“🌿 Keep, Pause, Let Go” Activity 

Sort Activities into the following categories:

• ✔ Keep (essential/meaningful)  
  • What is working and matters most? 
• ⏸ Pause (temporary overload)  
  • What can we take a break from temporarily? 
• ❌ Let go (not serving family right now) 
  • What is adding stress without enough value?  

⏰ 1. Daily Routines & Home Life 

• Family dinner  
• Bedtime routines  
• Morning rush habits  
• Cleaning expectations (perfect vs. “good enough”)  
• Laundry schedules 

🏫 2. Kids’ Activities & Commitments 

• Sports teams (multiple vs. one at a time)  
• Dance, music lessons, clubs  
• After-school programs  
• Church/youth activities  
• Playdates  

📱 3. Screen Time & Technology 

• Evening screen habits  
• Device use before bed  
• Social media scrolling (for parents too 👀)  
• Gaming limits  

🍽️ 4. Meals & Food Expectations 

• Cooking from scratch every night  
• Eating together as a family  
• Takeout frequency  
• Meal planning vs. last-minute stress  

• 👉 Example: 
  • KEEP: Family dinner 3 nights/week  
  • PAUSE: Complicated recipes  
  • LET GO: Expecting homemade meals daily  

🧹 5. Household Responsibilities 

• Chores for kids  
• Division of labor between spouses  
• Deep cleaning routines  
• “Everything must be done today” mindset  

🎓 6. Academic & Achievement Pressure 

• Homework expectations  
• Grades pressure  
• Extra tutoring or enrichment  
• Overscheduling for “success.”  

❤️ 7. Family Connection Time 

• One-on-one time with kids  
• Date nights  
• Family outings  
• Weekly traditions  

🙋‍♀️ 8. Parent Commitments & Obligations 

• Volunteering  
• Saying yes to everything  
• Helping others at the expense of your own family time  
• Work taking over evenings  

🧠 9. Mental Load & Expectations 

• Trying to “do it all”  
• Comparing to other families  
• Guilt about not doing enough  
• Unrealistic routines