Three years ago Jason and I embarked on The Escape Plan, a 40 day challenge to annihilate the Adultitis in your life. On the first Wednesday of the year the challenge was "Instaparty: Find a reason to celebrate and do something to celebrate it." I had a blast celebrating the first hump day, making camel pancakes, wearing a goofy homemade hat donning camel clipart, and even visiting our local camels at the Madison zoo. It was all very childlike and reminded me of my days teaching kindergarten, when celebrations were plentiful. As you start 2009, I challenge you to incorporate childlike …
Maintain Perspective
You, Happier.
With Christmas only five days away many of you may be feeling some extra pressure to get everything done in time. Are you overwhelmed? The reality is, you've got a lot going on right now. It's inevitable. Don't forget, kids are also feeling the pressure. Remember those childhood fears that maybe Santa would put your name on the naughty list? Did he really see everything? December was always filled with warnings from my parents that "Santa's watching!" It's important to gain some perspective on the holiday, as we run from store to store finishing up the list. While on our maternity leave, …
Adultitis-Free Christmas Tree
This is the first year in quite some time that Jason and I have been able to put up a Christmas tree. Having the business grow slow and steady over the last eight years, we were able to manage cash flow a lot easier while working out of our home, which wasn't always easy on the life balance side of things. Looking back I think the experience forced us to manage the balance, in order to save our sanity. One year we even had our very own Charlie Brown tree. Now that we've been in our office/retail shop for over a year, the dust has finally settled and our home has turned into a place of refuge …
Being Great is Grand
With today being our "official" due date (no baby yet!), I thought it'd be neat to share an amazing resource for grandparents (and parents too). Even though our new little one is not the first grandchild on either side of the family, the grandparents are quite excited just the same. In fact, our baby is my Grandma's 24th great-grandchild. "The more the merrier," she says! Grandparents have the best job in the world... limited diapers, permission to spoil, and at the end of the day they go home to a peaceful house with a full night of sleep on the schedule. Plus, they have the wisdom that …
9 Things I’ve Learned From My Wife’s 9 Months of Pregnancy
1.) Pretty much everything on TV and in the movies is wrong. I know, this is a shocker. But I grew up in a household of men (except for the one that we call Mom), and have pretty much no firsthand experience with anything feminine or pregnancy-related. I have come to find out that TV shows and movies have led me horribly astray. I've learned that the water doesn't always break in a restaurant or crowded public place (in fact, 90% of the time it happens right before the end of labor.) I've learned that the entire labor process takes a lot longer than a 30-minute sitcom would have you believe. …
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Thinking Thankfulness
Thanksgiving is nine days away (which means our due date is just seven!). This time of year it's important to enter into a reflective state of gratitude and happiness. Too often Turkey Day sneaks up so quickly and is gone so fast, leaving us in a turkey coma that we awake from in panic about all that needs to be done in the short couple weeks before Christmas. Take a moment this week before the holiday to spend some time being grateful. Kids naturally know how to maintain perspective, aligning their priorities more effectively than even the most effective life coach. Their secret? Time. They …
No More Party Poopers
As I mentioned in a recent podcast, I had a baby shower a few weeks ago with a crazily silly shower game. Woman everywhere have to admit that shower games are inherently a source for easy diagnosis of Adultitis. Those who think these games are silly and chilldish are typically silently suffering with a severe case. Those who not only enjoy the games, but want to be in charge of them, are typically Adultitis-free or at least only Stage 1. (Do you know what stage you are in? Check now!) Have you heard of this game? It involves real diapers and about five different candy bars. The …
5 Childhood Lessons to De-Stress Election Day
Today is election day. Am I the only one letting out a big sigh of relief?! It's been a stressful election season, to say the least. No matter what side of the aisle you choose, the 24 hour media cycle, combined with the extra long campaigning (starting last winter for the early January IA caucus), has brought a fair amount of stress into people's lives. A few weeks ago, Jason and I had to force ourselves to take a media sabbatical because it was consuming our thoughts and discussions. So, in an effort to celebrate democracy and freedom, while limiting stress and division this election day, …
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The Certainty of Uncertainty
The biggest news of the last month has not been the election, but the economy. From bad loans to bloated bailouts, the losing of jobs to politicians losing their minds...it seems as though the downturn is on everyone's mind. And causing a LOT of stress. The worst of the stress comes when we fixate over things we can't control. As the media, politicians, and pointy-headed pundits like to point out, we are living in uncertain times. But think about this: Are we ever living in certain times? Does any one of us ever know what next year will bring, much less next month or even tomorrow? Life, …
Tip of the Week: Spoiled Rotten
This week’s Escape Plan challenge (aka our Tip of the Week) is #33: Spoiled Rotten: For no reason at all treat yourself to something out of the ordinary. With Trick or Treats coming up in only ten days, it's a good reminder that it's okay to treat yourself every once in a while... just because. In light of the recent financial fears it's more important than ever to recognize that you don't always have to wait for that big trip to Disney Land to get a reprieve from the grind. Life is too short to push off happiness. Take a few minutes to think about something that would make you grin from …