SCRADD rides again...

Yes, it appears that my Small Child - Related Attention Deficit Disorder continues unabated. I seem to have given up on my earlier attempts at reading, and have taken up various "projects", instead...

• Writing one (1) children's talk for Sunday, including a crash course on sketching
• Hemming and putting up curtains (6) for three (3) windows in the family room
• Completing two (2) Beatrix Potter cross-stitch projects for Essie's room
• Planting lots (?) of bulbs for spring
• Repotting one (1) magnolia "little gem" so it won't block out the light when it gets older.
• Printing out digital photos
• Finding time to put mounds of digital photos into albums in a way that is helpful for posterity.
  
• Finding the dryer mounting hooks so it can be moved away from the laundry cupboard.
• Removing the final dregs of the conifer from the vegie patch (stubborn root system)
• Hanging shelves in the study so we have a little more breathing space at desk level.

It's getting to be rather manic, now. I think I need help...

Relaxing in stress

For the past few weeks, our family (well, the adults in our family - the children have been unwilling passengers) have been swimming in a sea of work. It was Friday when we popped our heads up for a brief attempt at rest. We failed dismally.

Why do we struggle so much to relax?
There are a couple of reasons. Firstly, our home is our office. Hence, home is no longer a restful haven, and any rest to be gained must be done away from the house, lest we drown in a sea of phone calls.
Secondly, working in our small town means that we cannot simply go to the local park/cafe etc. Stepping out in town invariably results in us running into at least several people from our congregation, all of whom immediately assume we're bludging. So no walks down the road to the playground for us!
Thirdly, I have realised that I grew up with bad recreational habits. In the city, the main form of recreation is shopping. Shopping in a large mall is not a relaxing activity, particularly if you are carting around small children and a reluctant husband. On our stretched budget, it's also far too expensive. And that's completely forgetting the futility of the activity anyway...
The fourth, and biggest problem with our ability to relax is that we haven't had the time to plan what to do. Days off hit us like an ambush, and we waste most of it wondering where to go. Our most recent rest day devolved into a visit to a Christian bookshop and a drive to a furniture store to pick up a bookshelf. Hardly restful!

Mind you, I now have more space for my SCRADD-neglected reading matter...

Quick Update...

Perhaps admitting that you have a problem helps you to overcome it.
Since admitting that I may indeed suffer from SCRADD (Small Child-Related Attention Deficit Disorder), I have put my mind to it, and managed to finish one of the 8 neglected works floating around my home. OK, it wasn't one of the heavy, thoughtful works, just The Devil Wears Prada. But hey, it's a start! If I keep it up, at this rate I may even finish another book by the end of March.

One down, seven to go...

Books I am currently reading

I just had a quick look around the house this evening, and discovered no less than 8 partly-read books left around the place. It seems that I've developed SCRADD (small child-related attention deficit disorder).

Offered up into evidence, your honour:

Shalimar the Clown Salman Rushdie
Princess Masako Ben Hills
The Radical Reformission Mark Driscoll
The Devil Wears Prada Lauren Weisberger
Hope in the Midst of a Hostile World (Daniel) George Schwab
The Princess Bitchface Syndrome Michael Carr-Gregg
How Did it Begin? Dr R & L Brasch
This Way to Youth Ministry Robbins

Interesting mix of semi-cerebral and trashy escapism, there. I feel the pressure to maintain the reading of hefty tomes from my study days, to no avail it seems!