Woman with a Mirror, circa 1915

Why do I find it so hard to take care of myself?  I honestly put the important stuff like eating healthy, taking vitamins, drinking my 64oz. of water a day, or even showering and prettying myself up daily off until "there is time" which there never really is!

I like to excuse it all with this line about how my needs are not as important as the rest of the family's -- you know, that self-sacrificial mumbo-jumbo.  But that argument is actually a farse.  The truth is, when I don't eat healthy and drink plenty of water along with my vitamins, I cannot possibly be giving my nursing infant the best milk possible, therefore neglecting his health as well as mine.  When I fail to get enough sleep or rest and relaxation, I become a miserable mother, snapping at my children -- by no means is this the best for them.  If I fail to take a nice shower, shave my legs, do my hair and make myself generally pleasant to look at, I cheat my husband out of what he THOUGHT he'd be getting every day for the rest of his life -- that yong, glowing beauty he married 7+ years ago.  Granted, we can't do TOO much about the stray wrinkle and baby pooch, but I can at least try to show him that I still care to look attractive to him.

So, my goal (I have many, don't I) is to take the time to take care of Me so that I can better take care of my family.

• Exercise for a few minutes every day -- nothing big, just 15 min or less on top of the usual running up and down stairs holding kids, laundry. . .
• Take appropriate nutritional and herbal supplements.
• Get in bed by 11:30pm every night (you wouldn't think this would be difficult, would you).
• Shower and "do myself up" to look my best EVERY day.
• Eat mostly good whole pure foods and drink plenty of water.
• Pamper myself a little every day or week.
• Read and write a little every day.
• Foster friendships with other women.
• Listen to uplifting music.
• Make my house cheery.
• Go for a walk wiyh my kids regularly.
• Be creative every day.
• Relax a bit every day.

I could go into detail about how I will implement each of these goals, but the details are only relevant to me and my personality.  I encourage all the women I know to start taking a little extra time for some self-care so they can better fulfill their calling as mother or wife.  Here are some links that I have found helpful.  Maybe they can be of use to you as well.

• This article from The Urban Homemaker lists a handful of simple steps to better, healthier eating for you and your family.  I'm trying to do one step every six months so that I can afford it (grin) and so that our family can make each step a habit. 

• You may remember seeing What You Don't Know May Be Killing You by Don Colbert on my 101 in 1001 list.

• While I don't honestly use FlyLady for her cleaning regiment, I do refer regularly to her site for her weekly pamper missions that are at the bottom of the home page.

• Homeliving Helper is one of my favorite blogs and is full of ideas on how to create a cheery and beautiful environment in your home.  While the decorating ideas are great, the two ladies who write the blog go far beyond that and dealve into creating a comfy home atmosphere.  Be sure to wade through their archives too.

• To start you out, here are a few of Homeliving Helper's posts that I read while figuring out my personal self-care goals.

1. We Can Have Happiness in Our Lives
2. Improving Your Mood
3. Living Simply
4. Reducing Stress

• I believe I also had Hidden Art by Edith Schaeffer on my 101 in 1001 list.  This book is supposed to help you figure out your hidden art/talent (everyone has one) and encourage you to put it to use creatively in your home.

• Lastly, I encourage you to join The Mother's Hour e-mail list.  Melissa will send you regular e-mails to encourage and inspire you to take a little time to relax and enjoy life's most simple pleasures.

Well, Real Momma felt that while the original look of this blog was pretty, it was also dark -- oppressive at times, even.  So, I changed the look to something brighter and more representitive of who I really am -- a mother of three wee ones, two of whom would take bright crayons to their white bedroom walls as soon as the opportunity presented itself.

Also, I started a second blog -- mainly so I could comment on my friend Kolleen's xanga site, but also so I could do something I've been wanting to do for some time -- put my ideas for holidays and other family celebrations out there for the world to see.  So be sure to hop over to Traditions to check out weekly posts on upcoming holidays, seasonal celebrations, to-do lists and calendars, and an occasional post on daily and weekly traditions.  (There is also a link to the site at the side bar under links.)