Friday, February 18, 2011

Coping with Winter Blues

Faster than a vomiting 2 year old.
More powerful than an angry momma bear.
Able to leap tall piles of laundry in a single bound.

Look! Out in the kitchen!
It's a chef. It's a housekeeper. It's Super Mom!

That's how I felt in January as 2011 started with guns blazing.  Energetic and refreshed after a two week Christmas vacation, project ideas swirled around my mind.  Activities and opportunities overflowed my calendar's pages.

There was nothing I couldn't accomplish, or so I thought!

Blog five times a week?  Sure!
Home school preschool, kindergarten and 2nd grade?  No problem!
Contribute a blog article 2-3 times a month?  I'm your girl!
Provide hospitality to friends on a regular basis?  Of course!
Keep my house "company ready" at all times?  Easy peasy!
Teach a weekly co-op science class to 6-9 year olds?  Bring it on!

But now February draws to a close and instead of invincible I feel overwhelmed. 

Blog posts might publish three times a week.
School is reduced to absolute essentials. 
Blog contributions are dried up.
Dinner with friends is rescheduled.
Piles of chaos totter on my bedroom floor.
Substitute teachers are called in for co-op.

My sense of failure and lack of energy point to one diagnosis - winter blues.

How am I going to beat my winter blues?

First, I'm changing up our routine for a week.  Along with most of New England, I have declared next week February Vacation!  Relaxing with my children and focusing on fun instead of work is bound to lift my spirits.

Next, I'm planning 3 field trip activities for my family to enjoy.  Normally I avoid the February Vacation crowds but I'm making an exception this year.  We all need to get out of the house and see different faces, learn new facts and have a little fun.

Finally, I'm finishing a few projects.  I have several small nagging details to put in place in our updated bathroom and kitchen.  Completing these tasks will remove clutter from my bedroom and my mind.

Curing my winter blahs should be simple if I follow this prescription.  If not there's always plan B - a vacation to a tropical resort while shipping my kids off to the grandparents.  Hey!  I can dream, can't I?!

How are you beating the winter blues this year?

9 comments:

Amy said...

Enjoyed this post...can relate! One thing I'm doing is making a point to spend a little time outside each day--even when it's cold or snowing. It has really helped me keep perspective! A little thing, but has helped.

Enjoy vacation week! Can't wait to hear what you do! We're looking forward to vacation around here....

Amy said...

Oh, and finishing projects is always a must! It's not done until it's DONE! Definitely lends to a sense of accomplishment and completion! So true!

Alicia said...

I'm so sorry, friend!!

I think I'm still learning how to differentiate normal blues to winter blues. The only thing that helped me maybe was expectation. I KNEW this winter would rock my world, so wanting to stay locked up in my house was not a big surprise! In addition, we've basically been a 1 car family, so I just knew I couldn't make plans. All I did was homeschool or get ready for the next day of homeschool!

I think the biggest thing that has helped me is that the kids got out even when I didn't. That allowed THEM not to feel the blues, which of course always affects my attitude! [It's just God's gift to me that we have Christian neighbors 4 houses down with homeschooled kids the same age as ours that love to play outside-they've taught my kids the joys of winter. I frankly don't know that Samantha will ever be happy with San Diego!]

Thankfully, our snow has started melt like crazy as we finally reached the 40s this week. Even though I know we have freezing temps and snow still to come, I feel like Spring is bursting forth before my eyes. I'm going on 4 excursions in the next 6 days of school, and I feel like a bear coming out of hibernation!

Carrie said...

Sounds like a FABULOUS idea and hurray for home schooling which leaves you flexible to be able to do what wants doing! That sounds like a great plan and I hope you have a truly fantastic February vacation. And some fun field trips. And a change of pace. =)

And a good weekend as well! =)

Anonymous said...

I recognize myself in your post and enjoyed knowing I'm not alone as I am altering my expectations/plans for Feb!! :) There has been someone with feverinour house every day (with the exception of 2-3 days) for the past FOUR weeks so I'm inspired now to set and reach 1-2 small goals...as I sit in the doctor's office with two feverish boys. :)

Christie in NC

Anonymous said...

....minus having my house "company ready" at all times! I would go insane if that was on my list, I think!!

Christie in NC

Stephanie Kay said...

Amy, getting outside does help but I just can't take the below freezing temps! Hopefully we'll have a week of 50+ temps and get outside every day.

Alicia, this year really hasn't been as bad as previous years. The worst was after Sam was born. I basically didn't leave my house from mid-October until March. Hormones, sleep deprivation, and winter greyness is NOT a good mix!

Christie, only my public rooms are "company ready"! I've been trying to get better about that because we're putting our house on the market in a few months. I need to be in the habit of a clean house.

Wherever HE Leads We'll Go said...

Sounds like a great game plan. Hope you guys have a great vacation next week. Emily has been sick this week so she missed school two days. The first day, we hung around the house and had a quiet day. The second day, we went to the zoo. It was in the 60
's and I knew we both needed the fresh air and sunshine. Then on Friday (our usual day off), we checked out a local park and found a great 1.3 mile walking trail that we will be visiting more often. It has been nice to have a break from our usual routine even if we had that break because of Emily's cold.

CountryRoadFaith said...

The grandparents' door is always open. Bring 'em on. Paying that your house sells quickly and they can visit this summer.

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