Although it feels good to get things done – especially things that feel as though they’ve been hanging over your head and placing extra weight on your shoulders – remember this very important thing: The mom who checks off the most To-Do’s at the end of her day is not declared the winner!

Motherhood is not a race nor a competition, so putting pressure on yourself to run the hardest and the fastest, day after day, is not only completely unnecessary, it is a sure-fire recipe for burn-out, overwhelm, and a lot of self-criticism.

Your To-Do list is just that – a list of things you can choose to do… or not to do… the choice is yours. But, your To-Do’s do not define you. Please allow me to repeat that, because it really is so important: Your To-Do’s do not define who you are. As moms, we can get so caught up in what we did or didn’t get done in a day, that we start to beat ourselves up with critical self-judgments and self-doubts when we don’t feel like we checked enough To-Do’s off by day’s end. When we use our To-Do list as a tool to measure how we feel we “stack-up” up against our own and others’ expectations, we are basing our self-worth on our To-Do progress. And when we do this, to quote an old song, we’re “looking for love in all the wrong places!”

On any given day, what you offer as a mom and a woman goes so way beyond any agenda item or To-Do task! When was the last time you patted yourself on the back and celebrated that you were there to comfort your child or a friend when she needed reassurance, or that your children knew they were loved when you tucked them in at night, or that your child was kind to another child at school because of the love and values that you share with him so freely all day every day?

Take the time to honor, acknowledge, congratulate, and love yourself each day – truly and deeply – for all of the incredible ways you share your Self and your unique gifts with others daily. You make a huge difference in the lives of others and the world every day, just by being a loving mom, in ways that have nothing to do with your To-Do’s. The best way to show love to our children is to show love to ourselves, so take time daily to acknowledge that “You’re doing a GREAT job, Mom!”, regardless of how many To-Do’s you happened to check off today.

Live Positively Fulfilled!

Lynn Ely
MomEvolve
Inspiring Moms to Evolve TM
www.momevolve.com

It is so easy to get caught up in our day-to-day To-Do’s and busy-ness as moms, that we can forget to make time to think about what truly makes us happy. Sure, we all know that spending time with our families is an important priority and a wonderful way to fill us up with joy, but we can also feel great about the many other opportunities we have available for celebrating who we are and making our hearts sing! We need to give ourselves permission and space to explore all of the opportunities for making ourselves happy, in addition to and in conjunction with the incredible blessing of motherhood. When you take time to check in with yourself in this way, you can re-energize and replenish from the inside-out, so that you can approach others in your life, especially your family, from the most positive and vibrant place. If it feels a little selfish at first, remember that the best way to show others how to love themselves is for you to come from a place of self-love– so try to shift your perspective from feeling self-ish, to feeling self-love, which is a beautiful gift you can share with others.

For a fun, quick way to check in with your Self and reconnect with your ME, find a quiet place today, relax, take a few peaceful breaths, and ask your Self, “What would I REALLY love to do for myself this week?” Then, listen carefully to what the inner voice of your ME tells you. Only you know what you truly need to feel happy and fulfilled, and when you allow yourself to be still and tune inward, your inner voice will be very honest in telling you how to best meet that need. Then make some time in your week, which may literally mean scheduling it on your calendar and making arrangements, to take one small step to address that need or desire. It doesn’t need to be some big huge commitment or undertaking – just a little something that brings a smile to your face and makes you feel fully alive in the moment. Being a good mom does not mean completely sacrificing everything about yourself in order to nurture everyone else in your life – Rather, give yourself permission to share some of your nurturing with yourself, so you can replenish what you have to share with the others in your life.

Live Positively Fulfilled!

Lynn Ely
MomEvolve
Inspiring Moms to Evolve TM
www.momevolve.com