What gets me through

A friend messaged me today asking about my blog and I realized I haven't updated in what seems like forever. As any mom can attest, life gets busy and a simple task like posting a blog moves to the bottom of the list. Actually, a simple task like forming a concrete thought is a feat some days.

I've been settling into life as a stay at home mom. Although, I hate that term. STAYING at home implies doing nothing or laziness or something. I WORK from home. I work a couple part time jobs from home as well, so I am busy constantly. Just the other day, I was simultaneously having a meeting with my boss and introducing my son to peaches for the first time. Dinner was cooking, laundry was washing and I'm pretty sure I had food in my hair. Thank God the video wasn't working on the Skype call to my boss.

I am tired, mentally and physically. Even though there are work from home moms all over and I have people around me constantly, I feel lonely in my day to day routine. That's just real life, y'all.

But just last night, my husband told me that he hadn't seen me this happy in a long time. When he told me that, I honestly couldn't believe it. I've neverbeen more tired. I've never been busier. I've never been pulled in more directions.

Could it be that this is a HAPPY feeling?

Yes. Truthfully, I love being home with my little; stopping whatever I'm doing to play with him or feed him or go on walks because the weather is nice and he's starting to get SO excited about the ducks in our neighborhood park.

I love redefining my work/life balance; not going to an office everyday and having the privilege of working with people who "get it" and are supportive. But there are days when it's really hard to figure it all out. So there are a few things that get me by on a regular basis.

Devotions. I have a podcast I listen to and a couple devotional my husband and I do each night before bed. Messages are almost always simultaneously challenging and uplifting. They keep me centered and focused on what actually matters. I recommend The Village Church podcast and The Love Dare devotional for couples.

Beachbody. After years of not being happy with how I look, something in me snapped after being home with Silas. I needed ME time in some capacity and what better way to work on myself than making a healthier me? I spend 25 minutes a day working out. Sometimes, Randy banishes me to my "gym" in the basement because he knows that helps keep the peace in our house. I come back upstairs re-energized for whatever in ahead of me for the day and I am so thankful Randy is on board with my goals with this. While this isn't meant to be a sales pitch, you can totally join me. I need more people in my corner and my guess is, you may want more, too. Check it out here.

Podcasts. I mentioned the devotional podcast above, but after my sister encouraged me to listen to the Mom is in Control podcast, I got hooked on a few others. These motivate me in the various areas of my life... work, motherhood, fitness, etc. If you need an extra boost in your moticvation game, I highly recommend these:
            - Mom is in Control. The headline for her site is "If your soul is craving more, your child is struggling and you're READY to breakup with struggle. You're in the right place." These are usually pretty short podcasts that help you handle strong willed kids, a frustrated husband or LIFE. This is a good one, mamas.
             - The Daily Boost This podcast has been around I think since the beginning of podcasts are are only about 9 minutes long. They are geared toward business, reducing distraction, definition of goals... as the host says, "they are little nuggets" that help through life.
             - Gilmore Guys Whatever you guys, don't judge me for this one. I'm a big Gilmore Girls fan and I watch reruns all the time. This podcast is two guys that dive in to every episode in a hilarious way. This is kind of a release for me... I listen while I'm doing dishes or laundry or whatever. It's good stuff.
             - Dearest Doula I work with doulas. I promote doulas. Admittedly though, I don't know a lot about the birth world. Enter Dearest Doula, a podcast that communicates to people that aren't experts or birth professionals.

So there it is, guys... how I get through days. Caffeine, Jesus, laughter, exercise and motivation. Happy Friday. :)