Michelle’s Favorite Beef Stroganoff

I’ve been a avid reader for near as long as I can remember, but these days, with two kids and a lot of commitments I find I rarely have time in my day to get in my beloved reading time. However, I do my best to sneak a bit in here and there. Recently I picked up a fascinating book: Overwhelmed Work, Love, And Play When No One Has The Time, by Brigid Schulte. The book at it’s heart is a sociological look at time. Our time. Where it went, why we never have enough of it, especially for the good stuff, and what we might do to change that. The book is a fascinating mix of Schulte’s personal experiences with not having enough time, scientific research about what we humans do with our time, and interviews of people who have found a way to balance their time so it includes not only meaningful work, but time for meaningful connections with family and friends, and even time for play. The book got me thinking a lot about how I spend my time, the standards I judge myself by, and even how the use of our time reflects on our identities.  

Now that my oldest son has begun kindergarten our family routine has changed quite a bit. These days, we wake up entirely too early. Rush through getting ready. We race out the door to school. Drop Aiden off. My younger son and I come home, some days I try to exercise, clean, do laundry, make phone calls, and handle all manner of responsibilities without plopping Tristan in front of the TV. (Too much TV isn’t good for kids right?) Unfortunately, he knows how to turn on the TV himself so I spend a good portion of my time in between tasks turning the TV back off after he plays with it. Some days instead of chores I try to play with or read to Tristan. Either way in two short hours it’s time to start the drive back to school for pick up. Then with both kids in tow I run errands, try to spend a little time with my Mom, hit the playground, feed the kids lunch and race back home for nap time. Nap time is spent (by me) on more work, planning for other commitments, cooking, blogging, cleaning, and spending time with Aiden. Then there’s homework, dinner, bath time, more clean up, the kids bedtime routine… (And by the way, my husband is great about helping with these things despite having worked a long physicaly demanding day himself.)  After all that there are perhaps a few quiet minutes with my husband to talk or watch a short bit of TV, and then we fall into bed exhausted. The next morning we get up and do it all over again. All this and I’m a stay at home Mom! I try and imagine some of my friends schedules. They work full time at demanding jobs, in addition to run their household, and raise their kids. I have a friend with a one year old, who is in nursing school, and still works 30 hours a week! I’m chock full of time in comparison.

I consider myself to be an excellent multi-tasker, and very good at keeping a lot of balls in the air at one time. In fact, I’d go so far as to say I like being busy. And yet… this book had me looking at my day and realizing there were things about it I didn’t like. (I’m sure I’m not the only one here?) I find I’m a lot more likely to end up grouchy with the kids because they aren’t getting ready quickly enough. I hate being grouchy at my kids because I feel harried; I end up feeling totally guilty. I like being busy but hate the feeling of always running full tilt, or of always feeling like I should be somewhere else no matter where I am. I hate worrying I’m going to be late. I love blogging, I love taking care of my kids, I don’t mind keeping our family life running by doing chores, making phones call, and running errands. But I hate feeling guilty because I feel like I haven’t done enough in one of those areas especially when I feel like I haven;t done enough for my kids. All this to say, I realized, while I like the majority of my life, there are a few things I want to change. 

I’ve been slowing down lately, planning for more time to get things done so I don’t feel harried and get grumpy. I’ve been doing one thing at a time, trying to be more focused. I’ve been spending more time reading to and playing with my kids. I’ve built some time into my week to actually  read for pleasure. I’m still working on getting enough sleep. I’ve let my chores go a little bit. Perhaps my house doesn’t always need to be immaculate nor does the laundry basket need to be completely emptied every day… Ironically I’ve also decided to up my blog posting schedule from once a week to three times a week, because while it is more work, it keeps me happy, my brain busy and more motivated. And… I’m liking it. I’m not saying I have a perfect balance going with my time; but it was well with thinking though my day and making adjustments. 

I wonder, what about you guys? Are your days too busy, or do you have time for the important stuff, good work, love, and play? How do you keep it all in balance?

Well, I’ll certainly be the first to admit I don’t have this whole time balance thing figured out. But meanwhile, in honor of our efforts to get there I figured I’d share one of my favorite dinner recipes that’s easy, uncomplicated, and delicious. The wonderful Beef Stroganoff recipe lets you cook a great meal with not too much fuss; and hopefully leaves you a little more time to spend somewhere other then the kitchen. In my personal opinion that somewhere should be on the couch, curled up under your favorite blanket with a good book, the love of your life, and a bowl of stroganoff.