Really, I am. When I get home from work, I want nothing more than to plop down on the couch, dial up a movie and ignore the world for a few hours. I need some downtime to relax.
While I am keeping the couch from flying away, my wife gets home, makes dinner, does the dishes, changes the cat litter and maybe vacuums the floor. Once dinner is cooking, she usually throws in a load of laundry. Three kids is a great way to guarantee a lot of laundry needs to get washed.
I have just two things to say about that:
It makes me feel really lazy.
I love you, honey!
I’ve never considered it a problem because I work my butt off on the weekend. My wife isn’t happy with the arrangement because I tend to do next to nothing during the week. I think it’s a good balance. I’m productive on the weekend, she’s productive during the week. Unfortunately, my habitual laziness has caused a bit of tension. We’ve had a few “discussions” about that balance. It’s obviously not working.
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been trying something new. When I get home from work I’ve been doing just 1 thing. I do one thing per day. One day, I fold laundry, another day I do the dishes. Some days, I pick a room to organize. It’s never very much, but it’s always something that needs to be done and, possibly most important, it looks like I’m doing more so my wife feels less abandoned to the housework. I’m not actually doing more, but it gets spread out over the week, so it looks like more. Slowly, surely, all of the work is getting done.
It’s not a perfect solution, but it seems to be working. More is getting done, my wife feels like I’m helping out more and I get more time on the weekends to pursue whatever I feel like pursuing. It’s a win for each of us.
How do you balance relaxation and a shared workload?
We live in a world of constant distraction. Working full time, chasing the kids to whatever activities they’re enrolled in, play-dates, and other commitments all conspire to chase you away from the one thing that truly matters: your family. It’s not enough to be merely present, you have to be engaged.
How can you carve some time out of your hectic schedule to spend time that your kids will never forget?
We play a lot of gamesin my family and we start far younger than the recommended ages on any of the games we own. I taught my oldest kid to play chess when he was 4 and he caught on well enough to teach his grandmother within a few months. If a game doesn’t require reading, the recommended age is complete fiction. A two-year-old can count, so Sorry! is a good game. 5-year-olds can add, so Monopoly is a good choice that reinforces math skills.
To keep it fun, we have a few generic rules for playing games.
1. We play for blood. Nobody gets to win a game without earning it. It took my son 5 years to beat me in a game of chess. Two years later, he’s still bragging about it.
2. Losers don’t cry. Sportsmanship is important. It’s no fun to play with someone who throws a tantrum for losing. My son’s friends learned that lesson in a hurry.
3. If you’re not a good winner, you won’t play the next game. We talk a little smack when we play, but it’s only in fun. When someone gets mean, their gaming privileges get suspended.
4. The TV is off. We don’t need more distractions. No TV, no texting, no phone, no nothing. Game time is about family time, not about letting the outside world in. Guard this time with your life. I even hesitate to bring in other friends.
5. Video games don’t count. You get far less interaction when you’re staring at a screen. The goal is to have a good conversation while you’re playing and really get to know your family. You can’t do that when the only words coming out of your mouth are “Ack! Zombie Nazis! Shoot him!”
Board games and card games are relatively inexpensive. Settlers of Catan costs less than a trip to the movies. The games don’t wear out quickly, though we are on our third copy of Phase 10. For the price and the time, you don’t have any excuses.
I’ve got a birthday party today and a class to teach tomorrow. Sometimes I think I take on too much, but it’s hard to roll that back when the side-hustles are all making a bit of money. What I need to do is make the side-hustles profitable enough that my straight job is optional.
In other news, I’m 10 days away from my first blogging anniversary(here). I’ll have to come up with a way to celebrate that.
Favorite posts this week:
GOOG-411 is shutting down, but there are alternatives. My favorites are Google SMS and Bing-411.
I’m happy to be living in the future. When I told my wife this story, she was ready to cry at the beginning, but had to see the pictures by the end. Yay, technology!
Sometimes the price you pay in-store for a product or service can change dramatically if you find the same product online, and in most cases the price in-store can be considerably higher. There’s nothing worse than getting home from a shopping trip thinking you have a bargain, until you realise that you could have saved a lot more had you have waited until you got home. Here are a few examples of things you should buy online to save money:
DVD’s and Blu Rays
All movies, whether on DVD or Blu Ray format, are generally cheaper if bought online, it’s a fact that I have learned over the years. I’ve always found that searching the sites of film selling giants Amazon and Play, I can always find a movie that little bit cheaper and some considerably so. There are also some websites such as dvdpricesearch that compare prices of all of the big merchants for you; it’s a great way to save time and money.
Flights and Holidays
In my opinion, the day of buying flights face to face is slowly on the decline, I seem to find considerably cheaper prices by searching online at home. I think the main reason for this is that, travel or holiday agents just do what we do, they search online for the best prices, and unless they have any exclusive deals then they will just be getting the same prices as us. I tend to use some online travel comparison websites that again do the searching for you; however, some work better than others so make sure you do your research.
Books
I always purchase books online, whether in the standard physical format or in the form of an e-book. Books are just one of those things that always seem to be cheaper, with the likes of Amazon and Borders available online and offering fantastic discounts. There are also many websites that sell niche or rare books online that can be considerably cheaper than going direct to a book seller.
Auto Insurance
Auto insurance is one of those things that we all hate purchasing, but if you want to drive your vehicle on the road, then by law we have to spend our hard earned cash on it. Getting your auto insurance online can save you a lot of money. Using price comparison sites, you only have to fill in one form as if you’re applying for one quote, you will then be provided with a list of pricing options available to you.
Cell Phones
Whether you are just buying a handset or if you’re looking for a monthly cell phone price plan, I always seem to find better deals online than I can in-store. Of course in-store you have the ability to try and haggle but I’ve found that the deals I get offered are never as good as those that I can find online. Online you can also search by provider website which is another great way to save money, and it would take you a lot of time to visit each store!
Jason’s note: I shop online a lot. I buy things that most people don’t realize are available online. An interesting counterpoint question: What should you buy in-person to save money?
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