Priorities

Last year we struggled with some wonderful people in our lives not understanding why we weren't around as much, why we were skipping out on certain events, missing stuff, leaving early...etc. I came up with this list last spring, and found myself referencing it quite often. We would LOVE to be everywhere, attend everything, and see everyone...but as we're headed into the second half of our 20's (omg wut) we've realized if we aren't focused on this list of priorities, things fly off the rails.

So if you're curious about why we've skipped out on something...please refer to the following list, which we hold dear (especially during lawn care season):

Disclaimer: In the event that you come to our house and Josh harasses you for leaving early or for not wanting to work for Boersma Lawn Care...he really is just teasing. He understands this list better than anyone I know.

#1 Our relationships with God

#2 Our relationships with each other

#3 Our relationships with our families

#4 BLC/C21

     Part 2: Coaching/rental business

#5 Our relationships with friends

#6 Attending our church regularly

#7 Giving/serving/ministry

#8 Attending Connection Group

#9 Fun/extra/miscellaneous/extended family commitments

#10 Vacationing/travel

Sometimes #3 and #4 get swapped, depending on the circumstances. For example, Josh might skip Father's Day with my dad if he needs to work, in order to spend Father's Day with his dad...which just makes sense. If I need to spend an extra 45 minutes finishing the billing for Boersma Lawn Care and I'm late to a cheer meeting...it's because BLC is a higher priority than my job as an AHS Winter Cheer Coach (this happened yesterday and I'm so thankful for understanding bosses and co-workers!).

#6 gets tossed around due to family time attending holiday services at either of our home churches, or just making fun family weekend plans that might not include being IN Ames on Sunday morning. Since #4 and #2 trump #6, if Josh has been up for 36 hours pushing snow, and I'd rather stay home to feed him some breakfast in bed instead of going to church alone, that's just how we roll.

Last spring I was doing some volunteer work which is priority #7. However, #7 wasn't understanding my balance with #4 as a higher priority (at the time we were headed into Sept/Oct...tonsillectomy, farmhouse reno, BLC fall work, AHS Cheer schedule). I worked with many retired ladies who didn't have these kinds of commitments, and had also made this clear on my application. It became impossible for me to volunteer during my regular time slot and the flexibility just wasn't there for me to 'do it all.'

If I haven't seen Josh in a week due to #4 and it happens to rain on a Tuesday during #8, there's a good chance we're going to stay home, order pizza, and watch Twister or Field of Dreams. And we're completely comfortable choosing to do that.

We've been spending a LOT of time with our #3 lately, and love it! In fact, I think it's safe to say that the siblings on both sides of our family are truly our best friends. We often see one side or the other almost every weekend, meaning occasionally we miss out on some #5 and #8 stuff...and I think that's really okay. Its a bummer when we're torn about being two places at once, but ultimately we would regret missing an event with our families more than we would regret missing a double-date or a dinner with friends. 

Does anyone else feel some guilt or judgement for saying 'no' to certain things? Maybe it's just us, but I'm over it. We've prayed about this list...asked our parents about this list...and we've been feeling GREAT about how we have handled our priorities this past year.

Maybe our parents were just on board because they know they're #3. ;)

Sometimes being a grown up is seriously hard. work.

MmB