There’s always too much to do and never enough time. That’s true for most people, but especially true for me. I continue to add to my plate and as yet haven’t taken anything away. Perhaps because I’ve been sick for 10 days and am falling behind on most of my goals I’m feeling the pressure I’ve put on myself more than I usually do. It is my goal over this next week to evaluate my priorities and try to align my activities with what is most important.

Unfortunately this sounds easier than it is in practice. I eliminated most unimportant activities such as television years ago, so what remains are things I truly enjoy or that help move me toward a goal in some way.

So this morning I made a list.

Writing is obviously on my list and I have 3 projects involving writing at the moment, this blog being one of them (an abandoned blog has not even made my list but should perhaps be on there as well). Added to this is the novel – the Clay and Caleb saga that I am currently rewriting from the beginning. Finally to round this out I have an idea to rework my already published book (Thriving Not Surviving).

Even more important than writing is my time with my kids and being the best I can be for them. Following my dreams and achieving my goals is important to me as an example for them. They have been incredibly supportive (for a teenager and preteen) of my writing and fitness goals, but I want to be careful not to take too much of their time for those activities. It’s a difficult balance especially given the challenging parenting schedule we have…but I will find a way to make the most of it.

Also on my list are fitness (yoga, running, biking, meditation, healthy diet), the Meetup groups I run (plus now a related Facebook group I’m managing), the rental house I own (maintenance on a second home), work (oh, yeah…I have a job), reading (+/- 10 books I’ve taken out from the library and countless others I own), relationships (my friends miss me) and learning (overlaps with reading but is also independent).

Part of what I hope to do is find activities that overlap as many of these priorities as possible. This weekend was a good example of how I can do this and had I not felt so sick from this virus I’ve been fighting I’d be celebrating tonight.

Saturday the girls and I volunteered to sort food at a local food bank with a friend (kids, fitness, relationships – check!). The girls have volunteered a little but this was their first time doing something like this and they had a great experience. We spent 3 hours sorting through food and carrying heavy boxes so it ended up being quite the workout as well!

Sunday we went kayaking on a river, fed by a spring. It was beautiful and the weather was perfect. I posted it as a Meetup event and we brought 2 of the girls’ friends (kids, Meetup, fitness – check!). This turns out to be a great time of year to see wildlife on the river and we found 4 groups of manatees. It was a fantastic day!

This coming weekend we will be doing something similar. We are staying at a cabin at a nearby campground. It’s listed as a Meetup event and I plan to get plenty of exercise paddleboarding and biking. We are bringing 2 friends for the girls so hopefully they will be busy so I will have time to read and write. A friend is planning to visit on Saturday and I’m hoping she is also going to be willing to help me with the Meetup groups. So…kids, fitness, relationships, Meetup, reading, writing, learning – check!

Now that I’m starting to feel like I can manage this I better get back to work!