1. My husband gets time away from his "job", but I very rarely do. And if I do, it's only a couple of hours (like going to the store or Bible study).
2. Mommy needs time away, too.
This past week, I joined many of my writing friends at the American Christian Fiction Writers annual conference in St. Louis, MO. I left late Tuesday afternoon, spent four days at the conference, and returned home late Sunday night. The last time I was away from my family like this was when I went to my first conference two years ago.
While I was away, I absorbed each and every moment spend learning, talking, worshiping, etc. It was a total immersion experience, and it was fun!
One of the biggest realizations was that, as a homeschooling mama, I need to make sure I get time away. Now, a five day vacation every year is not possible. But a few hours a couple times a month is definitely not impossible.
Also, this time needs to be personal. Grocery shopping does not count. Running errands does not count. Taking a long bath counts. Meeting a friend for lunch and shopping counts. Kicking back with the latest season of a favorite TV show and having a marathon counts.
Take the time to indulge in our own likes, our own hobbies, gives us something else to focus on. It helps to renew our minds and hearts. If we don't, if we let the homeschool life suck us so far in that we lose ourselves, we'll end up resenting the lifestyle that was meant to bring life and closeness to our family.
So, what do you do to indulge?
(In case you're wondering who that beautiful woman is next to me in the picture, that's fellow writer, blogger, and homeschool mama, Susan Hollaway, one of my roommates at the conference!)
