This has been a crazy spring and summer for me. In April and May my husband and I went through the stressful and exciting process of negotiating for our first house. In the beginning of June we packed up our lives, signed the papers, and bought our first home.
In the middle of June we moved to our magical house and it has been pretty chaotic every since. I have been traveling for work, my husband has been in Brazil, my parents came to visit, and my children have not had a sense of routine since we started packing up the house in late May.
As this transition started to hit, I knew THIS WAS THE MOMENT.
This was the opportunity for me to truly practice the art of life balance. This was the opportunity for me to practice self care in the midst of chaos.
This is not what I discovered.
Instead, I discovered the ebb and flow of life. Life got crazy. I got tired. I have been going with the flow enjoying my new home and my beautiful gardens. I love watching my boys splash in the sprinklers. Overall, life has been fantastic…but something inside me – deep inside of me – knows there is a life transition going on. My inner being somehow knows there is a disruption in the force.
This transition is making me see the practice of life balance in a new light. You can always hear me say that life balance means different things to different people. Now I’m able to realize that life balance also means different things at different points in time.
When we practice the art of life balance, we cannot practice the same way all the time from situation to situation. Our external environments are too powerful. Our internal compass needs to learn how to adapt.
I have been learning how to adapt and live within the ebb believing in the process and the flow. It has not been easy. I have not been exercising, I have not been eating healthy, and I have not been doing all the things intellectually I know I should be doing in regards to self care.
As you can probably image, this is not easy for me to admit.
The good news is that I can choose to learn from this experience and I can choose to walk away from those behaviors that are not serving me (and not serving others).
Today is a New Day!
Today I tell you that I’m human and that sometimes the practice of life balance is hard. I am gaining awareness of where I am in this transition and decided today is a new day.
- Today I brought some routine back into my life.
- Today I brought some well needed self care back into my life.
- Today I ate healthy (and yes, I consider frozen mini york peppermint patties healthy if I eat them in moderation).
- Today I worked out with my personal trainer for the first time in three weeks.
- Today I relaxed during a manicure and a pedicure.
- Today I meditated (yes, it’s considered meditating even if I only do it for 2 minutes).
- Today I called one of my best friends and reached out via email to 3 of my best friends from high school.
Today I give myself permission to be human.
This is Your Moment
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Today I give myself permission to…..
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[…] Giving myself permission to be human […]
Stacey,
I can fully empathise, since I just moved into my own place too and the last month has been total chaos – lots of fun, but a disruption of my routine, just like you.
Great work getting back to blogging so quickly, something I haven’t quite managed yet… hoping to this week. Enjoy your own place, there’s nothing like HOME!
Daphne @ Joyful Days´s last blog post..Your 24 Possible Personal Strengths
“When we practice the art of life balance, we cannot practice the same way all the time from situation to situation. Our external environments are too powerful. Our internal compass needs to learn how to adapt.”
I’ve found this to be true too. Also, that there have been times when I’ve found myself in-process and needing to do some rearranging without anything clearly going on in my environment – where the change in me seemed more organic or an expression of things going on subconsciously.
Daphne – Welcome home. Glad to know you are enjoying your new home too.
Paul – I’m realizing different times calls for different solutions.
Hi Stacey
I want to acknowledge you for being honest about the challenging moments in life. Also I find it of great strength to ‘bounce back’ on your feet quite rapidly. Learning from the situation and starting again from today onwards… I like the idea of being able to re-start your life any second of your life. It is OK if we get shaken up sometimes … we always have the power to decide how we handle it from there.
Enjoy the moment as it is. This too shall pass.
Hilde
Hilde´s last blog post..This fragile balance 🙂
Hi Stacey,
Welcome to your new home! What a great place you have (the flowers look amazing!).
Sometimes life throws us a curveball or two. When they happen at the same time, even our best laid plans can become lost. That’s okay. Stacey, you are doing wonderfully, especially considering the amount of change you’ve been through. So, I celebrate you, for doing all that you have with all that’s been happening. And look at what you’ve done just recently – all of it – wonderful!
I give myself permission to…be flexible…
Lance´s last blog post..Sunday Thought For The Day
Congratulations on your first home. It’s a good thing for all of us to admit we’re normal, we don’t have to pretend and life is great anyway.
Today I give myself permission to cry.
Tess The Bold Life´s last blog post..The Power of Focus
One statement struck a cord with me… “Self care in the midst of chaos”… Thank you, Stacey, and congratulations on the new home. It looks wonderful.
Regards,
Darren
Darren Sproat´s last blog post..A Little Piece of Happy
Thanks Stacey for a great article! My husband and I are looking for our first house right now and Lord willing we will be able to get one in the next couple of months. Your article came in right in time because now I know what to expect and what to be prepared for.
I guess the search for a life balance can never end because there is always something that will throw you out of balance. And I am really glad that our lives are that way because it means that there is always something new to learn and discover, some new challenges to overcome.
Thank you for making me think about it today 🙂
What a great post! We do need to give ourselves permission to be human. It is so easy to be tough on ourselves.
Dropped by from SITS.
Hi Stacey — that sounds like great awareness — realizing in the moment of moving into the new house that “this is the moment,” meaning that you can choose to relax and surrender in that situation and not just when you’ve got a less hectic schedule.
Hilde – It’s great to hear from you. The ebbs and flow may not be easy, but they are easier knowing I have my practice of life balance to bounce back to again and again.
Lance – “A curveball or two” – or three or four. They have all been amazing, beautiful, wonderful, curveballs…but they are still curveballs.
Tess – It was not easy to admit that I am normal, but it was very liberating to admit that I am human.
Darren – Thank you. Self care in the midst of chaos is hard but so worth it. My Friday afternoon get away was wonderful.
Anastasiya – Good luck with your house hunting. And your right, the search for life balance never ends. It’s a life journey.
Debbie – It is so easy to be tough on ourselves. Today I’m taking it easy on myself.
Chris – Yes. I have surrendered.
I think knowing your own cycles is key, along with the stages of the scenarios you’re in. For example, whenever I’m starting a project or closing a project, it’s like moving a mountain. Following that, I need my downtime to renew and recharge. It’s that ebb and flow and the cycle of things that always reminds me life’s not static and to ride the waves.
J.D. Meier´s last blog post..Discover Your Why
Congratulations! And for recognizing the ebb and flow. Life is not steady…we’re constantly moving. Enjoy everything about your new home!!
J.D. – The older I grow the more aware I become of the waves I need to ride.
Stacey Shipman – I’m thankful that life is not steady, but sometimes the constantly moving ride throws off my body, mind, and spirit.
Hi Stacey,
Congratulations on your new home. It’s beautiful, as are the flowers.
Admitting we have gotten off track is half the battle. I like to say, “In a perfect world…”, but as we all know, life throws us curve balls. Although things may not always go according to plan, the unplanned moments are often the ones that create the best memories.
Barbara Swafford´s last blog post..Our Target Audience – Aiming For The Bulls Eye
As others have already said, congratulations on the new house. That is an incredible step forward in life. My husband and I bought our first new home 10 years ago. We rented the first 20+ years of our marriage.
Going with the flow means going along with whatever Life throws at you. I have a tendency to resist change of any kind initially. When I look at my fears, then I can release them after validating their reason for appearing in the first place. Then I can step back into the flow and go along smoothly until the next change comes along. I can see progress but I will never do it perfectly.
Perfect was what I thought I had to be as a child. Today I know that isn’t healthy for me and it isn’t practical. Progress is much better than perfection. Have a glorious day unless you choose to do otherwise.
Patricia – Spiritual Journey Of A Lightworker´s last blog post..Blog Link Love
Barbara – Yes, I have gotten off track, but now as I look back, I think I actually prepared for it. Now I’m back on track and rolling with the punches.
Patricia – Thanks for the little lesson on perfection. I stopped aiming for perfection a long time ago, but it still tries to creep in every now and then.
Stacey,
With the obvious quality you put into your blogging, I think you will find a balance in your life transition – you will dedicate the time. The road is generally shaky when you move into new territory. Changes take adjustment.
I am glad you are taking the time to be human, I wish more people would and hope a lot of people are able to remember this lesson.
BTW, I have just nominated you for a Kreativ Blogger award, it is basically a pay it forward for all of your efforts. Details on my blog.
simply stephen´s last blog post..Spotlight on Simplicity – Kreativ Blogger Award
congrats on the new home, wish you every happiness
fashionista´s last blog post..Downtime
Hi Stacey. This is my first time here and, wow, what an intro. What kindred spirits we are; including the kind of women we are and the kind of blog we’ve given our time to developing. I’ll be adding you to my reader to see what else you’ve got coming up. 🙂
Thank you for sharing yourself so honestly. Congrats on your new home, and most especially, all of the efforts you’ve done to realign your life and aim for balance once again.
As always, TCOY (take care of you)!
Suzanne´s last blog post..Taking Care of Your Home is TCOY
“When we practice the art of life balance, we cannot practice the same way all the time from situation to situation. Our external environments are too powerful. Our internal compass needs to learn how to adapt.”
I think there are a lot more people who think that if they just do it the same old, same old their lives will be perfected and balanced…like never missing a day to vacuum…rules, rules…
Enjoy being human and 2 minute meditations.
I used to say to myself 30 minutes of something is better than 30 minutes of nothing….it always works to help the balance return
Hasn’t this been the busiest summer?
Patricia´s last blog post..Part II: The case for Eliminating Wall Street
Hey stacey,
awwwwsome article 🙂
i think you can strip it back a bit… “i give myself permission to be” is enough.
that precludes and includes being anything.
inspiring stuff.
gave it a stumble.
keep well and in touch
alex – unleashreality
Alex – Love it! I give myself permission to BE!