Recently, my husband and I had the opportunity to have an entire night to ourselves. Both the kiddos spent the night at Nana and Papa’s so that meant we could stay out late without the fear of a 5 am wake up call. It seemed very exciting at first – Where would we go? Could we fit in a couple stops? We decided to make a dinner reservation at a restaurant downtown that we had always wanted to try and figured we’d walk around City Scape for a bit, maybe ice skate, maybe hit a bar with a live band….
We went to our dinner destination and loved every second of it (for those interested, check out The Arrogant Butcher, yummo!) We stayed for dessert and coffee and then walked out, fully intending to do something next. As we started to stroll in the cold I looked at my hubby and said, “Want to just go home and take the dog for a walk to see Christmas Lights and pop in a movie?” I thought he was going to faint from shock. The one word no one has ever described me as is a homebody. He, on the other hand, is definitely one and I saw how his shock turned to thankfulness very quickly. We made our way home, threw on cozy clothes and headed out for an hour long walk with our pup, followed by binge watching our favorite show, Parenthood (we’re on season, five, and OMG is it good!)
The next day I had planned to take the kids out to do a bunch of activities when they arrived home. Both came home tired and content so I did something I never do – I switched gears and set up our large party table in the living room and scattered it with art supplies, puzzles and building toys. They played for hours. And best of all, they didn’t fight! It was heavenly. I caught up on emails, organized my closet, took a nap…really refreshing.
I quickly found that our winter break was turning out to be a time to refuel, re-energize and learn to appreciate the down time, rather than trying to pack in thirty activities every day. We didn’t have to worry about plans that might get cancelled or schedules that had to be followed. Don’t get me wrong, I love the hustle and bustle and we did get to partake in all the typical holiday fun, but we also found time just for rest.
Being a person who has recently had no choice but to slow down due to medical problems, I thought I would resist and resent becoming a homebody. But what I came to realize is that it is a nice way to be. My New Year’s Resolution is clear after the last two weeks: take time for my family and I to do nothing more than exist. I think we will all appreciate the clear calendar and find pleasure in simple things just a little more.
I love it! We’re exactly the same way around here but often, we don’t even make it out for dinner! We pick up something or order in. I wouldn’t have imagined this life in my twenties even if I had tried…and I love it!
Exactly, I used to have way more energy! But the homebody life is becoming pretty appealing! Hope it is for you too — thanks for the comment Nikki!