This is the third year that I’ve participated in the #onedayhh instagram photo challenge created by Laura Tremaine, joining in with thousands of other people who post throughout the day that one day a year, sharing their ordinary lives without filter or perfection. I was excited this fell on a day that truly was ordinary for me because it sticks with the spirit behind the sharing. If you follow me on instagram or facebook you’ve already seen all these photos – I posted a lot. But I wanted to get a quick recap all in one place.
I began my day around 4:30. Which is honestly pretty typical. I never set an alarm, unless it’s a very rare day I genuinely need to be somewhere early in the morning and want that safety net in case my internal alarm doesn’t go off (that never happens). Getting up so early is both a blessing and curse. I’m usually incredibly productive in those hours before anyone else is up – I wake up wide awake and raring to go, always. But I can barely function by noon, which is apparently the price I pay for my morning productivity. I’ve learned to almost never schedule things in the afternoons because I need that time to recharge. I look forward to that break time, but I hate that I feel like I NEED it. Because I really do.
It was a normal morning of working on some dolls, getting the boys and their breakfasts ready, arguing with Caden about his toast – it’s always something with one of them, and standing outside with Annie because the snow scared me too much to walk on the sidewalks.
The only “unusual” event of the day was that I went to my friend Katy’s house for coffee with a group of friends. Though it’s not really that unusual anymore, it just usually happens at my house. I didn’t want to commit to hosting that week since I had just gotten home from North Carolina and had my liver biopsy two days before. As much as I love hosting, it was really pretty awesome just having to show up somewhere and not have to do anything to get ready for it.
Back at home I fit in my daily treadmill time – not much because I was still recovering from the biopsy. But I got on it and that’s what counts. I worked some more and made myself a pretty lame lunch of healthy organic tortilla chip nachos. I finished up my book swap dolls I was working on and went to take my afternoon nap!
I spent a few hours in the afternoon working on my gift guides. The temperatures rose and the snow melted, so I was able to take Annie on a short walk after all. And then I worked on dinner prep, we ate, and I spent another chunk of time on my gift guides. I finished the evening with some reading, tv with Greg, and in bed around ten.
What I really enjoy about this annual challenge is that it reminds me how much I truly do in a single day. Sometimes I feel like such a failure. I’m always questioning my worth and if I’m doing ENOUGH. Because nothing EVER feels like enough. But when it’s all right there in front of me and I can visually evaluate how many things I managed to do in 18 hours, it brings me a sense of pride and accomplishment. I don’t want to equate my worth with how much I can do in any given time, but it helps to see that I AM doing things. I even had time to see friends! I spent short, but quality time with each of my family members. I walked on the treadmill AND walked Annie. I completed a couple of great gift guides. I made two dolls almost completely from start to finish (the first dolls I’ve made all month!). I made three actual meals. I took a nap. I read. I took a moment to appreciate the beauty of the sunlight streaming through my windows. It was a completely ordinary day and a very accurate representation of what most of my days look like. I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to join in this challenge for another year.
