Apple Picking And Spending Quality Time

Family time is an essential part of my life. As I’ve gotten older, I have learned that I crave balance in my life. I have always been a homebody and a workaholic (inherited from my dad), but I also love to be out and about. When I say “out and about” I don’t mean out in the street or in the clubs though. In fact, I have NEVER even been to a club, believe it or not! Going out for me means enjoying the scenery and taking in one thing I adore, long drives. Long drives clear my mind and they make me stop and appreciate the beauty of life. Being in a classroom all day can be stressful and as a writer, I often find myself consumed in my own thoughts, needing a break to escape a bit!

Apple picking with my boys as well as pumpkin picking as a family are activities we have been doing for quite some time now. The boys recalled, as we were driving in the car this year, the corn maze we went through together last year. My youngest had just turned 4 years of age and he remembered detail by detail what we did and how he led the way. It was sweet to hear his recollection and remember the fun he had. Those are the moments that I live for…we created those traditions and the memories that go with them together and I hope that he will pass them on to this own family someday, because we created and instilled that in him.

Ever since my dad passed, I promised myself I would NEVER take anything for granted. When my first born arrived five years later, he put everything into perspective for me. I work hard and hustle even harder, but I love to play twice as hard with my kids. Playing hard for me is about spending that much needed quality time with my children and my husband. Being around them strengthens me and fuels me with a greater love for life.

Getting caught up in a daily routine and work, work, work can get the best of you. I make a mental note to make memories with my kids regularly so I don’t get lost in the shuffle of day to day demands. Apple picking is one of them and cutting our own Christmas tree is another. For me personally, attending blogging events, although it’s work, is also creating a memory because it’s also play and learning for me as well. Taking long trips so my boys can go riding on their dirt bikes is another activity that I make sure gets added to our list to be sure we’re fulfilled and connected as a family.

Life is all too precious at this point in time for me. It’s important to take that much needed time for yourself and for your loved ones. Work is important and necessary in order to pay the bills and give us what we need, of course. But what is also important is that we balance it all and make our family a priority. We need to remind ourselves that our loved ones are an essential part of who we are! I hope that, if anything, this post reminds one person that: yes, we need to work so that we can get by in life, but when it’s all said in done, you want to know that you lived life to the fullest. This post will also remain as a reminder for me when I work too much and lose my way, I can always look back and remember that I wrote this for myself as much as I did for you and that I have to stick by my word. When I am gone…my words remain and, along with them, the memories that last a lifetime for those I love.