If you’re prepared to make some bigger changes, try out some of these medium-sized steps on the way to a slower life:

• Cut one activity from your child’s schedule. Stay home and play together, instead.
• Go for a walk every morning.
• Knit, crochet, or do needlepoint. Kids, too. Even boys are learning to knit.
• Take up acrylic or oil painting.
• Go fishing.
• Reheat leftovers on the stove instead of the microwave.
• Establish an after-dinner ritual that keeps you lingering at the table. Read. Talk. Play a game. Drink hot chocolate or a smoothie.
• List ten goals for yourself and your family. Prioritize 1 through 10. Cross off the bottom six and focus on what remains.
• Scrapbook as a family. Remember when…
• Schedule a weekly game night. “Chutes and Ladders,” anyone? “Apples to Apples”?
• Stroll through an art museum. Stare at a sculpture. Read all the signs.
• Repeat after me: “I’m sorry, but I’m not able to help with that at this time.”
• Before agreeing to something, check with the rest of the family. Compare schedules. Say no if there are conflicts.
• Organize your schedule so that you eat dinner at home most nights.
• Eliminate all fast food.
• Take off your watch. Live one day–maybe a Sunday–without watching the clock.
• Why let yourself be instantly accessible, 24/7? Let calls go to VM on your cell phone.
• No big destination for your next vacation; just rent a little cabin or go camping. Hike. Play games. Write stories. Read. Swim.
• Camp overnight in a park or even just the back yard.
• Cancel two activities next week.
• Simplify your home (and minimize stress) by decluttering and organizing your space.
• Reduce the crazies the night before a busy day by setting out everything and loading the car.
• Choose one season to forgo all after-school activities.

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