Monday 20 February 2012

Little things , big difference

A few weeks ago, I was finding our mornings very stressful. Getting two little people and myself up, fed, dressed and out the door to make it to my son's nursery on time is always a big rush. Shortly before we need to leave, my baby girl would start crying because it's her nap time and then I have to get her all bundled up to keep her warm outside which she hates and so there's even more crying. My son doesn't like being in a rush and doesn't like his hat, scarf and gloves going on so then he starts a combination of moaning, whining and fake crying. It's no fun. As soon as we step outside the front door it goes blissfully quiet thank goodness but those few unpleasant minutes were really getting to me.

I had to think about what I could do to make that part of the day better for the three of us. Having identified the causes of the general upset, I considered what I could do to try to ease the situation. With my daughter, I lay her down in her cot when she was tired. It was often only five minutes before we needed to leave but it gave my son and I five minutes of quiet to get ourselves ready and meant she was less miserable being kept up. She still cried when I then got her up and dressd her for the cold outside but it was a whole lot less crying overall.

For my son, I tried to make the whole getting ready to leave process calmer to make him feel less hurried. I told him he didn't need to put his hat on until we got outside so it was one less thing to put on at that moment. I tried to be a lot more cheery myself too, to try to create a happy atmosphere for everyone.

Not every morning was the same and I didn't do all those things every morning necessarily but those small steps made a huge difference. We still left rushing but everyone was a lot calmer and happier and it made for a much more pleasant start to the day.

Now my daughter is staying awake longer so we don't get the crying like we did at first. The temperatures warmed up a little so gloves and hat are not needed so often for my son. A lot can change in a short time, as you well know.

Sometimes when we are in the thick of a frustrating or difficult time, we fail to recognise that making a small change or two to the way we do something can make a big difference. Can you think of any situation where you were able to improve it by doing one or two little things?
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photo credit
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2 comments:

  1. Indeed - I know exactly what you mean! Glad you've managed to take a step back and come up with some workable solutions.

    Just been thinking along similar lines funnily enough before I read this latest post. For me today, depressed about the impact of chaotic unfinished DIY projects, yet unable to do anything about it due to injury, it will be adding a little bit of colour in my life (primroses!), a bit of de-cluttering, opening the windows (fresh air!) and lighting a Yankee Candle.

    When it's my senses that are getting overwhelmed (always a major source of stress for me) I have to find some way to 'cheer up' the senses in question! xX

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  2. Sounds like you have come up with a great solution and it's perfect weather for opening the windows and getting some fresh air! I'm sure your senses will be cheered up as a result :-). xx

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