Comments on Reading to Know: Two Hours of Reading Time A Day

Before the last round of holidays I was trying to ...

2012-01-16T09:36:02.769-08:00

Before the last round of holidays I was trying to win gifts for people. That meant following a lot of GFC pages and liking a ton of facebook pages. It also means a lot of cleaning and clearing those lists thrhoughout the new year. I just can not follow/read (nor do I want to) everyone.
Unfortunately for New Years I did it again with G+ pages.

When my kids were little I found time to craft and read. Now I am an old lady time gets away from me. We all need that structure and awareness of the passage of time to use it to our best advantage.

Shonya - ROFL!!!!!!

2012-01-11T20:43:57.001-08:00

Shonya - ROFL!!!!!!

I'm so far behind on reading my favorite blogs...

2012-01-11T18:50:28.937-08:00

I'm so far behind on reading my favorite blogs!! But I love this post--it is challenging me to be more "scheduled" in both my reading and blogging. My times tend to be naptime and after the kiddos go to bed too, but I have to confess to reading other people's blogs in between math problems or while waiting on a science experiment, etc., which is not good. . .

And I LOVE that you also don't like to talk on the phone. I realized my bad attitude to the phone ringing when my 4yod moaned "whyyyyyyyy? why do people call me??!!" when the phone rang the other day. giggle Guess I need to control myself! :)

Great, thought provoking post! Got my brain churni...

2012-01-11T04:05:02.449-08:00

Great, thought provoking post! Got my brain churning! :) My struggle with time management is being more disciplined in quiet times for my kids. They are 4 and 2 so truly still need it, but don't want it! LOL! I need to put into practice more of a routine to sit in their room, quietly, and look through books, color, or play quietly with the toys in their rooms. My youngest really should be taking naps still, but that is a struggle in and of itself! With baby #3 on the way, this is really something I need to be working on...like today! :) Thank you for the urge to do so!

I admire you, but I don't think I want to do t...

2012-01-10T18:14:16.876-08:00

I admire you, but I don't think I want to do the time management/self-discipline thing right now in my life. And that's probably not OK. But it is where I am.

A very nice, thoughtful post. It is ever difficult...

2012-01-10T13:13:31.206-08:00

A very nice, thoughtful post. It is ever difficult for me to set aside time for reading. I'd like to make a promise to myself to read one chapter a day, but with school it is like stacking reading upon reading. I'll see what I can do, though. And with such little reading time, the question of whether or not what I am reading is useful and edifying is ever-present. That's a good thing, I think.

I have a day job, but also a spouse who is a reade...

2012-01-10T11:01:07.588-08:00

I have a day job, but also a spouse who is a reader. We put twin reading lamps above our bed so we can read together. (Separate books though...) I figure right after the kids go to bed is a good time for me (also NOT a morning person) to unwind for an hour or so. It definitely beats what is on TV these days.

Life with little does give you built-in limitatio...

2012-01-10T10:37:26.714-08:00

Life with little does give you built-in limitations on free time. My challenge is, with the older two out of the nest and the youngest just on the verge and gone from home several hours a day, I could easily spend much of the day on the computer if I let myself -- and reading good stuff. It would be an easier decision if I had to choose between bad and good, but it's between better and best. I've valued and loved being a mom at home but I know God didn't allow that for me to sit at the computer in excess, so I've had to trim my Google Reader at times, too. If I find myself continually scanning through someone's posts rather than reading them, I figure it's time to stop reading them.

Adjusting schedules and priorities seems to be a continual thing throughout life, at least for me.

I did that two, when mine were young -- they had to spend some quiet times in their room in the afternoon even if they didn't go to sleep. I'm a more quiet, introverted person, too, and needed that oasis in the middle of the day for my own sanity. :-D

I also like to guard my 2 hour nap/rest time after...

2012-01-10T10:08:53.036-08:00

I also like to guard my 2 hour nap/rest time after lunch. AND I like to start my morning slowly and quietly. Thankfully I have a husband who doesn't mind taking the morning shift.

This weekend I reorganized my google reader. I unsubscribed from a ton of blogs because the author hasn't written there in months and months, some were even a year of two. No point in keeping that subscription. It was just visual clutter.

Then I set up new categories based on blog niche - my family, college friends, home management, blog info, homeschool, thought provoking. I also made a "daily read" category and arranged the blogs in it in the order for me to read each day. By the way, you are in the #1 position. ;) I have about 20 blogs in the daily reads but a lot of those don't post every day.

One final tip for Google Reader: star the posts that are meaningful to you. For example, with RTK - the books that I want to go back and read I check the star button. When I reorganized my subscriptions there were some blogs that posted every day but had no or very few stars. Why keep reading a blog that doesn't speak to me and I have no relationship with the author?

I like how you addressed the questions. I crave my...

2012-01-10T09:50:13.864-08:00

I like how you addressed the questions. I crave my reading time and have to be careful not to let overtake more of my life. My time with my family is precious too!

Well, I'm impressed by your organization. I he...

2012-01-10T09:21:23.993-08:00

Well, I'm impressed by your organization. I hear you about only blogging when you have something to say. I'll end up somewhere else online and wasting time.

Time management has always been an uphill battle for me, but at least now I know it has been for you too. Gives me hope. :-)

I enjoyed reading this. It sounds like you have a ...

2012-01-10T09:12:13.991-08:00

I enjoyed reading this. It sounds like you have a good sense of your boundaries with the Internet and you manage your time well. "Internet-creep" happens so easily if we're not aware.

I so relate to your comments about being a quiet-loving person in a house full of... not so quietness. :-) I've instituted a half hour of quiet in the afternoons -- just for silent reading. I'm hoping that can be increased over time, but we're starting small.

Thanks, I've been struggling with being able t...

2012-01-10T09:02:39.320-08:00

Thanks, I've been struggling with being able to find time in a day anymore for my books so this is a great post for me.

I really appreciated this post as I'm working ...

2012-01-10T08:45:42.265-08:00

I really appreciated this post as I'm working on my personal planning/schedule and trying to be more disciplined about my time. It's so easy to just randomly surf the Internet, or to let my Google Reader get out of control (as it is now) because I'm afraid to prune it. But I'm trying to get that balance where I make the important things really important. We have afternoon quiet time around here, and I, too, guard it! Right now, I use it for excercise and some writing, and I often just turn off the phone ringer completely. :)

Thanks for a great sharing. You motivated me to c...

2012-01-10T07:56:00.422-08:00

Thanks for a great sharing.

You motivated me to cut my list. I'm guessing I just unsubscribed to about 1/3 of my subscriptions.

I agree about the Google Reader thing! I've be...

2012-01-10T06:41:53.174-08:00

I agree about the Google Reader thing! I've been slowly trying to narrow my list WAY down, so that I can actually have time to read all the blogs I follow. At this point, it's just impossible, and I don't even try! I've collected entirely too many.
I've been struggling with trying to find a schedule that works for us, so you've given me more to think about!

Thanks for answering my question, Carrie! Right n...

2012-01-10T06:26:27.257-08:00

Thanks for answering my question, Carrie! Right now I have tons of blog-reading time now because I'm still nursing the DLM and we have wi-fi (which is often a curse) and an iPod touch which I can hold and manipulate while rocking and nursing. Of course, I SHOULD be reading books instead. What I have a hard time with us figuring out what I want to model for my kids!

Great blog post. I am working on protecting my tim...

2012-01-10T06:16:06.227-08:00

Great blog post. I am working on protecting my time, in many areas. I went through my Google Reader and really cut a lot. It kind of made me sad, but for the first time in a long time, I am actually reading the blogs I follow. (Yours made the cut, lol!) Thank you for taking the time to share with us!