Free for all Friday!

I can tell you one thing- after this week I am it is FINALLY Friday!  

I figured that after such a busy, stressful, down right week from HELL, I should share some tips on how I survive my BUSY weeks!

What made my week so BUSY.. Well October 1st of course!  I work from home for a company that builds portals for a part of the medical world.  Well, with government involvement, that is this thing called Meaningful Use where practices need to meet their Meaningful Use requirements by certain deadlines for attestation- well that is where our portal comes in to help them meet. 

So, with October 1st as the big day, that has meant a BIG PUSH with our company. Needless to say, it has been a week of 10+ hour days and a lot of back and forth, customer service and accountability on my own part! And to top it all off, I am 5 months into this job and still trying to find my *groove!

Plus, my little brother moved back to Ohio from California to take on a (Mad) Scientist job in Columbus and came to our neck of the woods for a visit and to take some stuff back to the new home. (including my kitchen table that has been replaced by the huge Island!)

I am trying to juggle, literally- work, kids, Hubby, and work in some time with my Little Bro and his BF, Cliff. It has been wild!  And to top off my stresses, I am on a fitness journey, that I am not so ON yet...and trying to work it into my routine- unfortunately at the end of my day I am SO tired that I crash in the girls beds after story time, so these workouts are getting later and later. (pulled directly from the pages of "Life of a Working Mom", right!) 

We ALL have weeks like this, but there are things that we can all do to help make these kinds of week easier to survive so that we can thrive when these hellish weeks do happen.

8 Tips on How to Survive a Busy Week

1. Sleep.  I know that I just said I was so tired that I was catching the ZZZ's in the girls bed after story time- and that is NO JOKE!  It's hard to get rest when you week is on hyper drive, but being well-rested will help you get a handle on everything that still lies ahead of you.

2. Eat Healthy.  It is kind of common sense, but I know that when I am rushed around, my meal plans get rushed as well! It is no good. It is so important to continue to be healthy so that your body has enough energy to get you through the day. 

3. Exercise.  Yes, I know, let's squeeze this in while my day is already packed full, but moderate exercise will give you more energy, help you feel better about YOU, relieve stresses and help to support your immune system.

4. Give yourself a little Room to Breathe.  You think you can do it all, but when your week is allowing no breathing room, make some!  You need to go easy on yourself and postpone or cut out activities that do not have to get done right now and take that time to let yourself unwind and relax. Maybe you don't make dinner, but simply order out, or you don't fold the laundry tonight so you can read. Those errands will still be there next week, when, hopefully you are less frantic!

5. Ask for help. I have the hardest time with this one! I am learning that it is NOT admitting weakness when I ask for a little extra help. In the end it does ease my mind and cuts the number of things down from my list for the day.

6. Laugh.  Ask yourself how often you laugh?  Find reasons to laugh.  If your in a stressful situation, seek it out.  There are a lot of outlets to help you laugh, TV, things your kids say, something your pets do, YouTube, a joke website. There are tons of reasons to laught but sometimes we just need to be watching for them or we miss them entirely. This is true when we are busy!

7. Learn.  If you are busy because of your own faults, learn from these mistakes and find out what you can do to ensure that this doesn't happen again.  If it is not your own fault, then you need to remember that life happens, don't blame anyone and find peace in knowing that you can cope and make it through, alive!

8. Enjoy.  I think that is the the most important thing to do, try to find something to enjoy in each day- no matter how hectic or crazy it is.  This day will never come again, so try to find the beauty in it, a reason to be grateful!

These are just some of my tips to help me get through my insane weeks.  They don't happen often, but when they do I look back on my simple steps to help me find my way through without taking out my own frustrations on my Hubby or Kids or anyone around me. I find it in myself to stay calm, understand within myself that I am not Super Woman, and that tomorrow is another day and remain hopeful about the simple fact that Friday is almost here!

~KEL