Personal Care / Parent
Happy 2019
Happy (belated) New Year everyone. 2018 was full, busy, hilarious, outrageous and everything else. Here’s to a wonderfully robust and heart-warming 2019.
A big key for me for this year to to reduce stress and focus on spending time on myself. As a single mom of 2 young kids, that’s a tall order, but I’m focused on making it happen. So, how am I going to do this? Here are a few of the things I’m committed to (which may be helpful to you as well):
- Stay healthy: this is a combination of nutrition, supplementation and mental sanity! As I mentioned in a previous post, I decided to become gluten-free and vegan last Spring for several reasons including reducing my carbon footprint (doing what I can especially during a time when ridiculous views on anti climate change seem to be gaining attention) as well as overall reduction of inflammation in my body. One of my favorite online resources for veganism is www.delicisouslyella.com. If you happen to live in the Denver area, there is an amazing cooking school called The Almost Vegan Cooking School. Both of these resources provide great information of how to eat vegan in a healthy way. To note, if you are vegan, ensure you are supplementing with B12 as you won’t be eating this vital nutrient. It also may be a good idea to meet with a nutritionist to ensure you are eating properly – eating potato chips, while vegan, probably isn’t the smartest choice. In terms of my daily supplements, that hasn’t changed substantially and the mainstays can be viewed in my Daily Routine blog. In terms of mental sanity, I try to work out / move my body daily – whether that be a more intense workout at the gym, a walk or running around the backyard with my kids. I’ve tried meditation, and it just doesn’t work for me. My view is do what relaxes you and what you enjoy. As part of this, mental health is vitally important and nothing to ignore or be embarrassed to talk about. Please don’t ignore signs of any mental health issues and discuss them with your medical professional.
- Ask for help. This is a HARD one for me. HARD is probably an understatement. I’ve always (tried to do) done everything myself, but at times I have been overwhelmed and have realized that asking for help is the mature and right thing to do – whether it’s a neighbor picking up something for me at Target (you know who you are!), a neighbor picking up one child at the bus stop, a family member flying in and staying a few days longer than probably planned to help with a variety of things, etc. Also, while more indirect, please use delivery services! Whether it’s Amazon Prime, WalMart drive up & go, etc. There are a lot of cost efficient services out there to minimize the time you need to spend on somewhat mundane activities like grocery shopping. This will leave more time for you time.
- See the silver lining. Sh*t happens. That’s life. As those close to me know, I always say, “It is what it is.” So, how do you react to it? Do you get pissed off, angry and take it out on those around you? I’ve been there. I get it. I now always try to look for the silver lining in things. It’s not always easy, but I try. It helps put things in perspective. And then, I take deep breaths. Literally, I do.
While this is a short blog, I hope it helps. Again, here’s to a fabulous 2019.
Love & Peace,
The Almost Green Mom