It's hard to learn to "be kind to yourself" after years of neglect. It's not that I was ever really mean to me, just not governed or paced well. I was always in an all-out roar. Comments I remember from my twenties: "You have such passion!" "You have so much heart!" Translation: Always going at a dead run and a wee bit emotionally wrought because of it.
The blessing of children is that it's forced me to slow down... way down. It was either that, or destroy the little ones that God gave me. So in the name of not killing myself for ridiculous standards set by (and cared about by) myself alone, I practice the following:
1. I don't always shower every day. I have short hair that has a messy look anyway, even when styled, and I find that my skin care products last twice as long.
2. I can wear my pajamas during the day (or my day wear to bed, either way.)
3. I let caller-id and voice mail do their jobs.
4. I get a pedicure once a month, complete with jewels and designs. This month is Irish shamrocks.
5. Once I even served popcorn for dinner... on plates.
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9 comments:
I heard about the shamrocks, but didn't get to see them!
I also am a daytime pj wearer...you have personally helped to addict me to "pretty jammies"! I also find that the shower can double as a santuary! Here's to slowing down instead of breaking down!
:) SB
Great, now I really feel like a HORRIBLE mother! Last night Thomas and I had ice cream for dinner. Eaten out of the cartons with plastic spoons so I wouldn't have any dishes to do!
Popcorn on plates... how can I keep up with that?!?!? ;)
Um... yeah, see... here's the thing... we had ice cream for supper tonight too. And chicken nuggets for dessert. You can tell that college nutrition course was a waste of money on me! Augh!
Pedicure's once a month?! You go Girl! Shamrocks, very fun!
The popcorn dinner was not so long ago.. I read Matt's Blog. :-) I must admit I absolutely love the idea though! Complete with plates! You're great!
So, if I call and no one answers... should I assume you're not home? or just simply screening your calls?? Ha ha ha... we do the exact same thing!! SO many sales calls!!
And my final favorite, wearing PJ's during the day! I love to do this when I can. Usually only Sat. (and not every one of those). It's not always understood around here the comfort that is gleaned from that...but oh is it soothing some days! Glad to hear at least one other person "gets it". :-)
I call it "lounge wear" and depending on the color, it has made it to the grocery store with me -- late at night, of course. I am the consummate night owl.
Shamrocks? I see no shamrocks!! Come on, if you are going to the trouble of decorating your tootsies so holiday appropriate -- shouldn't we all get to see them?
Totally know the whole short-haired "messy" look. Mine made it a second day today, as a matter of fact. I ran my fingers through it hastily so as not to frighten the librarian right before closing tonight.
God is so good at using children to rearrange our priorities. One more reason for praise!!
We like cereal for dinner too! Popcorn is a favorite (sometimes I give them a slice of cheese with it, does that make it a deluxe dinner?)...
Two of my children sometimes like to sleep in their clothes... less laundry for me! Today they stayed in their jammies (we homeschool and do this often - if we aren't leaving the house)!
I used to be more 'anal' about what my kids ate. My best friend was the opposite - she lets her kids eat whatever whenever! Her three year old son was killed in a car accident by an impaired driver. At the time, he was eating his breakfast - a brownie! I realized then that that brownie didn't hurt him one bit! Neither will popcorn for dinner hurt our children!
Best wishes to you!
Oh, yeah ... we do the caller-id and voice mail thing, too!
Mani's and Pedi's are so luxurious, but I never thought to do it once a month just for 'me time'! I've only done it once a month while I was pregnant because I couldn't reach.down.there. And that was only twice.
Huh. Sounds like healthy stuff to me: popcorn is a good source of fiber, ice cream has calcium...see what I mean? It's all in the perspecive. =p
And pj's...man, I had to change so I can take my son to swim lessons, but I was in pj's when my real estate agent showed up at the door late this morning! At least the pants were flannel considering the cold air whipping in the door. That, and I'm glad it wasn't someone wanting to SEE the house.
But my hair...long, straight, and needing zero hair care products aside from shampoo and conditioner. Most days, I have a large clip that tucks it all into a bun-like thing. Wah-lah, DONE.
Wish I had shamrocks, though...
You make me smile Heidi:) Popcorn on plates, no showers, pj's. Great stuff. We women need to feel less pressure to keep up...it makes us more pleasant people.
ANNE
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