Midweek Motivation!

It's been so long since I sat down to write up a midweek motivation that I actually had a tough time trying to land on one theme. The past six weeks have been crazy for me in pretty much every aspect of my life...if I put it on paper, this is what it looks like:

• Days I've been at work: 42 out of the last 45
• Average hours per day I worked: 12.5
• Miles swam: 4.25
• Miles biked: 99.5
• Miles ran: 70.2
• Trips requiring an airplane: 1

Things I've accomplished in the past 6 weeks:
-Did a Half Ironman
-Got third place in my last triathlon
-Paced a Half Marathon
-Hosted two national championships at work
-Helped hire my new boss
-Planned our staff retreat
-Managed to find all my kids' school supplies at ONE Target
-Went rock climbing and mountain biking with my family
-Went to the State Fair and ate everything I wanted
-Cleaned my house (like REALLY cleaned it)
-Successfully got both kids on the school bus yesterday

Number of times I complained about not having enough time to get anything done: 1,342,956

Am I tired...YES
Do I feel awesome about myself and what I've been able to accomplish despite the million times I griped about not being able to do anything: HELL YES!

We all try so hard to achieve balance in our lives, to find that perfect mix of work, family, and me time. Well, I'm here to tell you, that is a MYTH. Balance doesn't look like three perfectly aligned scales filled with rainbows and sunshine. Balance is dirty, balance is frustrating, balance is EXHAUSTING! Balance is whatever we can make it be, working too much, exercising too little, finding time in our day to sit and read to our kids, finding a minute in your week to lock yourself in the bathroom for some quiet time...whatever your balance looks like, embrace it for what it is. Your crazy life will be harder than it is now, and it will be easier than it is now, but it's your life...breed success from being completely exhausted by living your life. Deal with the hard times now and reap the rewards they will bring later. It's okay to complain about not having time to do what you want to do, but be sure to reflect back on all you HAVE done and be proud of that.