As we get older and the pitter patter of little feet is just around the corner, one often wonders if there will be any time for hobbies. As a new mom, I was wondering the same thing. You see, I’m a painter and I was concerned about losing time for a hobby that gives me a lot of joy and relaxation.  For the first couple months after my son was born, I lost all time to do anything. A lack of sleep will quickly turn you into a zombie who craves a bed and comfy pillow without any kind of distraction. Yeah, good luck with that! The hobby was the very last thing on my mind and I even contemplated selling off my collection many times during those first couple months.

Starting month three, I wanted to start painting again, but time was still going by too fast. I had a new baby, a new job and a lot of juggling to do with finances and of course, time. I was lamenting to my buddy Djinn about selling my collection again, and he gave me a challenge. Paint for 15 minutes a day. He told me that it might be slow going, but what you do get painted will continue to grow and that progress can’t be taken away. I thought well that’s a really good point, so I decided to try. I was bored with my armies, so I picked up something completely different from my fatty ogres and my stylish elder. While the baby was sleeping, I would throw down some paint on a mini. Here are the results so far after about a week and a half.

I am a bit rusty from not painting as long as I have, but for just a few minutes a day, this mini has come from a blah grey, to a primed black, to this. I still have quite a few days to go before he is done, but this mini was pretty much the first I’ve painted in about a year. I will continue to do this until this entire game is painted. I’m pretty happy with the results so far. It’s very nice to see progress every day, even if it’s just a little.

Regardless if you have a kid or not, if you are time poor, sparing 15 minutes for yourself and your hobby is a pretty good idea to relax and unwind. That is an incredibly important thing to do when there are so many pressures. So when you feel stressed and you look at your hobby with longing, make that time while dinner is cooking, or while you wait for the laundry to dry, pick up a brush and paint for that amount of time. Use a timer if you want, but do something in the hobby for you. It’ll keep you sane and doing something that you enjoy.