As much as we try, none of us are superheroes. We only have so much time in a day and energy to use up. I find that I often get bogged down in my ‘have to do’ list and can go weeks before I realise that I am overwhelmed because I haven’t had any ‘down time’. In my previous life, before becoming a Mum, I juggled work, house and my own projects seemingly easily. A big part of that ability I am sure was to do with having time for myself, even if that was 15 minutes in the car on the way to work. There was time for me to think about the day.The thing that strikes me most about being a Mum is that it is constant, unless you make an effort to schedule time for yourself, you wont get it until you are perhaps at breaking point.
So there are times almost daily where I will do something for myself, often for just 20 minutes. This is most often my craft, at the present time tatting, but I also like to knit or bake. This blog is also a bit of time out from me, and allows me to reflect on what has happened over the last week and how I could do something better. I also play tennis once a fortnight, which in all honesty is the only exercise I do. I have many projects on the go, some related to work or study, others just things I like to do.
I suppose what I am getting at here is that family life is always a work in progress. There are times when you have to prioritize and give your time somewhere else. I am also aware of my limits, including times, energy and health, in view of this I am slowly feeling better about saying ‘No, I can’t do that at the moment’ for some things. I am also getting better at not just setting aside time to myself, but making sure I take it and use it for something that makes me happy. The weeks when I do this my whole outlook is different and I feel that I am in such a positive space that anything is possible. It is such a good feeling that I encourage others to find that time too, start small maybe 10 minutes a day and build up with what suits your circumstances.
How you will use your ‘Mummy moment’?
mypaperlessphd 
Jul 06, 2011 @ 01:33:43
I can so relate to this! To answer your question, I forgot to use my mummy moment today, argh!! So this is an excellent reminder. I have two support workers (I’m a carer) who keep drumming this ‘you need you time’ message into me, but I still forget!!
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