How to Balance Your Family Life

Shortly after I tied the knot, I gave birth to my daughter. A year later, I gave birth to my son. Suddenly, I have 3 people added to my daily life. Within 5 years, I have become a family of 4. In all honesty, I am still trying to catch up with myself. Everything is constantly changing. Babies grow quickly with dramatic changes (size, mobility, speech, etc).

About me:

I was blessed with a loving husband and wonderful children — so far, but the one thing I wasn’t blessed with was free child care from my parents. My husband works graveyard shift while I work part time in the daytime. Basically, when he gets home, I walk out the door and make back in time for him to go to bed.

How did I find balance? I will tell you how:

1.Appreciation is a wonderful thing.

I wouldn’t change a thing. I am so glad that my husband and I are the only caretakers for our children. We get to witness everything firsthand. It is an exciting thing to see your children grow into different phases. Seeing my husband work so hard and switching around his sleeping schedule for the family is a lot of work, but somehow he is still able to watch the children at the end of his day.

Remembering to appreciate everything factors into that sense of happiness and contentment.

Positive attitudes are contagious.

2.“Home is where the heart is.”

Everything that stems from home will affect your work life and other commitments. It took me time to realize that if things aren’t going well at home, then everything will slowly but surely fall apart as well. Since home life, in general, is your foundation — it is very important to work for your family and not yourself. When I say work, I mean, invest your time and emotions in your family while making everything else a task.

3.“The stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.” -Bruce Lee

It’s all about being flexible. Adjusting to every given situation should naturally reduce your stress, avoiding frustrations. You have to work to get money, so you fill in any appropriate time slot to benefit your home life. Your children are learning and so are you. Being a newlywed calls for a lot of flexibility to set a better tone for your marriage.

4.Get your priorities straight.

What is best for you and your family as a whole. Think about how every individual is affected. Plan ahead and stick to it.

5.Patience is a virtue.

You cannot expect for things to happen overnight. Be rational.

At first, I thought that it was supposed to be easy. Little did I know, it is a lot of work. From what I gather, the work will never stop. Consistency is key. That’s why while you and your spouse are working hard, you must take time to stop and smell the roses.