Chillaxing

That's chill and relaxing combined.

We really thought this was clever of us to come up with this one.

Until we found out the whole continental United States (and Hawaii, of course) use the word "chillax" quite frequently.

Okay then.


I still like it.


CHILLAX, dude.

I just finished reading "Not So Fast" by Ann Kroeker. In it she describes the struggle of slowing down and enjoying life rather than filling our lives with too many noble pursuits. It comes down to our own personal limits and being able to recognize when we're too busy to worship, love, show compassion, create, be in the present with our kids. I loved the book -and I needed it badly - but as I read the final pages it occurred to me that one year ago, when we were still in Mexico, it would have meant nothing to me. Honestly, in my time in Latin America I never experienced over-busyness. We were busy sometimes, yes, but never more than we could handle and only for a short season. There were fewer options, less activities to sign your kids up for. Things were just slower. Our pace and everyone else's was just more chillaxed.

Which brings me to this thought - this is the American lifestyle we're going up against. The status quo. That American ideal of bigger, better, faster, more is killing us. Are too many options and opportunities doing more harm than good? What we thought was enriching our kids lives is stealing their childhood instead. Powerful stuff.

I'm well aware that our pace actually needs to pick up. It's the natural flow of things, of our kids getting older. Brooklyn will be in school soon, with lots of activities happening in connection with that. We're signing her up for a kids soccer league this fall. I've got some new opportunities coming up as well. I'm looking forward to all these new activities. But I'm also very leery of over-scheduling our family. It's a delicate balance and we're heading into some unknown waters here. It's all about experimenting and about being able to say no and accepting that sometimes we'll have to back off.

All I know is that for the time-being we're enjoying the last bits of summer. I feel less inclined to freak out about laundry or cleaning and more inclined to take the girls to the park, to sit outside together in the sun, to cuddle in the mornings and tell stories. I wish I'd done that all summer long rather than just now at the end. It's a lesson for life and living. Leave time to do the things that matter and let the rest go. Whether it's cleaning or an extra activity, make daily choices that put the important things first.

But most of all, just chillax!