Yesterday was my birthday, and I feel incredibly grateful to be living a life that is so meaningful and expansive. I sat down to think about the elements that are leading to that outcome, and want to share with you what has been pivotal for me in dramatically increasing my sense of well-being!

It’s not because my life is problem-free; I have annoying things to deal with but I just prefer not to focus on them.

Here’s the question I ask myself: What do I want my life to look and feel like?

Asked another way: if you had all the resources available to live your dream life, what would you do?

These kind of questions are part of the ongoing vision work that I do, and my answers always help me better direct my energies toward what I really want.

When I thought about the components that make me happy, I realized I can integrate them in small ways every day, and that makes a huge difference. I don’t have to wait for the ‘one day when..then’ to happen.

Here are some personal examples of things that are important to me. My schedule means I’m at home with my children most of the time, and I don’t have large blocks of the self-time that I had associated with some of these things:

• An unhurried and serene schedule
• Time in the outdoors
• Time for prayer and meditation
• Physical movement

When I thought about having these things, I would think, ‘One day.’ I had an ideal vision of what that would look like and I assumed I’d have to wait until my children were much older.

I imagined long, uninterrupted blocks of time until I realized, if I wait to have huge blocks of time for perfect, I’m never going to have the things that I want! Instead, I’m going to spend way too much time being frustrated and longing for something that I don’t have.

So here’s my solution: do today – in a small way – the things that you care about most.

There are a number of very small choices I’ve made over time; here’s some of what that looks like on a daily basis. See if you can spot the elements that make my day feel amazing!

I wake up between 5 – 6  so that I have quiet time before anyone else is up. Sometimes my kids start waking up by 5:15, but I sometimes have until as late as 6:30 when the house is quiet. (Right now it’s 6:11 and Yirmi is awake and snuggling next to me on the porch swing as I write this.)

During part of that time, I sit outside on my porch and enjoy listening to the birds chirping. I feel the quietness of the early morning. I try to take time for some prayer at this point, and get in what I can. My ideal is about 30 minutes, but sometimes it’s just 5 minutes and that’s fine, too.

I then have plenty of time to get Yirmi and Rafael ready for school without rushing and tension.

Rafael (2 3/4) just started preschool last week (after being home for 3 months – yay for bureaucratic inefficiency!!) , and now part of my new schedule has prompted more opportunities for doing things I love!

After Yirmi goes on his van to school, Rafael and I immediately walk to the bus stop. He qualifies for a school van but I love having this time with him in the morning. Instead of rushing to get him ready for an early morning van and him having several transitions between leaving the house and being in school, we’re able to spend that time together.

I’ve chosen to take him by bus rather than drive so that we have the chance to walk together. In addition to the together time, walking is important to build his stamina as well as for overall general health and well-being. It’s so nice to start the day with something that is high on my list of priorities.

After I drop him off, I walk home. It’s so nice to be outside and moving in the morning!

I’ve begun stopping at a local park that has a large grassy area. My kids at home don’t yet expect me to be back, and thirty minutes sitting or laying on the grass, watching the trees sway in the breeze while listening to a meditation or inspiring talk is incredibly expansive for me.

By this time it’s 9:30 and I’m feeling like I have the most amazing life on the planet! Pure bliss.

But it’s just a regular morning doing the same kind of things as all the parents around me.Don’t think my mornings are absent any challenges! The extreme feelings of well-being come from doing the little things that align with what I want my life to look like.

The exciting thing is that anyone can do the same things! You may not be able to go for a week long vacation to Europe or live next to a nature reserve, but you can find small ways to integrate the elements you want most into your life.

Ask yourself what you want your life to look like, make a small shift in your daily schedule or behavior, then keep asking yourself the same question and keep making little, little changes over time. The more I do this, the more awesome life feels! And the best part is, it’s not dependent on anything outside of you to change.

Try it and let me know in a week how it feels!

Avivah