Taking time out

      After what has been a very full on week, I find myself feeling just flat, my body is telling me a little break is needed, I know I have things I should be doing but sometimes you just need to relax, take time out, recharge your batteries. So after a busy morning that included customers picking up, a bit of housework, some shopping and dropping in to a cancer fundraiser to do our bit, it's time to just sit and wind down for a while. It's a sunny day outside, but the wind is freezing, so the couch is beckoning, there are V8 super cars racing on the TV, a cuppa to be enjoyed and a lovely scented candle to add to the air of relaxation.

      It is so nice to just sit and chill for a little while, I think we tend to forget that we need to recharge, going nonstop isn't good for you, your body needs a break every now and then. The problem these days is we are all so busy rushing from one place to another and cramming so much into every day that the only time we take a break is when we are sick. Being sick is our bodies way of forcing us to slow down, because you can only ignore the warning signs your body gives you for so long. Luckily for the majority of people it's usually a minor illness that forces that break, but for others it's a major life changing illness. 

       Experiencing such a serious illness can totally change your perspective, it brings into focus what is truly important, instead of constantly rushing through life, you learn to stop sweating the small stuff, to enjoy the important moments and most importantly to be grateful for every day you have will the people you love. Priorities seem a little out of wack these days, we spend so much time worrying about money, about buying our kids the latest and greatest gadget, we forget what is really important.

        Take a second and look at your kids, is having the latest iPad so important to them or is spending time with you, feeling loved, laughing at something silly, enjoying hugs or wrestles what they really want. Are they going to remember what toys they had when they are an adult? They will remember days spent being lavished with attention, great family moments, even just spending a day running around a park, they will remember times when you snuggled on the couch enjoying a movie. The most happy memories of my childhood involve being surrounded by family, they are days on the beach, in the park, camping in a tent with a portable toilet, nights around a fire. It's not what we were doing that matters, it's the memory of being together with family and feeling loved. 

       I know my kids love movie afternoons, we all sit together with popcorn and a movie, the movie isn't important, it's the relaxing and spending time as a family, watching motor racing is another favourite family past time, as it was we I was younger, I'm hoping as my kids get older these memories of being together as a family, stay with them. We still have a busy life, but finding the balance between work, sports and family time is more important these days, my family is my top priority and having family time is more important than ever, even if it is just relaxing watching the V8's race on TV. 

      So just remember relaxing is actually good for your body and your piece of mind, relaxing as a family strengthens the bonds you share, take a break, enjoy what you have achieved in your life, take a deep breath and chill, go on I dare you, you might even enjoy it!!!!