Spontaneity vs. Planning

I have had sooooooooo many ideas for sooooooo many fascinating post this week and I posted exactly 0 of them.

Oops.

I feel like I got completely swamped and that is what I am blaming it on.

Me getting swamped was a result of the aforementioned spontaniety and planning. I am trying out a new schedule where I get up early and do my chores before I wake the boys for school. It's leaving me more tired and I don't quite have the hang of it yet but I am getting there and I think it could become a good thing for me. I am also trying to better plan meals and my time with my sons so that both have a little more quality in them. Again, not quite there yet but I am working on it.

The down side of my self improvements is that I realized my brain can only handle so much at a time. My regular schedule plus adding at least 3 new things to think about each day has put me at maximum brain capacity.

But I didn't stop at maximum capacity, that would make too much sense!

I have several good friends who are teaching me (unbeknownst to them) the value of spontaneity. One amazing friend who kids love my kids and vice versa always plans ahead with me. Then one of us almost always has to cancel. So we've found that being more spontaneous and in the moment of, "Hey I'm free right now! Are you?" is working better for us. I like this but I have to remember to call and participate in our friendship even when it's not scheduled.

I can tell you flat out that unless you call/write me regularly I do not fall in the awesome friend category. If you put in the effort I am great at listening, offering advice, hanging out and being there for you. But if I am required to initiate it I slack off and so does our friendship :( I acknowledge the problem...we'll see if I can ever take the next step towards fixing it.

Another friend is a planner but she spontaneously invites me to be part of her plans. Normally this would stress me but for some with her it just works out every time. We have had our kids play together, gone on an amazing walk that was the highlight of my week, anwered random questions, shopped at the mall and more. Thanks to her I ma really starting to embrace more of a can do personality and realizing that I have more choices and options with how I spend my time than I realized. She inspires me with her energy and she is the best listener. It's a good thing because she is one of my few friends that cross over to the work side of my life and I really need to vent the work stuff sometimes.

Again I will note that it's always her intiating the spontaniety but I am oh so happily willing to go along for the ride. I love it and love that I now have a friend like this in my life.

Another friend, who's stuck with me for a very long time, is the epitomy of spontaneity! You never know what she'll wear, what she'll say, the places she'll go or ideas she'll have. She's beyond fabulous and I truly admire the freedom she allows herself. I know her well enough to know that it's not always easy being as different as she is but it makes her so special and so dear to my heart. She sends me random presents and notes. For my birthday she wrote me a list of reasons that I'm awesome. Today she texted me how many days it will be til I see her again. She just takes friendship to a whole other level! I don't do any of those things for her and yet she stays my friend. I constantly think of things I could/should do to be more spontaneous like she is. Someday I will do them, thank goodness she's patient because that someday is not coming soon.

So I am well over maximum capacity on brain space right now but I am enjoying it. I am juggling my regular schedule (the one where if you aren't on my calendar you don't exist), my new found need to plan better for children, chores and meals (in an effort to finally grow up a little bit) and my desire to be more spontaneous and just do things and call people.

Aaaaaahhhh, this is the life.