The Best of Intentions

A good excuse for skipping a few items on the to-do list
if ever there was one.

I have been in a perpetual state of overwhelm for something like nine or ten years, at least. I'm sure many of you can relate. There's just always so much living to do! When things are busy, I like to cut myself a bit of slack, because there's really no point in being stressed out all of the time. 

So, when I didn't get thank you notes out for the gifts people sent right around Annabelle's birth, I cut myself a bit of slack. I had a new baby, you see. People would understand. When I didn't get holiday cards mailed, I cut myself a bit of slack. I had a nine month old, and a husband who had only just returned from eight long months away, you see. People would understand. When I missed a birthday here and there, I knew people would understand. 

Here's the trouble, though: these things I've been cutting myself slack on are important. They're not life or death, or really anything close, but they matter to me. I have, as they say, the best of intentions. I want to stay connected with the important people in my life. I want them to know that I'm thinking of them and that I care what's going on in their world, but intentions don't go very far in accomplishing any of that. 

I'm beginning to realize that things are always going to be busy. At this point, I have only one child and I live on a supremely laid back tropical island. Sure, I have more than enough demands on my time, but it's only going to get more hectic from here. If I can't find a rhythm here and now, I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever find one. I don't want to be too hard on myself, but I do want to work toward taking my intentions and actually turning them into action.

The biggest thing that has been bothering me has been a total failure to keep up with our extended family. The daddy and I failed to acknowledge his mom's anniversary. My grandpa had a big birthday earlier this month, and while I thought about it countless times in the weeks preceding, I totally failed to acknowledge it on the actual day, or even during the actual week. I wanted to make cute Mother's Day cards with Annabelle for her grandmothers, but I just sort of forgot until it was way too late. Unfortunately, I don't think my intentions made any of these people feel special on their big days. 

So, as my first act in operation: turn intentions into action, I have transferred all of our family's birth and anniversary dates (would you believe I already had all of that information carefully organized in a spreadsheet so that I could keep up with it, and I still managed to forget all the stinking time?) to my google calendar and set it to remind me of events ten days in advance. Plenty of time to get a card or make something special, right? Now I just need to figure out how to keep my house as clean as I intend to! If only...

How about you? Do you have tips on getting organized, or at the very least managing to remember things so that your actions can reflect your intentions? What's your system? I would love to hear from you!