How to take a break from doing all-the-things.

I spent the months of April and May glued to my computer screen. This sort of lifestyle does not match up with my values, but the fact of the matter is sometimes running a small business simply requires a lot of working time. And planner season hit us hard.

It was all hands on deck, all hours of the day, and definitely NOT my best life.

Plus, MAY with two children in school is just…a lot. Can I get an Amen? Cause I didn’t know that and now I do and ohmygoodness we will plan better next year.

So, I wore my DO-ALL-THE-THINGS hat for a couple of months straight. I worked and worked and worked, and now ​the planner is done​ and beautiful, and ​the new Library​ is all filled and ready to go. And all of that is truly wonderful!

And I am so proud. 

Also, I am so tired.

It is typical for me to take a long break from the blog in the summer, but that’s not really an option for me this year, for many reasons. So I’m not taking an extended break. 

But I am switching hats.

I’m gearing up to trade in my DO-ALL-THE-THINGS hat for my Creativity hat, and my Listener hat, and my Happy Wife hat, and my AWESOME MOM hat. 

I’m hoping that these hats feel a lot more like myself, and a lot less exhausted. 🫠

I’m creating by focusing less on my list and more on my soul. 

I want to start playing piano again, and sing with my kids. (They want to make a family band – how fun is that?!) 

As far as the Anchored Women goes, I’m praying and asking the Lord for direction for the future as I use a plain old poster board and Crayola markers to plan for the next year. (I’m open to input here, so send me any ideas you might have, or things you’d like to see us do!)

I’m listening by getting quiet and slowing down.

I’m reading more (​a lot more​) and listening to podcasts instead of watching TV. I’m journaling and just being still and it’s already filling me up.

I’m working on Happy Wife status by slowing down (again) and taking things off my plate.

Have you ever noticed that when your life is too full, it’s real easy to take your frustrations out on your husband? I mean, I’m asking for a friend, of course. 

Nope. Nope, I’m not. It’s all me.

Our home life doesn’t work the way it’s supposed to when my heart isn’t grounded like it really should be. And that makes me more of an angry wife than a happy one, so I’m working on that this summer.

And I have my babies (who are both in double digits now – how did THAT happen?!) home with me for two months, so I am determined to achieve awesome mom status this summer.

I’m going to love the heck out of them and take them on adventures and stay up late to watch movies and listen to eleven-year-old stories and fourteen-year-old worries. We’re going to read and rest and host movie nights and go to the pool and also get back to doing our own laundry because mom is not your personal housekeeper and you’re both old enough to sort, fold, and put your own clothes away thankyouverymuch.

I’m not taking a real break, but I’m shifting my focus to lean into these other parts of me a little more this summer. They definitely got set on the back-burner over the last few months, and I’m ready to take them up again in full force. 

I think maybe this might be that elusive thing we call balance…

And while things aren’t really going to look that different from your end (you’ll still get emails each week and I have a few fun things already planned), I want to be really transparent about what things look like from my end.

Because friend, running hard and pushing yourself to do-do-do all the time simply isn’t sustainable. Wearing only one hat – whether it’s your Mom hat or Coordinator hat or Creative hat or Administrative hat, or something else – isn’t healthy. 

You’re not just one thing.

You’re not just good for one skill, one strength, or one role.

You are a beautiful, complex, unique daughter of our incredibly imaginative Father. He created the whole entire world, for goodness sake! And He used that awe-inspiring power to also create YOU. All the different aspects of your soul, all the different sides of your personality, all the intricacies of wonderful, incredibly loved, YOU.

Sometimes, one side gets more focus than another. But that doesn’t mean that those other parts of who you are go away. Nor should they. It’s okay to focus more on one area in a specific season, and then shift your focus in a new season.

This is how we give ourselves grace and also quit the doing-all-the-things guilt that we were never meant to carry.

So today, I want you to think about what hat you’ve been wearing for the last few months. Is it time to switch things up, to give yourself a break?

Is it time to feed your creativity a bit? To paint, to read, to create? 

Or is it time to rest & find your footing again? 

Or is it time to heal and build up relationships you’ve been too scared to address?

Summer is here, friends. And we have a chance to use this season to do something a little bit differently. How will you use it?

Always in this together, Kayse

P.S. There are two quick things I don’t want you to miss this week. Ready?

1. If you haven’t thought about planning your summer yet, you can STILL download our ​free Summer Planning Pack!​ It will give you a structured way to think through all the issues that may arise this summer, and help you create flexible plans that serve you AND your family. You’ll love it! ​Download it here >>>​
2. Reading is at the top of my “rest” list this summer, and we compiled all of our best summer reading recommendations for you, too! Grab our ​FREE Summer Reading Guide right here >>>​