“To love what you do and to feel that it matters…how could anything be more fun?”~ Katharine Graham
There is no defining moment in a woman’s life than walking through the doors of the hospital as one person and coming out as another with her baby on her arm. Carrying your baby inside for nine months then delivering are the greatest accomplishments you will ever do. You deserve to praise yourself now even more than before. Cherish yourself my lady!
Adjusting to motherhood is not an easy task; it will take awhile to get acquainted with yourself again and your new life. In “The Ten Habits of Happy Mothers” by Meg Meeker; she says: “First of all we should keep in mind that our value as mothers comes from three things: you’re valuable, you’re needed and that you’re born for a higher purpose”.
In this article, we, mothers will try to figure out ways to be happier and more satisfied while enjoying our parenthood . We’ll try to reach that state of well-being that we all aspire for.
1- Reconsider Your Priorities
You must admit that your priorities have changed. The things that used to be enjoyable are not the ones you take pleasure in today. One key to being in a more positive mood is to structure your day to do more things you enjoy. “It’s how you spend your time, not your money, that counts,” Peter Ubel, M.D., a professor of medicine and psychology at the University of Michigan”If you have any financial flexibility that lets you maximize your family time, use it now. For instance, do you really need to be the one to clean the house? How about paying someone to help out? That time you are saving is totally for you and your family. That will not only save your energy for something more beneficial, but will also make you feel happier.
2- Take The Long View
Having a sense of perspective will also improve your attitude. It gives you more patience, and it certainly awakens you to the preciousness of the moment. I remember the times when my little daughter wanted to sit on my lap and wanted me to play with her, while I was very busy. Yes, I had other things to do. But I said to myself, ‘How long will this last?’ I’m grateful for that time with her.” Take a moment and think about life without children. You’ve signed on for a hard job; it’s not supposed to be fun most of the time. It’s easy to get caught up in the details, but you need to step back and realize how empty your life would be without these people in it.”
3- Enjoy Parenting
“I can’t wait until she walks by herself”. “I can’t wait for her to start school”. “I can’t wait for the summer vacation”. “I can’t wait until she goes college”. How many times have we heard this chatting among parents? These parents don’t enjoy their parenting, they just can’t endure it. If you can’t enjoy the stage your child are in, chances are you will not enjoy the next stage either. Each stage of your child’s life brings joy in a different way, as well as troubles. I will tell you a secret; by spending more time with your kids, you will just discover a new version of you. There are lots of things you must have missed doing and now it’s time to enjoy them back. I can’t tell how thrilled I get when I draw and color with my little daughter, how young I feel when I play a character in her imaginary story and make funny voices and how interesting it is to play with her lovely dolls in the doll house. See, loads of fun are out there in the world of children, only if you know how to enjoy it. In every stage there are invaluable moments that will get you up high when you experience them with your little ones. You better hurry do that because they grow up really fast and will eventually break free.. and those sweet childhood memories will be all what they have left to remember.
4- Reconnect With Your Spouse
Why is it very important to always keep connected with your spouse from the very beginning? Experts say that the childhood years are the most stressful until kids turn into teens. Although adolescence is even more traumatic; you can’t say, ‘I’ll handle the relationship later or I will help later. Your role as a parent begins right after you give birth. You should both share this responsibility. Even discussing how stressed you both are, and how hard it is to raise a kid will diminish the strain.
5- Make Time For Solitude
Do you have two hours a week for yourself? Do you really manage to do some things that you really enjoy? Do you know how to treat yourself? If your answer is “no”, so you are probably not enjoying your parenting at all. How could you possibly make your children happy if you are not?
I’m a mom and most of my friends are moms. We’re lucky to have an hour or two of leisure time a day — 14 hours a week, at the most! We call each other, we hang out, go to the movies or have coffee together once a week. We enjoy our time to the most when we see each other. Even if sometimes we are discussing our problems, it’s our free time; we do whatever we want to do. In fact; moms have leisure time but they just don’t know how to use it. They are always busy running from work to housework to children, they are not in control of their lives anymore. Go shopping for your children, going to the grocery or even sleeping is not considered a leisure time. Turn your free time into “me” time.
6- Say Thanks
Feeling grateful is a mood booster. Just look around and see how blessed you are. You have a family, kids and you are the queen of this kingdom. No matter how difficult your job is and no matter how heavy your responsibility is, all what matters is that you are playing the most magnificent role on earth, the role which God had created you for; it’s being a “Mom”.
Experts say that if you do write down your blessings every day, your sense of well-being will increase. Of course, you’ll still have bad days. But at least you’ll be less likely to think there’s something wrong with you. And the more you engage in positive thinking, the more you’ll realize how much happiness is under your control.
I think of happiness comes with three things — enjoyment, satisfaction, and fulfillment,” Mothering can give us any of those sentiments at any given moment- if not all of them at the same time.
Mothers are like flowers…each one is uniquely beautiful in her own way, and each is designed by God to bloom where she is planted.
Dear Moms, go ahead and nourish yourselves, so that you’re better able to nurture your family. Make your own beautiful design of a mother and be proud of it.