Being Intentional

My life seems to feel most chaotic when I get lost in the day to day 'busy'ness and stress.  If I'm not truly thinking about what I'm doing & why I'm doing it, it all starts to feel like a neverending blur.

This week I've been trying to be intentional in how I act and interact...and in how I think.  Here are a few things I've been working on...

1.  Being intentional in speaking to my children.  It's easy for me to slip into yelling or otherwise being impatient and grumpy with my children.  I'm really trying to think about how I'm speaking to them.  I'm trying to watch for their good behavior and praise them more than I scold them.

2.  Being intentional in listening to my children.  When I get caught up in all I have to do, I so often forget to slow down and really hear what my children are saying.  This really grabbed my attention when my son, Edison, got upset on one particularly stressful day and said, "I'm trying to TELL you something.".

Stopping what I'm doing and giving my children my full attention when they are speaking to me goes such a long way.

3.  Being intentional in not getting stressed & frustrated.  Easy to say, not so easy to do.  But, I've found that I can usually tell when I'm beginning to get worked up.  If I just recognize the frustration for what it is, and take a deep breath, I can sometimes nip it in the bud.  Sometimes, I just have to STOP MYSELF!

4.  Being intentional in finding joy.  Sometimes we need to pursue joy.  We need to seek it out.  If I take the time to really see where my life has taken me I realize that I am living out my dream.  I always wanted to be a stay at home wife and mother.  There were times I wondered if it would ever happen.  But, now I am living it!  And, I can take joy in the way that God has given me the desire of my heart.

Even the little things are God's way of blessing us throughout the day.  The coolness in the morning.   A gift of hand-picked flowers from your child.  An unexpected call from a friend.  The freckles on your child's nose.  A whiff of a flower's aroma.  All of these can bring joy if we take the time to notice them.

5.  Being intentional in how I relate to my husband.  My poor husband sometimes is low man on the totem pole.  I put my children before him so often.  And, it's easy to do.  In our minds, it's our children who need our nurture and our help the most.  Our husbands are able to fend for themselves.  But, when this happens we struggle.  Our husband struggles.
My husband needs me as much as I need him.  I'm trying to remember to honor him in the way I speak to him, even in the way I look at him.  (Ever have one of those really bad days & you end up shooting a grumpy look at your husband as he walks through the door instead of smiling?  I have.  Often.)

6.  Being intentional in time I spend with God.  I'm still working on this one.  I don't know why I find it so difficult to take 10 minutes to talk to God & read His word.  But, when I do, it is so worth it.

What are some ways that you can be intentional in your day?