Small Changes Challenge - 23/50 - Saying "Yes" Without Guilt

This week, for my Small Changes Challenge, I wanted to try something a little different - I'm not sure if it is a life strategy, a parenting method, a happiness challenge, or under what label it could possibly be categorized, but I wanted to say "yes" more often. As in, say yes even if it conflicted with my household to-dos for the day, be more permissive with the children and with myself, to take the joy gained from saying yes without worrying or feeling guilty about what I wasn't doing at the same moment....


As such, here are some of the things I said yes to this week:

• to staying in our p.j.'s "late"
• to no homework one night
• to waffles for lunch!
• to playing outside after 7 on a school night
• to reading, reading, reading without a care!
• to that 3rd cup of tea ;-)
• to having two little helpers aid in the massive weeding of the lawn
• to a junk night that involved Reese's Peanut Butter cups, ice cream and M&M's!
• to dining out (on a weeknight!)
• to several games of Connect 4, Tic-Tac-Toe and the Story game
• to potty jokes *sigh*
• to not having the planned casserole for supper
• to a promise to finish tidying their video games tomorrow
• to staying outside to play in the rain
• to an offer to tidy the playroom (and he did an awesome job!)
• to letting them fall asleep in our bed one night

What I let slide: making the beds; dishes; daily sweep; insisting on quite as many chores; regular school-night rules (we're a week away after all)....nothing major it turned out! And, the house did not collapse, the school didn't call, everybody ate their supper every night, and no one complained about the state of the kitchen!

Would some of my yes things have happened anyways? Surely.

Will I say "yes" to all of them consistently from now on? Definitely not (see the junk night - not going to be a permanent thing!!).

Will I feel better about when & how I let the housework and the rules slide from now on? Occasionally ;-)...

....It is more fun to be in the moment, instead of worrying about everything I should be doing, but I think I will have to work on it. By Thursday the house was getting to me despite my best efforts, and while I have no problem with guilt-free reading and playing time, I can not fathom being so relaxed about school night rules or proper eating. In that regard, I think the best score I can honestly give myself is a 4/5. But, I am going to keep it in mind AND from time to time, I promise myself I will say "YES! heck, why not?" and let the agenda slide without guilt:-)

So then...was it rewarding?  Oh yes........


........See my list of sweet, sweet memories above :-)


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