Routine and Relaxation  –  See. Perceive. Act.

Some moms, former procrastinators, are so glad summer comes they let everything go.  They long to be free of schedules and routines.  The clock, the calendar, and all order go out the window.  I might like that for a week or so, but pretty soon turmoil would drive me to scream, “Everybody come back!  Regroup!”  I’d see lack of order, perceive inner and outer chaos, and act to recover reason. I want to enjoy summer, not be exhausted by it.

Routine and relaxation actually go very well together.  Routine facilitates relaxation.  And in the summer, we can have a more relaxed routine.

Everybody still wants to eat.  Sleep is a necessity.  Sooner or later, you have to wash clothes. It just makes sense to have a thought-out approach to dealing with these things so that they are done but do not weigh on you.  You do them in a timely manner so they don’t drag you down and interfere with time off.

Decide what regular chores must be done, when, and by whom.  Will you have a rotating system so nobody has the same job all summer?  Or do you want to experiment with that this time?

Decide what other activities will be part of your routine.  Some families spend a few minutes daily with math and reading so students don’t grow stale and struggle to catch up when school starts.  What about music or voice?

Decide what personal preferences you’ll honor.  Someone sleeps later than others or will all be up at the same time?  Someone’s on the swim team?  Someone is working? 

Decide when you want regular chores to be done.  By 10 am so the rest of the day is free? 

You choose what will be best for you.  Determine your routine for accomplishing work and the rest of your time is up to you.  If you’re employed, you’ll have less discretionary time, but you should still have summer hours to enjoy.

Maintain a routine in order to accomplish necessary work and the routine will lighten your load. Work will not pile up. You’ll avoid decision fatigue because you won’t have to figure out what to do over and over.  The work will be easier to accomplish because it won’t compete with school.  Then summer will likely give you more time for choosing what you’d like to do. Maybe you’ll have a morning routine and an evening one and freedom in between.  With a routine, you know the work is getting done and you can relax.

What will be your summer routine?