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My husband walks in the door, and I bolt. Literally. He already knows it’s going to happen; I unloaded as soon as he told me he was on his way. The day had been awful, full of tears, yelling, and threats. I needed out! Out of the house, away from the kids, and time to just breathe.
If you are a mom, I guarantee you have felt the same way a time or two. It is normal. After feeling that way, we normally then begin feeling the guilt.
Good moms don’t need time away
Good moms wouldn’t have responded to yelling, by yelling back.
Good moms don’t make threats, they make cookies!
It’s a joke really because let me tell you this:
GOOD moms NEED time to BREATHE!
They need mom time, they need to regroup, and they need to make time for themselves. If a mom doesn’t make time to take care of herself, she is not going to be able to take care of her children, period.
So, how can a mom find time for herself?
Make time!
This is easier said than done, but really we have to do it. Find a day and pencil it in on your calendar. Write MOM in big red letters, arrange for child care, and just do it!
Get up earlier.
This is not fun, I know, but it is important. I get up at 5:30 every day. It stinks, really! But, this is when I write, pray, and do my devotions. Some days I ditch the work altogether and read. It is my quiet time, and I need it!
Put the kids to bed early.
On days where I am just exhausted and need to breathe, I put the kids to bed early and crash. This allows me time to regroup and rest.
BOLT
On really bad days, I bolt. As soon as my husband gets in the door. Now, this doesn’t happen often, but it has happened a time or two. And guess what? That DOESN’T make me a bad mom. It makes me human.
I have been reading this book by Stacey Thacker and Brooke McGlothlin titled, Hope for the Weary Mom. In it they say repeatedly,
Guilt has no place in the space of grace
What does this mean? Well for me it means doing what I need to do, to be the best mom I can be for my children. This means that I need mom time. I need space sometimes, and that is okay. This makes me a better mom. It means I yell less, and enjoy more. It means I play that game or read that book one more time. It allows me time to be ME, so I can be MOM.
Do you make time for mom time?
Yes! It helps when people encourage us that it is okay to take that time 🙂
Thanks so much for sharing this at Tues Talk! So vital to take this time- I have been trying to encourage the girls at my mom group table to do this. 🙂
Yes, totally true! If we as moms don’t take care of ourselves spiritually, emotionally and physically we aren’t going to have much to give to our kids. Thanks for this reminder!
I love this! And I definitely need some! My fave etsy shop is offering 20% off to my readers today!
Yes, yes yes!!! Moms need to rest. We need alone time, quiet time….me time! I actually blogged about this today, then stumbled upon your blog. One thing I’ve noticed is that it only helps me but it helps my children as well. We all need a quiet rest every day.
Yes! I think for too long we’ve been told it’s selfish to think of ourselves. That is NOT true at all!
For too many years, I didn’t carve out “me” time. I was told mom’s don’t get time to themselves, that it was selfish. Had I only known! When I got sick, I had to take a lot of “me” time. As I got better, I decided to keep some of that time to let myself rest. I’m a much better (and nicer) mom for it!
Mom time is so important! I get up at 5/530 so I can get in 1-2 hours of mom time. Then when the kids go to bed I get another hour to myself and then about 1 1/2 hours with the hubby.
It gives me the energy and enthusiasm to get through the day, the trials, the challenges. It fills me up so that I can give to my family.
Thanks for sharing Misty!
xoxo