How did things go last week? Did you take the time to sit down with your spouse and work on that list? Even after making it through those three steps, there's obviously more work that needs to be done to help really restore mom's mental health. Last week consisted of some organizational strategies to help shift priorities, so let's shift to some action steps this week. Remember, we're shifting from an overwhelmed, unhappy mom who has been low on the priority list to a mom that is nurtured, shares responsibilities with other people, and has a chance to do things for herself as well as her family.
Here's a couple cool things that we or some of our friends have done in the past to share responsibilities AND have fun...
1) Get a group of family friends (3-4 families whose members all get along with each other) together for Saturday night dinner, games, and movies. A few years ago, we had a group of three families (our teen daughters went to school with their teens) that would rotate hosting & cooking for the rest of the group and it was so incredibly fun and provided connection for the adults as well as the teens. We had something to look forward to almost every week and it gave us a chance to share in each other's journeys and provided reassurance that we weren't the only ones going through the tough times that come with parenthood.
2) Set up a date-night childcare rotation with friends to help each other get some much needed one-on-one time with your spouses. A friend of mine takes her friend's kids for the 1st & 3rd Fridays and they swap for the 2nd & 4th Fridays. I totally love this idea and really need to get talking to my friends about it because I can't actually remember when the last time I went on a date with my spouse.
So, the task this week is to have a chat with your friends. See if you can set up a family dinner/game/movie night at least once a month and/or a date-night childcare exchange once a month. Then put it into that schedule you started working on last week so that it becomes a priority.
I'm working on these right here with you, so PLEASE take the opportunity to reach out with any insights, frustrations, or amazing & creative ideas that come up for you! I'm going to take the next two weeks off from blogging, but I'll be around if you want to reach out. Happy Holidays!
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