{Day 30} Taking Care of the Me in Mommy

I know I've talked a lot about books or blogs in the past month. In case you haven't noticed yet I REALLY love to read! I love to read books, blogs, magazines, anything! I just love to learn and grow from things I read. I constantly bookmark blogs with awesome content that I want to remember. I also mark up my books with lots of highlighting and underlining. I just feel like there is so much really great information out there that can help me grow as a Christian wife and mom and I just can't get enough of it!

So here I go recommending another great book. Taking Care of the Me in Mommy by Lisa Welchel is a WONDERFUL book! We did this book as part of our MOMS group 2 years ago and it was really, really good for me. After all, if you're anything like me, you tend to leave taking care of yourself as the last thing you do. Being a Mom means you tend to take care of everyone else's needs before your own. And that's OK, as long as you aren't neglecting yourself in the process.

Reading this book helped me learn a ton of little ways I could take care of my body, soul, and mind. Lisa Welchel is a fantastic author who is very genuine and real about her own life. You never feel like she's too good or all high and mighty because she's a celebrity. She's humble in sharing both her strengths and her failures which I just love. I feel like she would be one of my very best girlfriends if I knew her in person.

I will readily admit that I go through big phases of taking care of myself well and not doing so well. There are times I neglect to floss my teeth or wash my makeup off at night. There are times when I fail to eat healthfully or might not exercise for weeks. There are times when I fail to have my quiet time with the Lord for weeks on end. Or when I am not feeding my mind with beneficial stuff. I am a work in progress FOR SURE and I mess this up all the time.

But I'm trying. I know I've said it many times before but I feel like it bears repeating. I'm trying. It's hard. I fail. But I try. I grow ... I take a few steps back ... I grow again ... and on and on it goes. But as I've grown I have begun to realize that I am a MUCH better wife and mom when I AM taking care of myself.

Taking care of myself physically is probably the hardest thing for me. I have said before that I hate to exercise and I love to eat - it's NOT a good combination! hahaha But seriously, being a healthy mom is a challenge for me. I have to MAKE myself choose healthy foods and avoid unhealthy ones. I have to push myself to exercise even though there are a hundred other things I would much rather be doing. But when I do those things - I feel SO much better! I am happier, healthier and setting a great example to my girls. They need to see that it's important to take care of yourself for a long life filled with good health. One thing that helps me with this is to set small goals and take baby steps. By that I mean - don't all of the sudden say 'I will exercise 10 hours this week!' or 'I will eat all vegetables for the next week!' -- instead, make small changes and set small goals for yourself. Last year I decided I wanted to learn to run. So we chose a 5k that was about 3 months away and began running little by little for 2-3 days per week until finally I was able to run the whole thing! It was such a great feeling of accomplishment and I knew that I wanted to reach that goal, so I wouldn't let myself quit in my training.

Taking care of my soul/spirit is another thing with amazing benefits when I do it. There are many days I do not choose to read my Bible or have my quiet time. It's not something I'm proud of, but many times there are so many other things competing for my attention. However, when I'm doing well and having a consistent quiet time I feel closer to the Lord and am a much better wife and mom. I am the kind of person who likes to have some sort of devotional with questions or ideas to make me think. There are TONS of wonderful Bible studies / devotionals for women out there. I suggest getting one and your Bible and a blank notebook for praise and prayers and just make yourself sit for at least 5-10 min every day. Each day your time will probably grow and grow as you draw closer to the Lord.

Taking care of your mind means you have to do things to keep your mind working. If you stay at home with your kids and don't hold down a job outside the home you can often feel like your mind has turned to mush. {At least that's how I feel!} Many days I'm not even sure what day it is! How sad is that?! Challenging my mind is a good way to keep it from turning to mush. Homeschooling my kids has CERTAINLY helped a lot with this! I am learning and re-learning SO many things right alongside my girls most days! But even if you don't homeschool, there are lots of things you can do for your mind. Read the newspaper, do word puzzles or Sudoku, read GOOD books, stay aware of current events, etc. Good books are ones that will challenge you and help you to grow. There are also tons of wonderful pieces of literature out there. Don't waste your time on junk reading - use your time for filling your mind with good things that will help you grow and mature and learn. {This is nothing against good fiction, I DO read and love fiction - just be sure the things you read and the themes represented are quality and worth your time.}

Here is a list of simple things you can do to take care of yourself daily:

* get enough sleep at night
* eat a healthy breakfast to begin your day
* spend a few minutes in quiet time with the Lord each morning, even if you need to shoo your kids off for a few minutes until you're done
* drink lots of water
* plan healthy meals and be sure you stock your fridge and pantry so you're prepared to make them
* do something active
* have a little quiet reading time each afternoon - it's good for kids AND for us!
* wash your face, brush your hair and teeth, floss your teeth {seems simple but I know I've neglected these things at times!}
* get to sleep at a decent time every night

Today's Challenge: Start taking care of yourself! hahaha ... is that too simple? Well, I know how hard it is to take care of yourself and put your needs higher on the priority list so I think that's enough of a challenge for one day. =) OH, and if you get a chance, check out Lisa's book, Taking Care of the Me in Mommy - I promise you'll love it!