As busy moms, at the end of the day it is very easy to think it was a wasted day. I know the feeling that comes when you have nothing to show for the day. The house is still dirty, laundry isn’t put away, and there are dishes in the sink.
Today I am going to share an article I wrote when I was a much younger mom and had a baby, a three-year-old, and a five-year-old. I wrote this on a day when I was feeling discouraged about my lack of accomplishment, as a reminder of what REALLY matters, and all that I DID accomplish that day.
Do you gauge the success of your day based on a “list” of tasks or ambitions you put on yourself and whether or not you can accomplish them? Are you giving yourself a realistic amount of time to get them all done with your other Mom obligations? Do moms EVER have enough time in the day? It depends how you look at it…
It was the end of the day, and I sat down to rest after putting the kids to bed. I got out my list of things that needed to be done that day. Out of ten things, I’d only accomplished one. I never got to the dusting, cleaning the cupboards, writing those letters, or reading my new book. A feeling of discouragement crept over me as I thought, “Another wasted – I didn’t get a THING done.” Where DID the time go? Well, let’s see….
I DID:
- Fix three meals for my family.
- Wash four loads of clothes so my family would have something to wear tomorrow. (Even though it’s still in the basket – it’s clean!)
- Take time to read to my kids.
- Spend a few minutes rocking a still sleepy toddler after her nap.
- Have a Bible and song time with the kids.
- Read a few verses from the Bible, and spend a few minutes in prayer.
- Play a game with my five-year old.
- “Talk” with my baby as I rocked him.
- Tuck the kids in bed and listen to their prayers, and last minute bedtime chatter.
- Change an unlimited amount of diapers!
- Take the time to discipline the girls when they disobeyed, and then love them.
- Wash the dishes.
- Make MANY trips upstairs to the “potty” with my toddler who’s just catching on. (Some were wasted, some weren’t.)
- Give all three of the kids a bath, wash their hair, cut their nails, etc.
- Take time to teach the girls when they had to be corrected.
- Color a picture with the girls.
Well, I guess that’s about ALL I did today. A wasted day? I guess it all depends on how you look at it!
This is an article from my ebook MIRROR MIRROR ON THE WALL, WHO’S THE BEST MOM OF ALL? This ebook includes 82 pages with 27 articles that I have written from my heart, to inspire and encourage you! For a listing of some of the topics in the book, click HERE.
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Angeline,
Wow! 11 hours! That takes up a good part of the awake hours, doesn’t it? Thanks for sharing encouraging words! And I agree, the laundry probably won’t get folded at that stage, but it’s ok! We need to be realistic in our expectations during the busy season with young ones.
I remember adding up just the feeding, washing, and basic discipline and methering that i did when i had three babes in diapers. Eleven hours. Yes thats right. Eleven hours on feeding and diapering my kids. Seriously moms. We are doing fine! You moms of young ones are doing enough. If you get one extra thing done besides the basic care and feeding of your babies and the clothes are washed -not folded, just clean, rhe dishes got wash at least once this week, you are fine. Truly. Especially moms of many and moms of littles.
Thank you for the reminder. 🙂 And thanks for linking up with LMM.