Let Me Explain: My Work/Life Balance, My Blog, And How My Brain Works

I’ve been running a blog for 17 years now, and for many of these years, I’ve been running a blog about my DIY initiatives. My DIY journey began once we have been residing in our tiny little condo positioned by Baylor College in Waco. Throughout these first years within the apartment, I additionally had an inside adorning enterprise and was adorning for shoppers. That was my full-time job, and like most individuals who’ve full-time jobs, my very own DIY dwelling initiatives have been finished on evenings and weekends. After which Matt’s well being began to say no to the purpose that I might now not hold scheduled conferences with shoppers, or I might get a frantic telephone name from him in the midst of an set up in a shopper’s dwelling, and I must rush dwelling to assist Matt. Life was worrying then.

So I ultimately stopped working for shoppers altogether, and I turned my DIY initiatives and my weblog into my full-time work. It was handy because it allowed me to remain dwelling, and I cherished the work I used to be doing, however that was my life. My whole life was engaged on initiatives and serving to Matt. That was it. I had no life outdoors of our apartment.

I don’t know what number of of you have been round again then, however in some unspecified time in the future, I took on a serious DIY venture for a pair who needed to rent me as a decorator, however I defined to them that I used to be now not doing that. So as an alternative, they principally handed over their home to me (a home that they weren’t residing in) they usually let me DIY the heck out of their home. I utterly DIYed their bedroom, bathroom, family room, and kitchen. I cherished that venture a lot. It was enjoyable and difficult, and since it was a non-standard adorning venture, with them residing out of city, I had free reign in that home. I might work once I might (when Matt’s well being allowed it). I might come and go as I happy. I might work so long as I wanted to, even into the evenings. And I might drop every thing and go dwelling at any second if Matt wanted me. It was form of a dream job attending to DIY alone schedule with free reign and with different folks’s cash.

However once more, that was my life. All my life consisted of was engaged on that home and taking good care of Matt. And since the toll of Matt’s MS on his well being was all new to us again then, it was worrying. However as a result of his MS wasn’t as superior as it’s now, I might spend lengthy stretches of time away from him. So I used to be working about 10-13 hours a day. Like I stated, it was my life.

I bear in mind throughout that point, I challenged myself at one level. I had a “one venture a day” aim. In different phrases, my problem to myself was to start out and end one venture each single day. Throughout that point, I cranked out the initiatives. They usually weren’t small initiatives, both. For instance, I constructed a factory cart-style coffee table in someday, begin to end. After which the following day, I might do an identical venture begin to end. And the following day. And the following day. So throughout that point, as I used to be cranking out the initiatives, I used to be additionally cranking out the weblog posts, with one model new DIY venture after one other.

That was actually a good time for my weblog. All of these initiatives in such fast succession actually helped to construct my weblog, construct my viewers, and get my weblog “on the map”, nearly talking. Nevertheless it was completely exhausting. And I can not even stress this sufficient. It was my life. I had nothing outdoors of labor and Matt. Dwelling that approach was very isolating.

Once we purchased this home, I continued with that schedule for a very long time. And it grew to become much more difficult and extra isolating as Matt’s well being and his capability to do issues on his personal continued to say no. As an alternative of engaged on another person’s dwelling for lengthy stretches every day, I used to be engaged on our home for 10-13 hours a day. And once more, that’s all my life consisted of. So as soon as once more, I used to be capable of get initiatives finished comparatively rapidly. I did a full down-to-the studs demolition and rebuild of a kitchen nearly utterly on my own in 5 months, together with transferring/widening doorways, eradicating a wall, and so forth. And I adopted that with an entire down-to-the-studs-and-floor-joists demolition and transform a WC nearly utterly on my own in about the identical period of time, together with transferring and widening a doorway and doing all the drywall and concrete board myself. It was my life. Matt and work. Work and Matt. That’s it.

Right this moment, issues are very totally different. There’s no approach I might have gone on like that perpetually. The weblog was doing nice. Constructing my viewers was nice. The revenue was nice. However the work was exhausting, and the isolation was sucking the very life out of me.

In 2020, the world modified. The isolation grew to become much more pronounced, and I decided to make a change. I noticed that there needed to be extra to life than work. My life wanted an outward focus. I wanted to search out my folks. My neighborhood. So I made it my willpower to do precisely that.

And in the previous couple of years, my life has modified drastically. My focus has gone from work and Matt to Matt and different folks. That’s to not say that my work isn’t necessary. I nonetheless spend loads of time working. However issues take longer now, and I don’t crank out these completed initiatives as quick as I used to. Today, if I’m in the midst of a venture, lined head to toe in mud and caulk, and I’ve a aim of what I need to end by the tip of the day in order that I can weblog about it the following day, however then a good friend calls and invitations me to dinner, I’m going to decide on dinner with a good friend over ending the venture simply in order that I can have progress to share in a weblog put up the following day. Time with a good friend comes first. Sharing progress on my venture can wait one other day.

And that’s my life nowadays. My initiatives don’t get finished as quick, and I’m okay with that. Rather than working 10-13 hours a day, I attempt to get a number of hours in every day and prioritize time with folks. I’ve associates I really like dearly. I’ve my household who I prioritize two days every week. And as at all times, Matt is my high precedence every day. I nonetheless attempt to get as a lot finished on initiatives as quick as I can, however I’m only one individual, and I can solely achieve this a lot. And folks will at all times take precedence in my life over initiatives.

However again to 2020. Throughout that 12 months, like thousands and thousands of different folks, I actually struggled. Not solely did I wrestle to get issues finished, however I struggled with my weblog as properly. I struggled to point out up on the weblog often. After which I acquired an e mail that basically shook me out of my self-focused mindset. I don’t bear in mind what it stated precisely, however the individual principally stated, “Kristi, the place are you? We’d like you proper now! We’d like your weblog posts proper now!”

And in that second, I noticed that sure, folks want a little bit little bit of day out of their hectic lives and the craziness of this world to concentrate on one thing enjoyable and possibly even frivolous. In order that’s what I’ve decided to offer — just some minutes in your lives every day the place you may put the craziness of the world and your hectic lives out of your thoughts for a bit and examine a enjoyable venture or a enjoyable (or loopy) concept I’ve. I have a look at my weblog nowadays as not solely instructional (I hope) when have a venture to share, but additionally as a couple of minutes of leisure in your lives the place you will get a glimpse into my mind the place I at all times have a few thousand concepts swirling round in there.

So I gained’t at all times have initiatives to share. I gained’t at all times have progress to share. Feeling like I can solely ever share progress on my present venture is strain I refuse to tackle anymore. I can’t reside that approach. However on these days once I actually don’t have any progress to share, I at all times have concepts or ideas I can share a few future venture or another random concept I’ve swirling round in my mind. That’s what I can present, together with a number of moments out of your day to get your thoughts off of your hectic life and be entertained by the initiatives or ideas or plans of a loopy DIYer in little Waco, Texas.

However for these of you who solely need to see progress on my present venture, right here it’s. I acquired the island high painted white and able to marble…

And I acquired many of the drawer slides hooked up to the drawer containers…