I never thought it was possible, but working full-time is getting a bit easier while also taking care of my family! By the way, the picture really has nothing to do with this post...it just makes me gush so I had to share. Before going back to work, I'd look at all of the things that would get done around the house and thought it would be a true miracle if I could still keep up with them. Well, I still find it a miracle if my bathroom is clean, but I'm learning some tricks along the way that have helped me manage my time better so I'm present in my job, with my family, and in the house duties. There are still a million things to learn, but I wanted to share just a few that have helped me in this transition.
1. It will still be there tomorrow! I hate this, but it's so true. A sink of dirty dishes at night isn't my favorite thing, but I'm learning to let it slide one or two nights a week. Also, running the dishwasher in the morning helps tremendously so that I can easily unload it when I get home. Our bathrooms are still a mess, but I like to park that into my "weekend" slot in my brain. "Saturdays are for bathrooms. Check." It makes my head spin a little bit less.
2. Unpack everything when you get home. I find that after picking Nathan up from daycare and coming home, I feel so much better if I unpack my lunch box, pump parts/bottles, Nathan's diaper bag first thing. After I put them all away my mind feels like there's one less thing to do and I can focus all my energy on Nathan.
3. Turn your phone off or hide it. Staying "hands-free" is hard but a must when I want to give Nathan all of my attention. I'm on my email all day, so taking a break for a couple hours won't make the world stop. Nathan goes to bed at 7pm so I only get a couple hours with him in the afternoon so I have to make them count!
4. Plan and easy Crock Pot recipe a week. This week our meal plans have been simple yet delicious and filling. One night we had Eat Live Run's Green Chicken Curry with quinoa. Sunday is my prep day, so I chopped all of the veggies and made the sauce ahead of time. Done and done!
5. Give yourself grace upon grace upon grace. Becoming a mother made me clearly see what exactly grace was, and as I continue on this journey I'm realizing that I need to learn how to give myself more grace than I ever imagined. This means not beating myself up if I don't get to the floors that night, if the laundry remains unfolded, if the mail I need to send still sits on our table, if Nathan and I haven't read a book in a week, if I choose to sit and have a glass of wine with Daniel instead of doing work. Grace. Thank goodness for grace!
These things are small and I'm sure my list will continue to grow. Staying focused on what is working versus what isn't is powerful and healing. Stay strong mamas!!
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Thank you for your love note!