It’s 7:45 and you missed your morning coffee or cup tea. You’re sitting in traffic, the kids are late for school, and your youngest yells out from the backseat, “Mom, I left my project at home”!
What’s the first thing that comes to mind? For me, I need a vacation.
Listen… I get it. As moms, we have no choice but to be the secretary, chauffeur, cook, and therapist for our children.
We live in our workout clothes not because we enjoy exercising, no no it’s because it’s easy to pick an outfit out and it beats wearing over-sized clothes knowing people look at us like d–n what happened to her ?
I think the phrase “overworked and underappreciated” would fit well on a coffee mug for moms. What do you think? Us moms can wear many hats and often when introducing ourselves in public we will minimize who we are as a person to the servitude of motherhood.
However, before we cleaned up behind everyone in the house, erased crayon marks off the walls, and wiped snotty noses with our clothes, we were somebody. So, what happened?
Did you lose it when you said, “I Do”, did you lose it after trying to be a Pinterest perfect mommy, or has it been so long you can’t remember what and where she was dropped off?
I want to share 6 Just Exhale Mommy moments with you that have redirected my focus in some stressful situations; including two bonuses that have helped chip away at my “Hi, I’m a mom and I need to be around other adults before I jump off a cliff” moments.
Get moving
Sometimes I’ve found that removing myself from a chaotic setting makes all the difference. Maybe it’s time to grab that coffee and rock out to your favorite tunes to ease your mind.
You gotta friend
Call a friend that you can vent to (not someone who’ll throw shade later). This could be your husband, partner or anyone that knows you best and is there with empathy to listen.
Countdown
10, 9, 8… Deep slow breaths while counting down can release hormones in the body that can create a more calming effect which eventually eases your stress (at some point that is).
Walk it out
This goes back to number one. Try leaving a situation. Literally walking for a minute or two will allow more oxygen to reach the brain, calming those stressors. Now if you’re able, go to the gym and sweat your stress away.
I use these next tips as often as I can to keep me out of those feeling stuck mommy moments.
Meetups
I’ve found these to be the best Just Exhale Mommy outlets. By meetups, I don’t mean those mommy groups where smiles are exchanged, and there is brief chit chat over wine and cheese which eventually leads to a room full of drunk unhappy moms blabbing to each other about who has the best Tory Burch and life before becoming stay home moms.
Nope, not those ones! I mean ones where your life as a mom is respected but not the topic of conversation. Let alone a topic at all.
Take dancing. I love dancing, I’ve danced with some amazing choreographers in workshops and on the road.
So when I’m not doing karaoke and dancing to kidz bop with my children I’m at a meetup dance workshop. It’s lit, it’s energetic and guess what I’m 1,000% me and having fun. A total just exhale moment. So find something you enjoy or you’re good at and look up a group meeting ASAP.
Date nights or Paint nights
I can’t express why these are crucial to have. Carving out time to intimately be with your spouse is a clear commitment that you two are important to each other.
This could be sitting on the couch and cuddling talking to each other or a romantic night on the town with a 4-course meal at a 5-star restaurant. Don’t have a spouse or partner? No problem you can invite a close friend or make it a Paint night with a local company.
So, the next time you’re separating sibling rivalry or stuck in traffic with complaining kids, take a trip down memory lane, exhale and take one of these 6 mommy exhale moments on for a try.
Are you a mom? I’d love to hear from you. What’s your escape?
To wine and cheese,
