I love blogging. I mean, I really love blogging. I love that I can look back and I have a pretty much complete record of our family life over the past almost four years. I wonder why on earth I hadn’t thought to start earlier. As I say, I love blogging.
What I don’t love, though, is how much time I spend at the computer.
At the beginning of summer I popped on my step monitor. I couldn’t understand, now I had my eating under control, why I still couldn’t seem to lose any weight. According to the NHS you are deemed sedentary if you walk less than 5000 steps per day. On average, according to my step monitor, unless I went for a long walk I was currently hitting around 3000 steps on an average day. Obviously this went up on the days I went for a nature walk with the children or as a family we took a walk in the woods. But on a normal day, 3000 steps was it. I was horrified. Just a few short years ago, I was hitting 15000 with very little effort (this was when I walked alone each night for an hour). Well, at least I knew why I wasn’t losing any weight. This time it had little to do with my intake and more to do with my sitting habit, which I had clearly perfected over the past couple of years.
I love blogging, but it was beginning to kill me. My back was constantly aching, and the walking I used to find so much pleasure in was harder than it used to be. Things needed to change. But, as I say, I love blogging.
I have a massive personality flaw, which has frankly been the bane of my life from the moment I was born. Everything is all or nothing. I am incapable of any middle ground. I knew I would either be ecstatically happily married or incredibly unhappy. I would either be full on career woman or full on house wife/Mummy. See? No middle ground! And I am either zooming through life at the rate of knots or I am moving at the pace of a snail. I’m guessing it all evens out at the end of the day so, in general, I have made it work for me. I have learnt about the peaks and troughs of my personal energy levels and do certain activities during times of higher energy levels and easier ones when energy is low. But this sitting at the computer is pretty constant. I plan school at the computer; I order shopping and groceries at the computer; and of course I blog. And, as you know, I love to blog.
This summer I made the decision I would continue to blog and school plan, but apart from that, the computer was off-limits. This meant pulling back from any pleasure or relaxation time spent on the computer. Well, this summer has been a highly productive one and I have found that the more I walk and am away from the computer the better my back has been. I have spent more time working alongside my children and enjoying their company. It has been a good summer. But it has brought about a reflection or two pertaining to the future of Angelicscalliwags.
This almost daily blogging I have been maintaining for the past four years is slowly killing me. It is taking me away from those who are most precious to me, and it is creating for me a sedentary life style. The lure to write, to capture moments and memories, is far too strong. To be honest I am not sure I can pull back. But I must. For the sake of my family and for the sake of my health.
I don’t want to stop altogether, so I am going to attempt moderation. This is not my natural state (this is SO not my natural state) and I know I will find it hard, but I am going to attempt to only write between three to four times a week. Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. I am also going to attempt to have some sort of organisation to my posts. I’m fairly certain this will make me feel hemmed in, but I am going to give it a shot. Monday’s post will be a post about some aspect of our home school; Wednesday’s post will either be a review or a post which will go someway to organising my blog a bit better; Friday’s post will remain a Precious Moments post, all about the family, and on Saturday I aim to write a Seasons of Joy post, basically all about MEEEEEEE.
And that computer chair will only be used for blogging early in the morning or late at night, when I won’t be missing spending time with those I love by staring at a screen. During their waking moments I want to be with them. As the saying vaguely goes – a computer can’t keep me warm at night (yes I may have got a little confused and mixed up a few sayings there, but you get my drift).
Over the summer I have been walking each day with my mum. A whole hour spent in nature. What a way to start or end the day. My back is so much better, I get to spend an hour with my own precious mum and I get to surpass the sedentary zone in my step numbers…..in fact, I may be heading towards active 🙂
So next term? Blogging less, and living more. Less screen time and even more time for giggling with those I love. Things are going to change. More balance, less ‘all or nothing’ mentality. I may love blogging (and I do, I really do) but I love my family more. Here’s to a new era at Angelicscalliwags <3
This has spoken to me and I am going to try to spend less time on the computer too. My son is away for a month and when he comes back mid September we will both be spending a lot more time together and a lot less computer time. He is 15 now and in a blink will be grown so this time is so precious and I don’t want to look back and think I didn’t make the most of it because I was always on the computer.
Good for you. I can only manage to blog one or two times a week. Life is just to fast and I have to spend so much time on ebay to try and make money to pay for the kids dance. Are you going to drop out of the review crew?
Blessings, Dawn
Claire, I do understand. I am sure you have noticed I have been absent from the blog world quite a bit. I, too, am having similar health troubles, and much of it related to too much sitting. My oldest in a senior, my middle, a junior. Time is going way too fast to spend it glued to a screen. Blessings to you as you set off on this new path for your life. With God, all things are possible!
Wonderful post Claire! Wise decisions, and all for the love of your family. Sounds like a great plan and great year ahead.
I know exactly what you mean as I have gone through a blogging hiatus. I love to blog and I love to have a record of the family’s life, but right now I barely have the energy to do it, let alone record it. Perhaps my stamina will build up and I will get back into a rhythm again, balancing everything I need and want to accomplish. My sedentary life is no longer as I am walking all over the college campus and to
Quentin ‘s activities, so that is not an issue with me. Exhaustion is, however. : )
It must be a stage in life we are entering – as I could have written this post, most of it anyway, on my blog. Moderation is a difficult thing to master, especially when it comes to blogging. I have so many things I’d like to share and record right now – but you’re right – more time in front of the computer…sitting…isolated from family….is hardly healthy. If I hadn’t “met” so many great people while blogging. I hate to lose track of any of you. I hope you succeed in blogging with moderation – maybe you can start a movement, and lead us all to healthier habits 🙂
This horribly slow internet we have in the boonies has been a real blessing in some ways, exercise-wise! I get so frustrated that I go hike off my irritation. 🙂 I think you and I have reverse goals this season, though – I need to up my blog posts as I’m only managing about 3 a month at this point versus the 3-5 a week I did before we moved. I’m aiming for two a week. And I’ll be cheering you on in your goals!
I hear you and very touched by the way you shared your heart. I’ve been cutting back myself and very well could share the same type of post. Your thoughts are more organized while my are still scattered trying to find that balance. We start back to school with a full schedule this coming week and blogging will have to be set aside. ((hugs)) and maybe we can pray for each other in this area.
I’m right with you. I took a miniature break of necessity this summer and only blogged what was required for the review crew. It was liberating. I felt like a better mother and I’m more active at home. I am more involved in life. I haven’t decided what it means for me, but it feels good to not be at my computer (and this from a software developer).
It’s so hard to notice when things have crept up on you, so well done for realising! I love your blog posts, but it would be so sad if you weren’t able to keep living the wonderful life that we like reading about. I’m quite all or nothing too, but I’m learning slowly that structure and moderation are the scaffolding that I can build my life around, not a cage that is built around my life.
Sounds like a great idea, Claire. I only manage to write 1 post a week (and not even that recently), but I do manage to spend a *huge* amount of time on the computer nonetheless, mostly wasting time really. It’s great to hear that you are enjoying your walks with your mum, and I think spending the time with my family, and also setting them a good example would be the best outcomes of me reducing computer time 🙂
I went through a similar thing for number of posts a few years ago, I still spend way too much time at the computer, but that’s more because I lack focus/discipline.