My Golden Hour

I am the queen of good intentions, and oftentimes I also get a little overzealous with ambition.

At the risk of sounding like a selfish mom who thinks her kids are a constant drain, one of my most favorite times of day is from 2 to 2:58 pm.

The Golden Hour.

If I'm honest with myself though, it usually ends up being more like 2:30 to 2:58 pm, but believe you me, that 28 minutes is like gold. That is the time of day when 3/4 of the kids are either napping or having quiet time in their rooms, while Ella is still at school. It is the time of day where I have learned to take for myself and do whatever it is I want to do - it recharges my batteries just a little bit and gets the witching-hour at least started on the right foot.

I used to make plans for that hour, of things that I needed to do, and often times I would be hurrying to do whatever it was, and I was just a wee-bit frazzled when Ella walked in the door from school. We felt it. So I needed to make it a point to just chill and do something "relaxing" during the golden hour. Now granted, taking this time "off" means having to get it done in the morning, but it's worked out well. The kids all get to watch a little PBS in the morning - and I now use that time to run around and get things done around the house. Problem solved.

This particular day I think I got a tad excited about my alone time. It must have been a Friday. I only had 35 minutes that day, too. I think the only thing I got done was to catch up on about five emails...and drink my coffee! Oh well. It was fun dreaming of things I was going to accomplish...

Funny thing is, is that all of that is relaxing to me. I am not one to just be able to sit on the couch and watch TV. I need to have something in my hands. Lazy is not something I strive to be. And don't get me wrong, I don't automatically think people are lazy if they just sit in front of the TV - this is just how I tick. I feel lazy if I'm just sitting there - especially because I know there are other things that I should probably be doing, anyway.

My golden hour has been implemented for about a month now and I must say, it's made a pretty big difference in the way we start our afternoon and early evening. Ella loves it, as she gets my full attention after school; showing me what she created and telling me what she learned - all without any interruptions by other little people. Sometimes we even have time to snuggle and just talk, or watch a non-cartoon like her favorite Extreme Couponing, Hoarders, American Idol, or the Voice.

Then at 4pm, I've tried to off-set the witching hour by having a pretty rigid routine - I make dinner while they all have a snack and watch Wild Kratts (really good, btw) - then it's TV off and music on - clean up the living room - help set the table - and poof, DH is home and we all lived to tell about it.

I will admit, I've never been, and still am not a fan of the term "me" time. I feel like once you become a parent, you need to surrender your me time - willingly. Maybe my thought-process will change when my kids get older, but right now, at this stage in my life with four little people that depend on adults to help them survive, it's my job to provide for their needs - to be here for them - to be here for DH. I don't need to get out and get a message or get my nails done or whatever, in order to do my "job" well. I do, however, need food and sleep to perform. That's it. But if finding some time to hear yourself think will make a difference in how you act as a wife and parent, by all means - take it and run!

How do you recharge your batteries during the day?