You’re almost through the holiday season, the big meals have been made and devoured, the last bits of wrapping paper have been thrown away, and the New Year is just a few days away. Congratulations, you’re exhausted but as a dedicated and loving mom, you wouldn’t have it any other way. Time to look forward to 2013!
Here are a few ideas for New Year’s resolutions just for moms like you:
Before we dive-in to the list, let me take a moment to introduce myself.
I’m not the typical mom you find on Dallas Mom’s Blog. My kids are a bit older. I have fraternal twin daughters who are 19, and attend a university out of state. I also have boy/girl twins who are 14 and are freshmen in high school. (Yup, you read that right, 2 sets of twins.)
I married my husband when I was 19 after only knowing him for 8 months. Just a couple of months after we were married, I got pregnant with our first set of twins. We’ve moved 8 times in our 20 years of marriage. I have been a stay at home mom, a military mom, a mom going to college to become an RN, a mom who works full time, and currently, I’m a mom who blogs and is building a business.
Half of my life I have been a wife and mother. It has been an incredible adventure. It has had moments of extreme highs and extreme lows. There have been times of utter pride watching my kids grow and moments of utter terror when they’ve been sick. Throughout this adventure, there have been times when I wasn’t sure if my marriage would survive, but I have more faith in it now than ever.
I created this list based on my experiences as mom and hope that you find this list helpful!
1. Take more pictures and videos
When you’re stuck in the throws of the terrible two’s and you’re about to reach your wit’s end or you’ve got so many activities on the calendar you’re not sure when you’ll have time to shower, stop and take a picture. Not of the moment when the kids are perfectly dressed and all is calm. Take pictures when they’re playing and being silly, pictures of their crazy hair when they wake up or pictures when they make faces at the vegetables they don’t like to eat. Capture their moments of innocence; someday you will cherish them and you’ll be amazed at all that you were able to do.
You know that feeling you get when your favorite song from when you were a kid comes on the radio?
It brings back memories of times when things were easy and life was simple. Years from now, videos of your kids will do that on a much more intense level. Seeing how they walk or hearing their voice will bring a smile to your face and touch your heart. This is especially helpful when they are teenagers and thoughts of grounding them forever cross your mind.
2. Stop Competing
One of the most offensive things I have ever been told as a mom was from another mom at my daughters’ 9th birthday party.
My daughters and I had begun to read the Harry Potter series together and the first movie had just been released. Needless to say, they wanted a Harry Potter themed birthday party. We went all out, the dining room was transformed into a Hogwarts inspired party area, the food was based on food from the movie and the invitations were hand made.
When this particular mom, who I had never met before, came after the party to pick up her child, she saw all of the decorations, looked at me and said “Well, you must not work”. Excuse me!?!?
At that time I was working part time, had two 3 year-olds and two 9 year-olds. I think I could say I had a few things on my plate. The party was for my daughters, not to impress other parents.
So many times I’ve seen mom’s try to outdo each other. There’s pressure to put your kids in the right clothes, buy the teacher the right gift, or send them to the right school. Some moms even compete with their kids’ developmental milestones. I’ve heard “my kid walked at___ months” or “my kid is only____ and can read” leaving some moms feeling inadequate.
Day to day life brings plenty of pressure; why add more? Do what’s best for your family, regardless of what others think.
3. Relax, and Remember the Big Picture
Being a mom is tough and some days just suck. Nothing seems to be going right and your fuse is short. Stop, take a breath and look at the big picture.
So you didn’t get to that load of laundry, wear something else. So you’re going to be late, keep calm, drive safely and get there late. So your kid is crying at the store, sometimes kids cry. The people around you may roll their eyes, but life goes on.
Things pushed you to the edge 5 years ago; can you remember exactly what they were? Do they REALLY matter now?
4. Do the things that make me “me”
Before you were a mom, you had interests. You had hobbies that didn’t revolve around your children. PLEASE don’t lose sight of those things. While you may not be able to spend as much time doing those things as you used to, don’t forget about them.
It wasn’t until my kids were older that I gave myself permission to do things for myself. I love being crafty and creating things so I took classes to learn stained glass and cake decorating.
I found that the time away doing something I enjoyed gave me a chance to push the reset button. I was happier doing the daily tasks. My kids saw me learning and trying new things. My husband saw some of the pre-mom me that he fell in love with. They celebrated my accomplishments and they comforted me when things didn’t turn out quite right.
5. Nurture my relationship with my spouse
I’m sure you’ve heard of the benefits of having a set date night, believe them!
In the past 20 years my husband and I have gone through episodes where we didn’t set time aside for each other. Sometimes work schedules, kid’s schedules, no babysitter and the limits of our energy levels made it impossible to have a set date night.
We’ve learned in the busy hectic times to just take a moment to recognize that you aren’t spending time together as a couple makes a difference. We stop and just say “I miss you”. This lets each of us know that we are thinking about each other and miss our time alone together. When things slow down we get back to date night. 😉
Wishing you and your family a very healthy and happy New Year.
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As mentioned in her post, Cynthia Sanchez lives in the Ft. Worth area with her husband of 20 years. She has 2 sets of twins (19 year old fraternal daughters & a 14 year old son & daughter).
She’s been a stay at home mom, a military mom, a mom going to college to become an RN, a mom who works full time, and currently, I’m a mom who blogs and is building a business.
Cynthia writes about all things Pinterest at OhSoPinteresting.com. She works with businesses both large and small to help them develop their Pinterest and other social media strategies. You can follow Cynthia on Pinterest or connect with her on Twitter.
