I wrote this post several months ago (as you’ll be able to tell by the fuzzy pajama pants), but I never got around to posting it. However, after a slight mental breakdown on Sunday night, I decided this message was relevant again. I suddenly realized that I haven’t taken a day or even a few hours off, since I started this new real estate career. I was both mentally and physically exhausted, and I didn’t even see it coming. Finally, I realized that I have to be just as diligent in giving myself a break as I was when I was running Salt & Pepper. Therefore, I decided to come back to this unpublished post. It’s as much as a reminder for me as it is to share with you guys. So here it goes…

I have a habit of putting off things that I want to do in an attempt to accomplish more of what I have to do. Problem is, I’ll never finish everything on that must-do list, which means I’ll never feel like I can let myself have a little fun.In this post, I mentioned several little things that I wanted to do (like this blog) and said I was going to make a better effort to actually let myself do some of them. And I have!

One of those little things was wanting to put together a puzzle. My mom and I did puzzles all the time as a kid, and I loved them! I bought a puzzle probably 3 years ago and haven’t given myself the go ahead to do it at any point over the past 3 years. How sad is that?!

Soooo…I finally decided that life was too short to keep putting things off and made a goal to put my puzzle together. Turns out my BFF also enjoys doing puzzles! (We’ve been friends for almost 8 years. I can’t believe I didn’t know this already.) The puzzle I had was of a man and little boy propped up against a tractor in a field….not very exciting. Needless to say, we ended up with a whole lot of green pieces that all looked the same. Ultimately, I decided that “life is too short to waste time on miscellaneous greenery” and bought a new puzzle. (Amanda will appreciate this because it’s the exact text I sent her when I decided to give up on puzzle #1.)

Matt & I stumbled upon a cool Las Vegas puzzle, and it was perfect because Amanda and I had just returned from Vegas. We needed a good place to start the puzzle (other than my dining room table like before) and we didn’t have a big box or any of the other puzzle tricks, so Amanda jokingly suggested rolling up the living room rug and then rolling it back over the puzzle when we are done for the day. It was one of those moments where we all laughed and then simultaneously looked at each other because it was a great idea!

While this puzzle story seems a little useless and trivial, it was actually a big turning point for me. A point where I decided that in order to stay sane and enjoy this ole life of mine, I’m going to have to sprinkle in things that I enjoy among the things life requires. Rather than puzzles waiting, clean baseboards can wait. Laundry can wait. It can all wait…and give me the opportunity to have a little fun. I already have my next puzzle lined out, and I will make a diligent effort to begin working on it as soon as possible.

Are there any fun things you’ve been putting off? You’ll be amazed at the refreshing feeling that comes after you make a little time to enjoy yourself. What sort of fun activities have you been putting off? Leave a comment!