Anyone who knows me will tell you that I’m a relative energizer bunny. I rarely slow down and even when I’m sick, I’m still going. I hate to be idle. . .the worst weekend or vacation in the world for me, would consist of sitting around just “being”. Even in the early days of my twins, I swore I was getting nothing done and while my house might not have been a vision of pristine, those around me kind of watched dumb founded as I homeschooled, had dinner done, and kept sanity and peace among five children under the age of five.
Someone once asked me, “How do you keep from getting burned out?”
I had to think quite a bit because my initial response is that I simply don’t. But that’s not really a correct answer. The better answer is: I do not allow myself to burn out, but instead have pieces of respite throughout my day, my week and my year. Your way of staving off mommy burn out might not be mine, but in case you’re low on ideas or need a fresh pick me up, here are a few tricks that I use to keep myself from falling into the rut of mommyhood-and-nothing-else.
I Keep a Journal
More importantly, I keep a journal in which I write down all the things I’m blessed with. I do it daily–I truly have so much to be thankful for. My life, like yours, is not all roses all the time. However, I’ve come to believe that thankfulness is much more a practice to be developed rather than a response to circumstances.
I Have a Hobby
While some might laugh at my hobby, I’ll just say that I find it rather cathartic. (Yes, if you’ve been at families any length of time, you already know. . .my hobby is cooking.) I love to cook. I find cooking a relaxing and enjoyable thing to do–even when there’s a time crunch involved. More notable perhaps than the fact that I have a hobby, is that I have a spouse who gives me time to practice my craft.
I Have a Girls’ Weekend Away
I’m actually sad to say that I missed this year’s Mommy Weekend, but in years past it has been a lifesaver, allowing an escape from diapers duty, cleaning, cooking and general parenting.
Valorie Delp shares recipes and kitchen tips in the food blog, solves breastfeeding problems, shares parenting tips, and current research in the baby blog, and insight, resources and ideas as a regular guest blogger in the homeschooling blog. To read more articles by Valorie Delp, click here.
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