I have been SOOOO frustrated these last 2 summer weeks and finally, this weekend, a switch flipped.

We all have these expectations of the perfect lazy summer morning (maybe that's just me). Wake up, work out, virtually high-five the ladies in my online fit club, have a beautiful breakfast sipping coffee on my patio. 

Then the children will wake up with a happy smile and I'll cook them a beautiful breakfast and they will quietly play or watch TV while I tinker with this blog, learn a new Pinterest strategy, or study for a grad course for my library work. We will head to the community pool in the afternoon for a day in the sun with a book on my kindle and come home happy and tired. 

Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

Sounds delightful! And the summer really did seem to start that way! And then there are the really magical days where the kids have camps. Those mornings are a little more hectic, but then the house is quiet and I have it all to myself. I get ahead on my fit club work, my grad class is done, and I've organized a few closets. I smile. How DO I actually do it? 

EEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRR - I DON'T! 

Stop the madness. There have been about 6 days out of 40 that have actually looked at least a little bit like this.  The reality is that every morning is a freaking screaming match. "How many times do I have to tell you to GET DRESSED!" and "WHY IS YOUR UNDERWEAR IN THE MIDDLE OF THE LIVING ROOM FLOOR!" and "for the 6th time WHERE IS YOUR WATER BOTTLE?" 

We race out of the house for Skating, hockey, camps, playdates, special traditions, and drop-offs at Great Grandma Betty's virtually every day including the weekends. It's been a whirlwind that clearly I'm not used to after last summer at home, and it's taken some time to adjust. 

These next 4 weeks are filled with 2 vacations, and 2 solid weeks of life at the rink for competition and camp which lights me UP but there will be little resting and laziness going on around here!

This last weekend, I attended a conference for my online fit club group with Beachbody and as I always do, I left feeling so rejuvenated. One thing that really stuck out this time was reframing or rethinking my experience.  I'm usually pretty skilled at this, but sometimes I get stuck. 

Reframing is simply shifting your perspective on a situation. While I was in the room with 200 coaches, I had my own Fit Club in mind, but when I got home and my husband asked if I wanted to take a boat ride on Lake Minnetonka instead of enjoying what looked like my last lazy Sunday morning for weeks - I put that skill into action! 

I had planned to spend all day Sunday in my jammies reflecting on my goals and dreams for my Fit Club, cleaning up my home in preparation for my mom to stay at our house while Marshall and I are away for an anniversary trip, do the grocery shopping, write this blog post, take a nap, be cozy... but how could I say no to a beautiful day on a gorgeous lake with good friends including one of my best friends and her son. So I said yes, knowing that it would start with the morning "get out of the house screaming match" tradition.

I could have been annoyed about the change in plans (I was for a minute if we are being honest) but then, I decided that instead of looking longingly at my kindle, coffee mug, and unorganized closet with a sad face, that I'm reframing the rest of my summer as a "BIG SUMMER!" 

Yes, I am beyond frustrated that my to-do list every single day is scrapped for an hour of cleaning off the kitchen table instead of doing something that moves my home or life "forward." and I honestly crave the quiet soul work and rest that I enjoyed last summer.  But just because the summer is ending up more social than I had planned, I shouldn't call it a bad summer for crying out loud!

I had a brief flash of staff workshop week... "How was your summer?" How will I answer? Should I launch into how sick I was of cleaning off my dining room table every. single. day. x3? (I did actually do that last week.... hee hee)

Should I answer with? "It was ok. I didn't get organized, I didn't hit new goals, I didn't finish anything on my to-do list really. And I wanted to get so much more reading done. But we had fun." 

or should I say? "I saw so many friends, we lived big, we took 3 trips, and made so many spontaneous decisions to enjoy friends, family, and summer in Minnesota. I've still got a to-do list to tackle, though!"

This skill of reframing is not just "looking at the bright side" but looking at the parts of the experience that truly are positive and highlighting that. Both statements are true. But one is definitely HAPPIER! 

Sometimes I feel like positivity and happiness get a shallow reputation, but when we really analyze what causes true happiness most of it comes within. Studies have shown that our minds fall to the negatives of situations more easily than the positives, and it takes mindful effort to dwell on the positive. We have to consciously think about it until it becomes a habit. I think it's so weird that our brains do this. Apparently, it's a strategy to keep us alive. 

How are you at reframing? Do you pick out the positive and happiest parts of a situation or do you fall back to the negative? What is something you can reframe today?