UnPlUg

If Sergey Brin, the co-founder of Google can do it, heck, so can I. Beginning at sundown on March 4, 2011 til sundown of March 5, 2011, is National Day of Unplugging. That's right people, disconnect to connect. 

It's a great idea in theory, but can we practice it? I've challenged myself and my family to commit to no T.V., no computers, no iphone (except to answer and make necessary--key word there--phone calls) for 24 hours. In this digital, immediate gratification age, this disconnecting should probably be practiced more often. Easier said than done, and that's coming from a stay-at-home-mom. I'd rather hop online to read some posts from my favorite blogs, cyber shop, or catch up on celebrity gossip when I find some down time for myself. When really, I should be reconnecting with my "inner me." Perhaps that would make me a happier person (back off clinical psychologists--I know you've got your share of words). 

When most of your life is consumed by answering and catering to the demands of people smaller than you in physical size, who don't remember to say "thank you" and "please", and who often feel their needs come first, ALWAYS, it's easy to lose your sanity. Finding your zen can be too much when you've got a mere 30 minutes before those small people wake up and start their list of demands. My daily distraction has become logging on and plugging in. Well, I made a commitment earlier this year, and I'm doing my best to stick to it. I promised to become my more fashionable self, to return to healthier eating habits, and getting back into prime physical shape, after having had two kids so close together. Not an easy commitment by any means, but a goal that is always in the back of my mind. 

Because I was a fashionable, physical, and happier person before. Not that I'm not right now--it's just that once motherhood hit me, I had to reinvent me. A different me, a more responsible, always putting myself last, me. I love being a mom, but there were heavy prices and sacrifices I made to be where I am, and I'm not necessarily super content with it. Part of that is learning to unplug from unnecessary distractions (who cares what Sheen tweeted this time?). I've become so dependent on escaping through the web, that I've forgotten how to escape the good ol' way--by taking in my environment and enjoying "the now."

So join me fellow mamas. Unplug everyday. Find the niche in your downtime, to enjoy the peacefulness, the stillness--that's right--celebrate dull moments if you must. Back away from your phones, take a step back from the lure of the computer screen, and breathe. Just breathe and be happy.