Almost 3 weeks ago, the entire country unexpectedly had to change everything to stay home. All plans were put on hold and all routines were thrown out the window. At first not going anywhere was like a vacation for us. But pretty soon all the chaos turned into anarchy. No routines, no bedtimes, eating all day every day and that was just me. Add in 3 kids and a husband working from home to equal even more madness!
I am a little introverted, so I love being at home. Although what I really like is being at home A L O N E. Don't get me wrong, I love my family and can't imagine life without them. But being stuck at home, all day every day, with all of these people (ok it's only 5 but feels like more) is A LOT for me. I need time to myself, to think and to do my own thing.
Late last week I did a big evaluation of how I've been feeling and how I've been spending my time. I wasn't too happy with what I found- lots of being lazy, scrolling social media, eating crappy and lack of routine. It's no wonder I felt rotten. So right then I decided to make this week better and made a list of self care tasks to do at home.
Things I'm doing to Take Care of Myself while at Home
Get Up Before Everyone Else - this is hard. I love to sleep. Like LOVE. But in order to function as a decent human, I need time to myself. The only way to get it is to get up earlier.
Quiet Time - Quiet time for me includes: prayer, scripture study, pondering, journaling and planning. My quiet time looks different now than it has in the past. And it will probably change again once my kids go back to school. For now, I have refined my routine to knowing exactly what I want to do in the mornings to set me up for the best day possible.
"Run the Day, don't let the day run you."
Exercise - Y'all don't even know how painful for me to admit that exercise makes a difference in how I feel. I'm not a fan. Not even a little bit. But I have found that when I exercise- my attitude and disposition are better, my body doesn't have as many aches and pains, and it helps with my mental health too. I like to do the very simple routine I noted here along with running up and down my stairs to get in some cardio. So far, it's working. And I don't hate it near as much when I have good music to listen to.Shower and get ready for the day - Schleping around in my pj's all day does nothing for me. I feel so much better and get SO much more done, when I get dressed. I don't always put on make up and sometimes I wear joggers. But I feel like I can be my best ME when I have prepared myself.
"Look Good, Feel Good, Do Good." - Cents of style
List of Make it yourself lunches - Having kids at home all day long means lots of meals and lots of cooking. I could cook and clean up all day and still not do enough to keep up. So I printed out a meal chart of things my kids can make for themselves. I'm trying to help them learn how to make and clean up their own lunch. We've been doing this for the last week or so and it has been SO nice! Of course my kids are teens so they are capable in the kitchen. If your kids are younger, you could make a sack lunch in the morning, when you're already making breakfast.
Meal Plan for dinner - Meal planning is more important now than ever before. I can't go out for dinner or just run to the store for a missing ingredient like I used to. Planning ahead is the only way to go. I have a keep a list of our family's favorites meals in the notepad on my phone. Once a week I go through the list and plan our meals for the week. Then I inventory what groceries I need and order them for grocery pick up. Every day at dinner time, I know what we are having to eat- no more what's for dinner stress!
Housekeeping Plan - My house has never been cleaner than it is right now, but that also makes me realize how not clean my house was before. Without places to go, I am able to clean every day. Even with how much cleaning I've been doing, I could probably still clean all day every day and not get it all done. So I made a weekly chore list on my phone. It's easily edited to add in something that needs to be done or take away something that does not need to be done.
Take Deep Breaths - My mom used to always tell me to take a deep breath when I was upset. Honestly, it kind of annoyed me. But now, like everything else she taught me, I see the wisdom in it. Sadie Jane has a mindfulness practice that she shares. She says to put one hand on your stomach and one hand on your chest and breath. Close your eyes and breath in and breath out, several times. When I am stressed, or really any time lately, I do this mindfulness practice and it helps to calm me.
Go Outside as often as possible - It's Spring in TN and it's just gorgeous. The tree right outside our house is totally showing off with gorgeous (yet stinky) blossoms. I love going outside, sitting on my front porch and listening to the birds as I take in the sky, the greenery and the flowers. It's a wonderful way to pause and appreciate the world. I also love going for walks around the block with my family.
Gratitude - A gratitude practice changes everything. Sometimes I forget all that I have and concentrate on everything that I don't have - like the ability to shop, see my friends, go to my daughter's award ceremony at school, etc. But when I remember all that I do have, it changes me. I do have internet, clean water, power, heat and air conditioning, candy, Diet Dew, a healthy family, tons of books and craft projects and so much more.
"Gratitude changes everything."
Stop watching the clock - During the school year I watch the clock non-stop. I set timers for myself to get tasks done and alarms to pick up my kids from school. I base the success of my day on how much I get done by a certain time. That sounds a little bit crazy, now that I think about it. But now there's no where to go and no time constraints. I'm using this time at home to take advantage of the break from the crazy schedule.
Avoid mindless scrolling - I have a bad habit of picking up my phone every chance I get, to see what's happening on social media. And then 1 of 3 things happen: I get scared of all of the bad news I see, I get annoyed with those who say mean things or I compare my life to what I see there. No good comes from any of those things. When I pick up my phone I want to be intentional by liking posts and leaving lovely comments. I can do that best by only being on social media for short periods of time.
Read Books - I am an avid reader, but sometimes I get so caught up in life, that I forget. Right before our local library closed I was lucky enough to check out Girl Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis. It was the wake up call that I needed. I think that's what inspired me to make the list of things to take care of myself while I'm at home. These are some of my other favorite books.
Serve Others - I feel like I serve my family all day long so where else could I possibly serve and why in the world isn't anyone serving me? haha, bless me and you if you're thinking that too. Service doesn't necessarily mean making someone a meal, although that is nice (after this mess is over). Service can be dropping something off at someone's house, like the masks my friend shared with me. Service is also sending a text or FaceTiming a friend. Checking in with your people is the perfect way to serve. Late with Kate recently posted this quote on IG:
"If I've learned anything in life, it's that you should tell people how important they are to you. Not because they could leave at any moment, but because they're her now, and that's worth saying something."
Make a casual To Do list- I always keep a long to do list on my phone. I record projects I want to make, errands I need to run, appointments that need to be made etc. But life hasn't been as busy since we've been at home, so I've wanted to loosen up a bit. I went from one extreme of rigid list crossing off to doing nothing and forgetting everything that needed to be done. I don't want to be on a strict routine, but I do have to/want to get certain things done. So I've been keeping a more casual to do list. Nothing is urgent, but it's a place to record things to do as I'm thinking about them.
8000 steps a day - To keep myself active, I set a goal to take 8000 steps a day. This is in addition to the exercise I get in the morning. Some days it's easy to get that many or more. Other days are not as active so I do steps while watching Netflix at night. I have found that wearing a fit bit and having a fitness goal keeps me accountable for staying active.
Drink a lot of Water - This is another thing my mom taught me and that I'm trying to teach my kids. Although I certainly didn't listen when I was a kid and I know my kids don't like this one. In fact, I just got an eye roll from asking my son to go get a drink of water for himself. Drinking water is super important. I don't know all the sciencey stuff behind it, but I do know that when I haven't drank enough water I am cranky, I get a headache, my body aches, I'm hungry, my skin feels dry, my stomach hurts and so much more. We are so lucky to have clean drinking water that comes out of the faucet so we need to take advantage and hydrate ourselves!
Listen to music and podcasts - I like to crank up the music and invite the family to join a dance party. Or I put in my ear buds and listen to Hozier, Sam Hunt or the Weazer teal album. Sometimes I escape my house for a little bit and sing along to that music or listen to Better Than Happy or The Life Coach School podcasts when I'm driving. Music, movement, singing and podcasts are a sure fire way for me to keep feeling good!
"I don't sing because I'm happy; I'm happy because I sing."
- William James
Plan projects I can do at home with the supplies I have - I have a crazy amount of craft supplies in my stash. I knew that my craft supply collecting would come in handy one day and that day is now. I have set a goal to do one project a week completely from what I have on hand. Creating just makes me happy!
Cut everyone slack - This time is tough on everyone. We have all been asked to stay at home and not do all of the normal things we're used to doing. It's hard. It's trying. It's patience testing. Everyone is having to make adjustments and it's not easy. The best thing to do is to cut one another some slack. And that includes cutting ourselves slack too. We are going to feel down and sad at times. That's ok. We are going to feel anxious at times and that's ok too. Sit with the feelings and don't hold it against anyone, including yourself. Feel the feels!
Go to bed at a reasonable hour - Without a schedule, it's really easy to stay up too late. But not much gets accomplished late at night except eating junk food and watching Netflix. That's ok once in a while, but not a great habit to get into. We all need to rest. Even though our schedules have changed, the need for rest has not. I know I'm a much better person when I have gotten enough rest!
I know that when I take good care of myself, I am better able to take care of my family. I know that taking care of yourself will help you too. Try some of these Self Care Ideas While You're at Home.
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