Self Care

I fit in a 20 minute walk every day by myself. It makes me get out of the house. No music or anything, because I need to digest my day. I love it.

Dinner date once a month with girl friends to get good advice and good food. Do different things to spiece it up. like go downtown to greek or mexican town. Good
food downriver. It's good for my husband get a date with buddys too.

Hi K.,

Here are some of the many things that I do: Listen to my favorite music and sing and dance along. Make my favorite meal and eat it on my best dishes, alone by candle light. Visit, write or call a friend I haven't connected with in a long time. Go to the movies with friends. Sit, on the grass, by a river or a lake. Swing on a swing. Take a long brisk walk. Look at old family photos. Watch my favorite movie, cuddled up on couch or bed with some popcorn. Look at pictures in fashion and home decorating books and magazines. Re-read the beautiful cards and letters, family and friends have given me, over the years. Write. Draw. Paint. Play with my hair, looking for a new hairstyle. The last I will list, but not least, play dress up with my daughter and take pictures of us in our gorgeous outfits.

S.

20 minutes of yoga in the morning (AM Yoga with Rodney Yee) Sets the tone for my whole day!

read a book or magazine, go for a walk, and sometimes it's fun to rent a funny movie or whatever kind you like and veg out for a night here or there :)

Try journaling. I have journaled for years and it helps me and then I have this wonderful things that I have said about my kids and my husband and that is nice to read back. It will be fun later for them to read and you to remember. Plus it can go anywhere.

Go to the spa and get pampered once in a while as a treat. Get a massage, facial, pedicure, manicure. It's also great to go and get your hair highlighted.

M.

Hi K.,

Well I am an avid scrapbooker, so the first thing I do is scrapbook, I'm in a club that meets every 6 weeks and then a group of my friends go on 3 scrapbooking weekends a year (one is coming up the first weekend in May, woo hoo).

Then the hubby and I have a date night once a month. It could be dinner out and drinks, we might throw in a movie. But sometimes we just go shopping by ourselves with no kids which is amazing, lol.

I like to exercise (need to do it more). Go to Life Time Fitness and you get 2 hours of daycare a day for your kids, so it's drop them off and get two hours of me time. Sometimes I even just go use the hot tub, pool and saunas :)

And then I have my nights where I grab a good book, lock the bathroom door and get in the Jacuzzi tub, oh yeah, and turn on the fan so if the kids start yelling for me I can't hear them :) hehe But my hubby is with them, so why are they yelling for me????? :)

Find a few things, try it out and see how your feel. I think you've already gotten a GREAT start!
J. in Macomb

K.,

When I really need to relax I take a bath with lighted candles around the tub, listen to quiet classical music and read a book.

I also crochet - it is a portable hobby that I can do while watching tv, listening to the radio, riding in the car on a trip, or just by myself. I feel complete when I am able to create something tangible from my own hands.

I'm so glad you are looking to take care of yourself. You will find you are a better mother, wife, and partner when you take a little guilt-free time every day just for you.

Good luck with your search.

-C..

Especially as a working Mom, I think there is a sacrifice we make to get our kids where they need/want to be. I will take time for myself when they are in college. That's a long list of things I haven't done in quite some time. I enjoy where they are whether it's Cub Scouts, soccer game or dance recital. Make the most of each moment with your kids. My Mom didn't take time for herself that I remember either, but she was always there for me. The craziness continues.

I love, love, love a nice hot uninterupted hot shower!! Of course even if it is interupted it is a good excape. My husband also takes the boys on Sat. morning so I can go to garage sales or the store by myself. It is not a "real" break but it helps a lot to get a lot done in a short amount of time and it is nice. Sometimes I just make the boys play by themselves and I watch TV or lay down.

I also sew some but don't think of that as a break since I don't get to do it all at once. I'm up and down getting something for the boys or helping them with a dissagreement etc... :)

Find what re-fuels you and makes you a better mom. Our job is never done but taking a few min. now and then helps keep us going. Find something that you think is rewarding too. Like making something -- then you have something to show for your time. Good luck!

I agree that exercise is very important to our well-being, physically but also mentally and emotionally. Sometimes, with kids, it is the LAST thing you want to do- you think, I exercise all day! But it really does give you MORE energy if you just do it.

I am pregnant right now and have a one&a half year old and when I make time for yoga it really does energize me and help me cope better with the other "exercising" I will be doing all day long!

I also take a bubble bath every night when the baby goes to bed, to separate the attention that was spent on my son and the attention that will be given to my husband...just that half hour by myself helps to relax and refocus me.

Amen!! I enjoy working out (without the kids), scrapbooking, sewing, Bible study. Just a note, my MOPS group is having a fundraiser July 11th (far off) at the Scrapbook Emporium at Hayes/21. It's a 12-hr crop for $35 which will include lunch, dinner, raffles. Email me at ____@____.com if you want more info. Thanks!

One thing to try is a "splurge" on a good skin care line. These products, consisting of a cleanser, toner, serum, moisturizer and eye cream, "demand" that you have "mommy time" morning and night!! Can you think of anything better than pamering yourself first thing in the morning and last thing at night?!

Another thing I've found is ALL moms need some down time...so why not get a group going? We have a "Ladies Night Out" once a month. (nothing says you can't do it more often...this is just what WE chose to do) Our "group" meets every 2nd Wednesday of the Month. We visit a different restaurant (we've chosen the "no chain restaurants" option) each time. Kind of nice to have a night out AND be waited on (no dishes!!). We've chosen to "jazz" ours up by collecting a $5 "fee" each time, which goes to a nice "all expenses paid Christmas Time Dinner/Party , plus, we have a $5 pr. person raffle for a prize. The raffle money goes to cover the cost of the gift with the remainder going into the "Christmas Kitty". We try to keep the gifts at a $10 value (or more if we get it on sale!) just to keep it fair and everyone wanting in!

While these are just 2 of the things I do for myself...I still enjoy the reading time (everynight after the kid is in bed) and the occasional Do Not Disturb For ANY Reason Bubble Baths (complete with candles and a bottle of wine...my legs never feel so smooth as after this!!...lol)

No matter your suggestions....the best thing (and hardest) is to just make a point of doing whatever it is just for you!! Make it a point to find the time and then make the time. After all.... a Happy and Relaxed Mommy makes for a Happy and Relaxed Family!

Enjoy your time!

J.

Work out, make sure I eat healthy, work from home

Have you ever thought about going on a girls weekend away? Several of my friends and I do this once a year. We go to a B & B, hang out, and laugh until our stomachs hurt. It is always a refreshing blast!