Fun: (n) Enjoyment, amusement, or lighthearted pleasure. Antonyms: boredom, misery.*
Do me a favor—flip through your catalog of memories to the one saturated with the most fun. Was it a childhood birthday party? Christmas morning? An amazing family vacation? Just sit there and bask in the happiness for a minute.
Time for a personal confession: fun is a struggle for me.
If you need depth, I’m your girl. Want pie charts or checklists? No problem. Even the mundane tasks of daily life can hold a certain kind of pleasure for me (I love doing laundry!). My serious, methodical, responsible side looks like a heavyweight champion, but my spontaneous, silly, celebratory side? That resembles a drooling one-year-old.
I’m not sure what happened—fun used to come so easily to me. There’s an obscene amount of family video footage of little Kassie making up songs, dressing in gowns and tutus, playing with imaginary friends, pretending to be an Indian princess or a shipwrecked castaway. I guess at some point, insecurity or personality took over, replacing childlike glee with a desire for control.
As motherhood looms, it has occurred to me that I have a massive need to grow in fun. Sure, I’ll bring my redeemed strengths of determined duty and thorough thoughtfulness to the table; it’s how God wired me, and He did so for a reason. But I also want to be the kind of mama who breathes in and amplifies the happiness of each moment, especially in a home with Cystic Fibrosis.
So what’s the action plan? (You know I have one, and yes, glitter pens and sticky notes are involved.) Simple: boot camp. Not military boot camp. Not workout boot camp. Fun boot camp. I will be creating and embarking on a 100-day challenge to intentionally build a spirit of lightheartedness into my rhythms. Because God is the author and ultimate source of fun, I can join in what He’s up to with confidence.
If you’d like to know what kinds of things will make up this full-bodied, joy-oriented experiment, well, that makes two of us. I haven’t really gotten that far (though if you have any ideas, please share!). A good mix of activities, books, and people who ooze merriment will probably be a decent starting point. Right now, I can celebrate the gospel step of recognizing where growth is necessary and choose to cooperate with the Holy Spirit at His pace. For the first time in my adult life, I’m going to get serious about having fun.
*lexico.com
The Dwelling Place 
I love your heart and your posts are always so thought provoking. I will say that some of my life moments of fun have included your mom or family. That is one joyful bunch that loves life and embraces whatever the day may bring with zest! I, too, had to learn to lean into fun and be more spontaneous when raising our little clan. Do you remember the jar we made with slips of paper that had activities of fun things to do after chores, etc. were complete? The ideas were as simple as go for a walk, ride bikes, play a game, get ice cream, rollerblading, watch a movie, have a talent show. I wish I had kept that jar! I found out later that the boys had overstuffed it with ‘watch a movie’ which was easy to do because it was all in their handwriting! I will be eager to see what you come up with. Love you girl and though I am not great at communicating know that you are loved and prayed for!
Tanya
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Oh what a joyous time it will be!!! There’s NOTHING like being a mama! You will be amazing, Kassie, because you DESIRE to be🥰
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