Take Care

A couple weeks ago a friend shared an article about how mothers need to take care of themselves. I, unfortunately, did not save that article, but it hit a chord with me. There are days when I just don't take care of myself. I wake up groggy and cranky way too early after being up at night with my youngest, then the whirlwind of my day begins. Breakfast. Cranky kids. More juice. Reheating my coffee. Scarfing down a handful of cereal. Playing. Paying bills. Making lunch. Naptime. Kids not actually sleeping for naptime. Kissing my husband goodbye. Nursing the baby. Cleaning. Nursing the baby again. Finally finishing my coffee. Stepping on Legos. Yelling at kids for leaving out Legos. Dinner. Baths. Fighting the girls to get into their pajamas. Fighting the girls to pick up their toys. Bedtime. More juice. Lullaby. Stuffed animals. Potty break. In bed. Potty break. Lullaby again.

Then I run downstairs and stuff my face with junk food and watch something on Netflix.

Anyway, I read that article while sipping lukewarm coffee, nursing Emiliana, and occasionally being kicked in the head by Catherine as she jumped off the top of the couch. The article challenged mothers to pick three things to try for the next seven days just as a way to pamper themselves. Do them every day. I think hers were eat breakfast, shower, and... I don't remember the third one. But, as you can see, they were pretty small things. She said after that seven days she was less cranky, her kids were less cranky, and overall they were happier because she made those things priority.

I don't take care of myself. I have three children and a husband and I take care of all of them, and if I have any leftover energy I then take care of myself. And that really sucks. So, I decided to take the challenge my fellow mom gave me. I picked three things to try for seven days, for ME.

1) Have my morning coffee
2) Read my Bible
3) Go to bed at 9

It was actually pretty amazing. I woke up feeling well rested (ish. At least more rested than I usually feel) had my coffee, and made time during the day to read my Bible. I didn't make it a whole week because sometime over the weekend I got busy spending time with my husband and family and went to bed too late and didn't read my Bible. But it was still amazing.

I need to keep doing this. It was really surprising to me just how better I felt by going to bed an hour earlier. And my daily Bible reading (something I strive for anyway) is really a great recharge for me. And coffee is coffee. It's like a security blanket for me.

So while my life is insanely hectic, I now really try to take care of myself, too. Because what is that old saying? Oh yeah: "If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy."