You have made it to day THREE of this series into finding more balance and more JOY in 2016. How’s it going? Do you feel like you’re making leaps and bounds? Do you feel FREE of the mess and less overwhelmed than you did a few days ago? I sure hope so, friend, because that’s my dream for you!

Day 3 is good you guys…

Unplug.

If you’re like me, you’re on your computer or phone almost 24/7. You respond to emails seconds after they hit your inbox, you respond to text messages moments after they arrive, and you take almost every phone call from family + friends. Who says we have to do this though? I can only think of ONCE in my entire life where I truly unplugged and it was 3 years ago. That is way too long to go without unplugging to email, texts, social media and these little devices we carry around as if they’re oxygen. 3 years ago we went on a cruise with my in-laws and honestly, I only unplugged because I had to. There was no cell service in the middle of the ocean and none in Grand Cayman or Jamaica, so I locked my phone up in the safe in our room and kept it there for an entire week. Granted, I wasn’t as busy as I am these days with JTP, but it felt so good to completely get away from what everyone else was doing for one week and focus on my husband and family. No interruptions, just tons of beach time, pool relaxing, and one too many piña colada’s ;-) Imagine how your days would go if you took some time to just “get away” and unplug electronically… would you sleep a little bit more? Would you be able to finally fold the laundry thats been sitting on that chair in your bedroom for the last week (this was a note to myself, LOL), would you be able to sit and read your favorite passages in the Bible to get your mind where it needs to be? Or would you be able to love on your family the way God intended us to love on them? Wow… its powerful to actually sit and think what we could be doing if we unplugged. Even if just for a day.

Schedule unplugged time.

For me, I’m planning on unplugging every Sunday in 2016. I’ve sat down and thought about what I want my life to look like next year and a lot of the changes are surrounded around putting my freaking phone down. My husband is deployed as you read this. That means this year, all together he will have missed over half the year with us. He has missed Halloween (for the 2nd year in a row — he’s never seen our daughter on Halloween), Aubree’s 2nd birthday, Thanksgiving, he will miss Christmas, New Years, and Valentines Day. That’s a LOT of time we have to make up for you guys. If you’re a military spouse, I bet you’re shaking your head ‘yes’ right now. You feel my pain and you know just how deep that cut is, realizing how much time your family has to spend apart, how much time you’ll never get back. But thats what makes my decision to unplug that much easier. I have also decided to not take any sessions on Sundays next year. Sundays will be devoted and dedicated to my family because without them I am nothing and they deserve my full, 100% attention without a phone in my face. Our daughter deserves to have family time and memories made with mommy + daddy with no phones or laptops. Those days he IS home, will be days cherished and for the sake of getting some of my life back, I have to unplug. I choose to schedule these days off intentionally so I can put that time back into something that matters.

Put it on your calendar.

If writing it in on your calendar will help you to remember which days you have planned to unplug, then sister, DO IT! Use your planner or your iCal to its fullest potential and make sure when you schedule an unplugged day, you write it down! I use iCal as well as the Emily Ley Simplified Planner and it works wonders. Something about old school pen and paper and writing things down just makes me feel better!

So I challenge you…

To take that step with me if you feel overwhelmed by an over use of your phone and laptop… or even all things electronic/technical. Turn your phone off. Put it on vibrate if you can’t turn it off. Put it in a drawer somewhere. Go have family time. Plan ahead for these days so they’re easier when they come around. If you accept this challenge, comment below letting me know you accept and how you think this step will help you to have a more joyful 2016! Don’t be afraid to be real and honest! We’re getting to the good stuff ya’ll, so lets do it together.

Cheers to a joyful 2016! Another tip + challenge is coming Monday morning! For now, go enjoy Christmas with your family! xo!