Happy Monday all!! So how was your weekend? Did it go by as fast as mine did? It seems we live for the weekends and then Sundays we dread Mondays. So there we go. The gerbil wheel of life. We run the exercise wheel of responsibilities, work, families, household chores, more work. There sometimes feels like we are treading water or caught in the storms of life. So how do we stop the circular wheel? How do we find a sense of peace? How do we just stop?
Well I wish I had all the answers. I really do. Sometimes Sundays feel like they did when I was in school. Knowing you had to be up early, had to face school work and classes, facing people that pretended to be your friend and clinging to your real friends. Kind of like adulthood. Facing the work day and the people that cross your path and then kids and dinner, laundry and cleaning and well find time to exercise, read, watch a favorite show, spend time with a spouse or lover. So we juggle so much in life.
Well one thought is to give ourself permission to stop the gerbil wheel. That we take a moment to just be. I had a weekend like that. Oh I went to the grocery store and paid bills, did laundry and planned meals. BUT, I also went to be early one night and spent a day doing nothing. Watching TV, reading, drinking a good beer with dinner. I gave myself.permission to not be stressed with life outside the sanctuary of my home. I got to cruise on Pintrest, look at social media, started a good mystery–I have to give the romance novels a break every now and then. Did the world end when I did this? Was anyone harmed or neglected, nope! Did I want to see people that my heart beats for? You bet, but their schedule was different than mine. So I made my own schedule. And it was ok.
So what do you think? Do you think we should back off on the pressure we put on ourselves? Do you think maybe we stop pulling ourselves in fifty directions and just take a break? Well I gave it a try this weekend and the world didnt come to an end. I did 5 loads of laundry, everyone was fed, warm and safe. It is all good. I didn’t feel rushed, I actually feel relaxed sitting here on the couch typing this blog, Vampire Diaries playing in the background and feeling calm. I have read, rested and revived to face another week.
So we give ourselves permission to chill on the weekend. How do we deal with the stress of the week? I wish I could re-do some things different when my kids were younger. But, I wouldn’t re-do the car rides where we talked and laughed and sang songs and made up stories while getting everyone to their destination on time or impromptu trips to get ice cream while in our pajamas, or game nights and glowsticks. I wish I didn’t stress about cleaning the house, stressed about juggling work and home. So many stresses as a single mom. I know you guys that are single moms, married moms, moms in the making have all the same stresses. We play so many roles in life and have so many parts of ourselves we have to share.
So maybe we take a moment to be good to ourselves? Maybe we take a weekend to binge watch a show, take a nap versus vacuuming and dusting and organizing. Maybe we take a minute to organize ourselves and our well-being. Maybe we give ourselves permission to enjoy each day, not dread Mondays, not dread the days we are blessed with but maybe take a moment to get through each day. So this is a new year, a new decade. We can still be our same old selves, but we should take the time to be the best us we can be! So don’t think about calling in sick on Monday, but fix an amazing cup of coffee, put on your best big girl sexy panties and face the day! Don’t let the day take your joy but bring some joy to the day. And if all else fails, watch an episode of your guilty pleasure on your lunch break!!!