Juggling the Many Balls of Daily LIfe

Does this sound like you? Every day you pack enough sandwiches and cook sufficient food to feed small third-world-country. When you take time off from the office, two people are hired to replace you. You do homework, go to soccer practice, and participate in class trips to the zoo. You call your mother and mother-in-law regularly and stay in contact with the kids' teachers and carpool drivers.

You are the tooth fairy, nurse, waitress, chef, secretary, housekeeper, chauffer, therapist, personal shopper, guidance counselor, coach, and entertainer all wrapped into one extraordinarily busy person.

How do you juggle the wide variety of tasks that must be accomplished? What is the secret to staying sane while keeping all the balls up in the air?

The answer is to simply shoot your image of superwoman, and realize that she is nothing but a fantasy. Nobody, that's right, nobody can have it all. If you want to enroll your children in a lot of activities, you will not cook healthy gourmet dinners each evening. If you want to treat yourself to a well-deserved good book and bar of chocolate each evening, you will not have all the laundry sorted by the end of each day.

Most of the balls we are constantly attempting to juggle are made of rubber. There is no harm done in a rubber ball bouncing on occasion. However, one ball is made of glass- the family ball. The housekeeping and shopping can be put on hold. The myriad of chores on your list will patiently wait for you to attend to them. However, the people within your family need you now. Your children will never be the exact same age they are today ever again. You will never have another opportunity to enhance your relationship with those closest to you for this present day.

So, go ahead, and let some balls bounce. We all have scattered rubber balls bouncing within our busy lives. Relax; you can scoop them up later. Now is the time to focus on your glass ball, the people in your home who need you most. Don't let the glass ball down, because it can shatter. Keep on juggling... you can do it!

Ellen C. Braun is the founder of http://www.RaisingSmallSouls.com, and interactive website dedicated to helping busy families find quality time together despite the busy lives we lead.