For the past few weeks, I’ve been trying something new – turning off my mind and tuning in to the present. Regularly. And this simple practice has truly changed my life.

I stumbled upon Eckhart Tolle’s book, The Power of Now, completely by accident. A friend had recommended another one of his books, A New Earth. But when the library didn’t have it on the shelf, I grabbed The Power of Now on a whim. Later, I did pick up the other book, and I’m not sure which one I enjoyed more. They both did more for my life in a couple of short weeks than any single book I’ve ever read.

Before I had children, I probably spent most of my time “in my head.” I just didn’t realize it. I mean, it didn’t affect my life all that much. When you’re alone in your car or at your desk or on a run, the voice in your head is kind of nice company. Quite frankly, I think that I spent a lot of time talking to myself. And it wasn’t really an issue.

But once I added two small children to my days and nights, that voice in my head became problematic. Most new moms experience increased worry and anxiety. Well, those emotions become an unhealthy habit if you’re constantly yelling, “FIRE!!!” and running for the exit door — which doesn’t exist, so you just continue running around in circles in your mind with the panic button still  on.

I was feeding myself all kinds of horror stories all day long … what might harm my child, or me, or their father, what I needed to do next, what I hadn’t done yet, etc. It wasn’t all negative thinking. But Echkart Tolle’s book just made me realize how much time I was spending THINKING instead of BEING.

And what he said, which had never actually occurred to me before, is that I have control over these thoughts! I can make that internal voice stop by focusing for a few moments on my breath and my surroundings. And then, voila! I’m present in the moment.

What’s really great is that I don’t have to DO anything different, like meditate for 20 minutes every day or do yoga. I’m sure those things would help, but it’s as simple as recognizing “the voice” for what it is — the imagination on overdrive — and just turning it off.

It’s amazing how much peace I’ve found in my life now that I’m not always interrupting myself with unnecessary thinking.

I would like to put in a petition for a 30-hour day. I truly believe that six extra hours per day would enable me to get everything done that I need to accomplish … and I might even have time to sit and read a book, or do something else relaxing. Yes, six more hours would be just great.

I know that there are some people out there who have managed to find these additional few hours without having to actually slow down the earth’s rotation. These amazing individuals can get 4-5 hours of sleep each night and still be safe behind a wheel.

Alas, I am not one of these people. I would definitely be considered a public hazard, if I were to regularly skimp on half of my daily sleep requirement.

I feel like I’m already cutting every corner to manufacture extra minutes in the day. Here are some of my time-creating tactics that might work for you, too (although you’re probably already doing half of them):

Eat and drink on the run.

Morning coffee is rarely sipped from a mug, but more often slugged from a silver thermos. And just today, I found myself eating a leftover bagel in the front seat of the car after my 3-year-old daughter reached out from her car-seat and said, “here, Mommy.”

Shower every other day.

I figure that saves me some time, too. It’s summer – I’m just going to get dirty again, anyway. And a friend of mine has a really clean pond. It’s the perfect natural bath.

Stop folding and putting away laundry.

This activity is just far too time consuming. My kids have now started fishing their clothes out of the laundry basket. They’re much easier to get to than if they were in a drawer, anyway.

Lose the brush.

I honestly don’t know where ours is. It has been missing for months. No, really, I’m serious. I cut my hair recently under the guise of fashion. But it was really because I don’t have time to brush.

Stop making the bed.

This one doesn’t even require an explanation. It makes perfect sense.

And finally, let the clutter collect.

I find that it’s much easier to locate what I’m looking for if it all stays out in the open. You tuck something neatly away in a drawer or cabinet, and you’ll never find it (on purpose) again.

There you go. Follow these suggestions, and you’ll create at least 2-3 NEW hours for yourself every day.

Almost six years after diving-in to this whole parenting thing, I’m just now realizing that I don’t have to witness my child’s every breath to be a good parent. What a relief. I can finally feel good about going to the bathroom alone.

I swear that it was only days after finding out I was expecting my first child that complete strangers began stopping me in the grocery store to say, “It goes by so fast! Don’t blink!”

“Don’t blink.” That’s still one of my favorites. I get it at least three or four times a week. 

The ever diligent person that I am, I’ve always taken these comments to heart — meaning that I’ve spent a lot of hours in my children’s faces. I’ve worked really hard at being present and available to them. They have been the center of my life.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions, so someone said. 

I think that all of those hours attending to my kids’ every whim, determined not to BLINK and miss one precious moment of their lives …. has resulted in two very attention-needy children. They’re really great, fun-loving kids. But they demand a lot of one-on-one time from us.

Naturally – since I’ve been so desperately trying to make the most of this fleeting moment in time, I’ve resisted sending either of my kids to preschool. 

Until recently. 

With a work schedule that demanded it, I had to give in. My daughter began preschool last week.

And guess what? Not only did she have a great time, but I was delighted to see that she really didn’t grow all that much in the five hours that we were apart. 

She enjoyed making some new friends, I got some work done, and we had a delightful afternoon and evening together after that.

Perspective is a good thing. I’m sure that looking back, the years when our kids are little do seem to go by in a flash. 

But the thing is, we can’t hoard time — no matter how hard we might try. So it’s best to just let go and enjoy each step of the journey, instead of fretting about when it’s going to end.

As for me, I’m finally getting up the nerve to blink from time to time. And it feels good.

In recent months, I’ve committed myself to cutting back on my coffee intake — with a limit of one cup of regular brew per day. In the past, I would make a pot of coffee in the morning and sip on it throughout the day. One cup at the break of dawn, one around mid-morning, and then a pick-me-up between 3 and 4 p.m.

Now that I’m enjoying only one mug of joe every 24 hours, I’ve noticed that I relish it like never before. I sit down, hold the cup snugly in my hands, breathe in its sweet aroma, and take my first sip. There’s no rushing around the house with a quick swig here and there. For me, that cup of coffee in the morning is to be savored … because it’s the only one I’ll get.

This morning, as I was tenderly cradling the mug in my hands, it occurred to me that all things seem to taste, look, and feel better when they’re in limited supply. 

The recession has forced many of us to cut back on our consumption of items we previously may have taken for granted, whether it be dinners out at a restaurant, new clothing purchases, or home renovations. But I think that there’s a case to be made that the special-occasion dinner out tastes a lot better when it happens once a season instead of once a week. 

In the end, we may discover that doing with less leaves us with a greater sense of appreciation for the luxuries we do have — when we have them.

“Perhaps the greatest social service that can be rendered by anybody to the country and to mankind is to bring up a family.”

- George Bernard Shaw

As I begin to finalize my list of goals for the upcoming year (and boy, I have a lot of them!), I keep coming back to this quote by George Bernard Shaw (1856 – 1950). These words, written so long ago, remind me that even if I don’t achieve each of my personal and professional aims by the time I ring in 2010, I still will have had a successful year if I have managed to stay focused on my loved ones. 

In today’s world, we measure our success through so many other means … whether or not we get that promotion or score that assignment, how much we can stash away in savings at the end of the year, where we can take our family for that week-long vacation, etc., etc., etc.

We put a lot of pressure on ourselves to achieve. It’s a defining part of the American culture. I know that I have to constantly fight that inner voice that’s telling me, “Produce! Produce! Produce!” at the expense of pulling me away from the experience that’s in my immediate grasp, whether it’s cooking dinner or playing Legos with my kids.

Unfortunately, the success garnered by preparing a meal or building a fantastic fighter-jet out of plastic parts is not as measurable as a job title or a paycheck.

But that doesn’t mean that those intangibles should “weigh-in” any less. In fact, I think that I’ll keep that quote by George Bernard Shaw on my refrigerator door as a reminder that my greatest successes in life will not be measurable. 

New Years provides a great opportunity for looking at one’s life from the outside-in … as if we are spectators on the sidelines, watching our lives unfold. How did we perform in the last round, and what are our odds in the coming match?

But I think that I’ll try a new approach this year – observing this annual milestone from the inside-out. How have my actions over the past year impacted the lives of those around me, and what will I do in the coming year to bring love, comfort, and joy to both my family members and my friends?

From this revised perspective, that tasty lasagna and freestanding plastic sculpture suddenly fly to the top of the list of New Year’s Resolutions.

The holiday season has officially arrived. The local radio station is playing 24-hour Christmas music from now until New Years. My kids are becoming at home in the storage room, pulling out their favorite decorations and dispersing them around the house. And the pile of shopping catalogs on the kitchen counter grows exponentially each day. 

These glossy little magazines have become as much a part of the prelude to Christmas as the twinkle lights that we string on the bushes or the wreath hung on the door. If left out in the open, these toy-filled magazines become my kids’ reading material of choice. They sneak them into their rooms, and only a glow from their flashlights can be seen through the bedcovers as they peruse the pages after lights-out. 

The Christmas Wish List is as etched into the holiday experience as Santa, himself. But this year, in particular, families will struggle with the tug between tightening purse strings and the consumer expectations that permeate the holidays. What is a parent to do when the pressure’s on and the pocketbook is lighter than usual?

Here are a few tips for toning down the “gimme” aspect of Christmas, in favor of traditions that will far outlast the latest fad in gadgetry:

Hide the Catalogs (or throw them away) 

Flip through them, perhaps, for that first “Yea! Christmas is here!” rush – and then put them away. In their place, go to the library and check out a few great holiday picture books for the kids and some inspirational reading for yourself. I read Leo Buscaglia’s book, Seven Stories of Christmas Love, every year. Pick up Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol or a holiday craft guide. It doesn’t matter. The point is to fill your home with good, wholesome reading material that helps you focus on the magic of the season.

Turn on the VCR

When you were a kid, you had to patiently wait to see your local television network’s special presentation of Frosty the Snowman. Not anymore! Now, you can just pop in your own copy or grab one at the video store whenever you like. So instead of subjecting the family to the thousands of toy commercials that litter the screen, it’s time to break out the VCR or DVD player. Pop some popcorn. Make it a family movie-night. Or not. Just take advantage of all of the great, pure holiday entertainment out there — without the distracting advertisements.

Make Memories

If you spend less time shopping this holiday season, then you’ll have more time for having experiences together as a family. Get outside, and make some memories. Whether you hit up the local sledding hill or get the neighborhood kids together for a game of touch-football, the point is to shift the household energy away from “things” and towards “people.” What better way to do that than by spending quality time together as a family and a community?

String Popcorn (or do something else crafty)

Turn on the Christmas music, rally the kids together, and make something. Baking Christmas cookies can provide enough entertainment for an entire afternoon. And then you can even pack them up and give them away as gifts. From gingerbread houses to Christmas ornaments to holiday place-mats, the options really are endless. 

Adopt a Family

Just when you thought you really needed that fancy new digital something-or-another, you encounter someone whose child doesn’t have a winter coat. There are a number of holiday outreach programs that help provide Christmas for low-income families. Empower your kids by teaching them the deep satisfaction that only comes from giving to those in need.

Since becoming a mom, I often have the feeling that I’m under siege — and the only means of defense available to me is to never pick up a parenting-related magazine, turn off the news programs, and avoid groups of other over-informed mothers. The negative, alarmist-driven media is likely the greatest threat to parental peace-of-mind.

It’s unfair, really — and not terribly different from using headlights to hunt a deer. As mothers, we are completely vulnerable and defenseless when it comes to anything that might possibly threaten our offspring. This is a beautiful fact (of most) of the natural world. Our ancestral mothers may have used sticks or stones to chase away threatening animals or enemies that lurked in the darkness, and hopefully the menacing creature would go away.

Today, the monsters in the shadows are more elusive. But whether they take the form of a possible flu pandemic, environmental toxins, or child predators — these information-based demons produce in us the same fight-or-flight response that our foremothers experienced in ages past.

But we can’t just blame those people out there who keep yelling, “There’s a big, horrible, scary creature in the forest!” They’re simply trying to sell magazines or attract viewers. We’re the ones who keep running for the hills.

As humans, our brains are hardwired for fear. I think that motherhood must put this part of our physiology into overdrive. So how should we respond when we encounter a piece of information that appears to give us the option to either protect our little ones or throw them into harm’s way? Of course we’re going to panic!

That’s why I think that we need to just reduce our exposure to the astounding amount of fear-based messages that are being sent around out there. It’s good to be informed and to be aware. But it’s not good to live in a perpetual state of fight-or-flight when it comes to our children’s welfare.

As mothers, I propose that we take a vow to stop passing along so many alarmist news bulletins and start helping each other embrace and enjoy this precious time in our lives.

So the next time we catch ourselves on the brink of sharing immunization-scare stories with a new mom whose baby has just been immunized …. we should check ourselves. Instead, let’s tell her about all of those sweet, sloppy kisses that soon will be coming her way.