How have you been taking care of yourself this past month? I have to admit I had found myself in a bit of a slump since the beginning of August. I had spread myself thin between homeschooling, running two businesses and football and cheerleading practice. I had lost myself trying to find some sort of balance and instead lost all my motivation to do life. I started becoming mechanical just going through the motions of each day. I couldn't keep up with laundry, I started missing workouts, the house was a mess and I just felt run down and scattered. I felt like everything had a deadline and I was late for it all! Then I went on vacation and returned a completely new person.
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Now I know not all of us can just pack up and go to Florida for 8 days every time we are feeling the burn out, which, if I am being honest seems to come every other month these days. But this is what I do know. Self care isn't always exercising daily and eating healthy. It's not busting your ass every single day trying to make things perfect. What I came to realize over vacation is that just like with everything else in life, we must balance out self care. Because it's the monotonous repetitive motions that we restrict ourselves to day in and day out that creates this burn out and without balance in our lives we will continue to burn out.
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This vacation opened my eyes to so much. It was the first time in well over a year that I didn't think about all the thousands of responsibilities I take on every day. I didn't open my lap top not once (I didn't even bring it with us). I let go of all of my worries. I woke up when I wanted. I ate what I wanted. I went to bed when I wanted. I did whatever wanted with no guilt whatsoever. I wore my bikini while bloated and didn't care one bit. I sat back and watched my children play. I hung out with my family. I participated in activities. I swam in the ocean. I basked in the glory of Earth's natural beauty. I exercised when and how I wanted. I did not wait for anyone. I did not make plans with anyone. I just went with the flow.
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This is self care. Giving yourself a moment to just RELAX. Let it all go! It was the best feeling in the world to not have a care in the world I feel like I went away for the summer and came back ready to rock the fall season. Maybe this is #beachlife but maybe it doesn't have to be. I don't need a full 8 day vacation to let go and neither do you! So here are a few things I have learned from this much needed vacation.
- I am enough just as I am. So are my husband and children.
- I have NOTHING to prove to anyone. I do what I want.
- I don’t need to be super mom.
- It’s necessary to slow down the pace of our life.
- It’s not a race to the finish. There’s no trophy for first place.
- It is the simplest things that give the biggest pleasures in life—reading, watching the kids play, living in the moment, nature, spending time with family and friends… just being together.
- There is no guilt in not accomplishing everything on my to-do list.
- I don’t need to apologize for my behavior or make excuses.
- It’s safe to be authentically me.
- I don’t need anybody’s approval.
- I CAN and SHOULD say NO.
- I have everything I need.
- I can enjoy all things in moderation.
- I should unplug from social media regularly.
- I must take vacations and time off from responsibilities regularly to avoid burn out.
The pre-vacation me would have apologized for not having a top 5 events of the week article for you this week and make up some excuse. The post-vacation me will tell you the honest truth. I have no idea what is going on next week. I haven't even planned my own week out so I had no desire to write out an events article for you. I do have plenty of events on the calendar and you will just have to look it up yourself. I'm not even sorry. I will be much more organized next week and will have plenty to share. Until then, I ask that you cut me some slack and enjoy some down time for yourself. I know the world needs it these days. I will also tell you I am so grateful that you take the time out of your day to read my writing. I appreciate each and every one of you! I was so happy to get away but I am also so happy to be back!
Pleasure to Meet You!!
Hi, I'm Carrie. I have been with my husband Matt for over 10 years and we have 5 children and a fur baby. I'm originally from Chicopee and although I have moved around a few times in my life, we have been living in our home in Aldenville for 9 years now. My family and I love our neighborhood and enjoy connecting with others. When I am not homeschooling our 4 youngest children, I enjoy hiking, exercising, reading and traveling.
