In my head, the success of a day is measured by whether the dogs get a walk. On most days -- at least as of late -- they don't. I'm in the Month of Insanity at work, so my kids are raising themselves, and the dogs are misbehaving (digging holes, eating rugs), and Tom is on the road. The dust is definitely piling up, and even Max told me the other day that one of our bathrooms needed cleaning. (That's rough when the 5-year-old notices...)
So yesterday, I walked the dogs! We've had lovely 60-dgree weather all week, and I've barely looked out the window. I had no business choosing the dogs over business, but I couldn't stand it any longer. I even invited my friend Daria to join us, so I was able to squeeze in 30 minutes of social. Bonus.
Of course, when 4:30 p.m. rolled around -- with three work projects, a taekwondo class, dinner and a pie for a school fundraiser still on the docket for the evening -- I wasn't so sure that dog walk was worth it.
Today's a new day though. No dog walk yet, but I did fix a picture that had fallen from its mat. It hangs in our entry way, and has been skewed for a couple of months now. I've looked at it every day, and every day, I've rolled my eyes at myself for not fixing it. It's done now, and my head is just a little clearer.
I also took a little time out today for a book club kickoff with a team of readers in Will's class. (We're reading Because of Winn Dixie, written by one of my favorite authors Kate DiCamillo.) I was pretty stressed when I left the house, but 30 minutes with four cute and curious fourth graders fixed that. More clarity.
Followed by a 10-minute rock session listening to Pete Yorn, and I was almost ready to walk the dogs. But the emails started piling up and the deadlines starting poking at me. No dice for the dogs. But I'm not giving up on calling it a good day. They didn't get their walk, but that picture got fixed, book club got started, and I'm offering up some of my favorite advice to myself: Appreciate what you did get done today, not what you didn't.
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I love this! I measure success in little ways, too, like if the kids get a hot meal or Cheerios for dinner.
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