Dear Maggie —

Happy October! I LOVE the Fall and all of the fun activities it brings, but I have to tell you – I get SO overwhelmed when I think about the bajillion events going on. In October alone, SMOS has the stewardship drive, trivia night, walk-a-thon, the golf tournament, the Be Smart Gun Sense thing, and as if that’s not enough, I’m supposed to squeeze in a parent party for each of my kid’s classes!  Let’s be honest I probably forgot a few too and those are just the SMOS events!  Don’t even get me started on events outside of school! There’s the Missouri Makers Market, the Shaw Art Fair, Oktoberfest, and of course, kids soccer games – and those are just the ones within walking distance!  Then I realize that once October ends that’s just the beginning – the holiday season is will be upon us, which brings the Christmas parties, the family gatherings, the shopping – and if I think about it too long, I black out. On top of all of that, there’s the FOMO!  How can I be sad about not going to an event I didn’t even want to attend in the first place?! #MakeItMakeSense. I go through this every year… I have a love/hate relationship with this season – it brings so much joy, but it can also bring so much stress.  Do you have any advice for how to handle this season when there’s just so much going on and so few days in the week to do them all? 

— Overbooked Odette

Dear Overbooked —

Trust me, I get it!  When I was queen, my schedule was packed… Every. Single. Day.  I was so exhausted each night that half the time, I was asleep BEFORE my head hit the pillow.  I know times are different now than they were when I was your age, but I went to my fair share of trivia nights and golf tournaments.  If I remember correctly, the last trivia night I went to had a 90’s theme as well.  Although, it was 1590’s and we all dressed up as our favorite plague victim (it was about as fun as it sounds! 😵)  We also had a few walk-a-thons too, but man was my neck tired after a few laps – wearing a 43 lb crown while speed walking all morning is not for the weak of spine! 

Knowing yours and your family’s limits is very important but respecting those limits can prove to be very difficult.  Luckily for you guys I had a short stint as a Buzzfeed writer and several of my listacles were featured on the site (bet you didn’t have that one on your Bingo card!). So, I have compiled The Top 3 Ways to Combat the Fall Fallout…

• It’s Vegas Baby! Go All In – Just roll the dice and you can sleep in January. Keep doing ALL the things ALL the time and try to enjoy yourself. Caution: this may have negative side effects of needing a weekend from your weekend. This way you don’t miss out on any of the fun but you will find yourself in the same situation you’re in now. 
• Let Yourself Off the Hook – Consider this your heavenly permission to skip a thing here and there. Setting boundaries is healthy and if you’re burnt out, chances are you’re not very good company. So, don’t punish others with your bad attitude just because you feel obligated to be at everything. If you hate trivia, DON’T GO, just buy a raffle ticket and call it a day. No one wants a Debbie Downer at their table anyway.
• Volunteer to Get in Gear – I personally love this one.  Volunteer at events instead of just being an attendee.  This way you can still go – but you show up, someone tells you exactly what to do, there’s a set end time.  You still got to be part of the activities but without the pressure to stay until the very end or be the life of the party.  “I don’t know, I just work here!” is one of my life’s mottos, so feel free to steal it!  Yes, you’ll still be tired at the end, but you’ll also feel so good about giving back to such an amazing community like SMOS. 

I hope this list helped. One thing to keep in mind is that you’re not alone in feeling this way. EVERYONE feels it at some point. Except for some of those extreme extroverts, but they’re in the minority (and let’s face it, not “normal” anyway!).  If you need to sit one out, go ahead, recharge and come back refreshed and ready to jump back in on the next one.  We will miss you for sure, but we will all be waiting with open arms when you come back!  Keep on keeping on Dragons!

— Maggie