Sometimes I think about how many different aspects of my life there are and how much is falling through the cracks. I blogged about this a while back, and sadly, nothing has really changed since then.

I haven't tracked my food; I haven't exercised. I thought if I could just manage to fit those two things back into my schedule, I would be doing great. But I haven't managed to do so at all, and I can physically tell how bad it is.

But lately I'm starting to notice other things that are missing in my life, and I'm wishing I could somehow do them all.

A big one: reading. Books have always been a huge part of my life. I love everything about books: the smell, the feel of the paper between my fingers, the joy of keeping them perfectly lined up on the shelf. And of course, the escape. I can sit down in a comfy chair with a coffee or hot chocolate and all the stress of the day just falls right away. I'm a fast reader... a few months ago I read the last four Harry Potter books in one weekend.

There's a bookstore here in my area called Half Price Books. I always hit up their clearance sections (because seriously, who wants to pay more than a couple dollars for a book?), and I always leave that place with a STACK. Yesterday they had $1 and $.50 books, and I seriously went to town. I carried home 13 books for only $14. When I got home, I lovingly removed all the stickers and took them over to my wall of bookshelves and chose places for all of them. They I had a mini dance party because my new book haul had finished off another shelf. My dream is to one day have a library room in my home just like in Beauty and the Beast... floor to ceiling shelves full of wonderful books!

But then, as I cheered about finishing off my collection of the Series of Unfortunate Events, and adding to a few other collections, I realized that I had no idea when I would actually be able to sit down and READ one of them. The realization hit me kind of hard and I was very depressed.

I guess for now I can enjoy adding to the collection, rearranging the books on the shelves, and occasionally flipping through them. I've just recently gotten my first fiction story book in Spanish, and I hope to have a large collection of those as well.

These little things in life that I really want to bring back... I don't know how to make heads or tails of them. I'm desperate to sit down and read, but I don't know if I'd be able to concentrate. I'd always be worried about that load of laundry that needs doing... that paper I should be editing... those web files I need to code.

How do you find time in life for everything falling behind? Do you plan your day in advance, with a schedule and to-do list? How do you make more time?

I think I'm going to try to get more organized and start planning my days out... with a little "me" time in there. Even if I can only squeeze in 15 minutes of reading time a day... I think it will be worth it. For my pleasure, but also to help with my sanity!

I took a health survey test, and while of course it warned me about weight issues and eating better, it surprised me in one area: Mental Health. All of the physical health stuff was listed under "Yellow Light" for how badly you need to pay attention to it. But Mental Health was "Red Light." Apparently because I had answered that I have stressful days more than 4 times a week, my mental health is really bad. I had never considered that before.

I think it's time to start taking better care of myself... not just physically, but mentally too. Taking time to read would really help with that.

So many things to worry about. See? I'm stressed again already.