel that you should be doing it all. We claim we're doing it for our families and feel resentful when they don't appreciate it. But they don't care! They care more about having a grumpy and tired mom / wife than if they have a hand-crafted advent calendar, a decorated house, freshly baked cookies, and an active elf.

I posted a Christmas wreath that I made and some cookies that I baked and decorated but please don't think I'm Martha Stewart. The only decorating I've done is hang a few stockings and put out our two nativities. We don't even have a Christmas tree! And guess what - our boys don't even care. In fact, Noah said, "The coffee table is made of wood, which comes from a tree - just ask Santa to put the presents underneath it."

We're feeling plenty festive here with Christmas music playing through the free Pandora app on my phone. I want to spend more time this festive season thinking about Jesus and less time thinking about my to-do list.

By all means decorate your house and / or bake cookies and /or reposition elves and /or do all of these Christmassy things IF you have the energy and time and IF they genuinely make you happy and fulfilled. I know that these traditions can make special memories. But please don't do it because you feel like you should or want to keep up with the fictional Mrs Perfect. It's just not worth it.


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