How do you eat an elephant?

Yep.  One bite at at time.

For some reason I’ve always had trouble with this one.  If you don’t believe me, just ask my husband.

Wanna go vegan?  Absolutely…let’s get rid of everything in the house that doesn’t meet the dietary guidelines.

Thinking about taking up running?  Sure thing….I’m going to do it 5 days a week with no rest days, and I think I’ll schedule my first race in a couple of months…never mind I’ve never run a mile outside in my life.

Sell Mary Kay? (Just so you know…that was almost 20 years ago…lol!)  Great idea…and so is quitting my job, and jumping in to purchase the top level of inventory available…’cause of course I need a cosmetics store in my apartment even though I have no customers.

Homeschooling my daughter?  Yep…no brainer…and I’m going to stay up all night before we’ve even pulled her out of school so I can join every single homeschooling forum available, schedule us for 10 field trips in the next two months and fill out applications to join five support groups.

Get the picture? Or do you need more?

So…over the years, this has served me well in many ways…I don’t want to take away from what sheer, unbridled passion for something can do for you.  I DID cut down on my meat intake a great deal.  I DID begin running…have run three 10k races and was on my way to training for a half marathon when I caught whatever everyone else was having at the holidays.  I DID get off to a great start with our homeschooling, and that is probably the most recent area where my focus and determination has truly paid off…I cannot think of a single thing that I would change about our homeschooling journey..and a LOT of the things that have happened along the way are due to this single-mindedness that I get when I’m emphatic about something.

Mary Kay?  Now that’s another story entirely

However…it has also caused me at times to become overwhelmed with the big goals I have set in front of me…and I’ve quit some things that I shouldn’t have…simply because I felt as  though I couldn’t accomplish it in the way I had planned…so instead of persevering and pushing through, I simply abandoned the idea instead.

So, my dear sweet readers…you’ll be glad to know that I have finally learned something from my past miscalculations…

To eat my elephant one bite at a time.

Last week, I went to Whole Foods.  Recently, I had gone back to a natural laundry detergent without the chemicals that are supposed to be bad for us.  This week I bought new deodorant…with no aluminum.

Before I would have also purchased new toothpaste, cleaners for the kitchen, soaps, makeup…and come home and thrown everything else away.  And then we would have had to get used to so many new things at a time that it would have been a fail.

Last week I started the “Hello Mornings” challenge, and began getting up at 5:00 a.m. to get in my exercise, devotional time and planning/organizing.  One of my goals was to add a weight routine back into my fitness regimen.  I did that two days this week, and cardio three.

In the past, I would have tried to add back in the weights full force while running each day as well…and attempted to file every bit of paperwork I have in my office…and organize the whole place…all the while trying to get used to a new morning routine.  And I would have become discouraged, tired, and most likely my resolve would have weakened.

I’m learning how to take baby steps with my  goals.  It is a constant battle I have with myself.  I will most likely always have the drive and enthusiasm for projects and causes I fall in love with…that will never change…nor should it.  It is part of me.  I am who I am because of it.  I think those who love me even love me a little more sometimes because of it.  But I, and consequently, those around me, will enjoy the fruits of it so much more with my new way of eating elephants.

One bite at a time.