How full can your plate actually get before it spills over?

How full can your plate actually get before it spills?

For me, that is a very defined balance.  I found it when I spilled WAAAAY over.  My brain went on sabbatical and I was left holding the bag three months later wondering what I agreed to in my mental absence.

Here I am 3 years later; selling a house, moving my studio and home, marrying my son off and working in 2 galleries.  Have I reached my limit?  I don’t think so.  I seem to have all of my faculties and can spot the mitsake in 1 2 3 4.  I know I am close because I am saying no periodically and standing up for myself more.

My((mistake) for those of you who were concerned); the first time was saying yes to everything everyone asked.  I didn’t take the time to acknowledge when I was unhappy and uncomfortable.  I didn’t give myself a voice.  Now I speak up.  I define my boundaries and recognize when a decision will make me upset.  I will look at my choices and recognize that one situation is making me uncomfortable and will say, I’m not happy with this.  Moving back to North Idaho? Definite positives.  Living in Spokane? Made some positive changes professionally and personally but not comfortably.  Both are good decisions for many reasons, and neither will be a waste of our time and investment.  Will I miss Spokane? Absolutely, no question about it.  I made some very amazing friends, including neighbors.  I will want to keep them as friends if they are willing to keep me.

A wedding?  I am the Mother of the Groom, much easier that being The Mother of the BRIDE.  This, I can do.  I even did wedding bouquets and boutonnieres.  Moving my studio is going to be more complicated than the wedding.  That still is a piece of cake compared to staging and listing a home.

This time however, I am taking days to rest.  Tomorrow, I will take a kitten to the vet and nothing else.  I will drink wine and enjoy watching my son and his grooms men.  You can’t make me do anything else.  Because I learned to pace myself since I spilled over the last time.  Give your self a break (I’m seeing a theme from last week) and take a breather.  Sit in a moment and enjoy wonderful conversation and a free cup a joe.  That will help you keep everything on your plate.  There is the key, set down the plate for a moment.  It ain’t going anywhere.  No one else wants to carry it.  You can pick it back up after you take a second to convert oxygen into carbon dioxide  (Breathe for those of you who haven’t seen Miss Congeniality).  I’ll be back after I take a quick cork break.