Whether you work at home running a home business or your home (and family) is your work, you have a lot of responsibility. You deserve a break, a pick me up, a little downtime. While downtime may involve different things for different people, most stay at home moms need to actually get out of the house once in a while. There’s nothing wrong with that, so don’t feel guilty.
I used to feel guilty about it. After all, what kind of mom would want to get out and away from her family? The kind that likes her sanity. Getting away from it all for a little while doesn’t mean you love your family any less, and it doesn’t mean you’re “selfish.” It means you need to take a break from the daily grind. Everybody does. That’s why nine-to-fivers have weekends, but stay at home moms may begin to see weekends as just ordinary days of the week.
We have to make time for ourselves. We deserve a weekend too. Try to plan at least a few hours each weekend for yourself. Ask your husband or an older child to get up with youngsters once each week so you can sleep in, or ask one of them to baby-sit while you have lunch with a friend. If that’s not an option, hire a babysitter or trade babysitting with a neighbor or relative. Even if you just go to the store by yourself for an hour or so, it will probably do you good.
When you do get a chance to go out, be sure to pamper yourself. Wear your favorite perfume. If you can’t remember the last time you had time to paint your nails, paint them. Do whatever makes you feel good.
The more relaxed you are and the better you feel about yourself, the better you’ll feel about your home, family, and your job as a stay at home mom. Like my mom says, “If you don’t take care of yourself, you can’t take care of anybody else.”
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