How to Elevate Your Parenting Life
Feeling overwhelmed or blah? Taking time for self-care and implementing creative projects lowers stress and can elevate your parenting life.
CanCan Mom’s hundreds of creative Get-to-Do Lists, routines, schedules, and solutions all make motherhood easier and more fun! Recognizing that you “Get To Do” these things because you are blessed to have a family reminds you to Interact with love and laughter more often than impatience.
Have fun incorporating my unique Fast & Free Quick Steps into your daily life!
Moms Crushing It with Quick Steps to Elevate Your Parenting Life
Here are four ways I renew my energy, enjoyment, creativity, and connection to my family:
- Enjoying My Neighborhood
- Reading Novels for Sheer Pleasure
- Adult Field Trips on a Regular Basis
- Doing Extra Special and Unexpected Things for My Family
My Well-Intended Plans
For the past year, I’ve been rambling away to anyone who will listen that I am desperate to try a Caribbean makeover in our home. I’m talking about livening up the main living spaces with fresh paint in turquoise, mango, and lime-green shades. Add a few framed tropical prints, whimsical seashells for the mantel, spunky new throw pillows, and a nifty new area rug or two, and I’ll consider the project a success.
If you’re wondering why I am still in the talking stages and haven’t actually lifted a brush yet, I have no good excuse except that life keeps getting in the way.
The only thing I haven’t been able to buy for my fresh and magical makeover is a huge chunk of time that will allow me to start and complete the project. Last I checked, they didn’t have that on sale in Walmart or Target.
My New Reality
Then I remembered why this project wasn’t happening. It wasn’t due to poor scheduling on my part; it was because I had been busy decorating something much more important with my free time—myself!
Here are a few examples of how I am working on my own interior design, and hopefully, a few of these ideas will help you elevate your parenting life.
Tip 1: Enjoying My Neighborhood
That’s right—I’ve gotten into a very soothing routine of walking the neighborhood with a friend, dog, or myself. I live in a community where we look out for one another’s kids at the bus stop, pet each other’s unruly mutts, and admire one another’s new spring blooms. Taking even 20 minutes out of my crazy day allows me to refocus and get ready for the rest of the day, and it’s always at the ready!
Tip 2: Reading Novels for Sheer Pleasure
I was always a reader in my school days, working gal days, and pre-kid days. Once I went from Mrs. Butler to Mommy, my reading genre changed from mysteries, contemporary romance novels, and non-fiction indulgences to Dr. Seuss, Mother Goose tales, and connect-the-dot coloring books.
Eighteen years and eight kids later, I’m reading again for pure enjoyment and have an entire bookcase beckoning to take me on new adventures. Some of my recent favorite reads are:
The Bodyguard by Katherine Center—A light mystery romance with great characters and lots of laughs. Who is the villain? Will they succeed in harming the client? Only if the unwilling bodyguard gets distracted by the best friend, the ex, or the client. (Definitely a CanCan Mom FAVE!)
Fast Woman by Jennifer Crusie—Three women meet as they become sisters-in-law. Then, they become best friends who look out for each other as their lives unfold in unforeseen ways. When one gets divorced and then becomes the Office Manager for a detective agency, there is a lot of zinging and banter along with a few funny capers, but then long-held family secrets come to light. It’s a good thing there are Private Investigators on the case, as someone will kill to keep these secrets. Mystery/Romance (Also recommended: Bet Me) (A CanCan Mom go-to author!)
The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez—PLEASE NOTE: Adult language and situations. Two lifelong friends: One makes the occasionally raunchy outfits for small dogs, is dating a military man currently based overseas, and is the Maid of Honor. The other is a quiet painter, engaged to the love of her life and the soon-to-be bride. Let the fun begin as the Best Man and best friend of the groom-to-be makes quite an impression on the Maid of Honor. It’s both a laugh-out-loud funny and heartbreaking, sob-inducing love story. PLEASE READ THESE BOOKS IN ORDER. The second in the series is The Happy Ever After Playlist, which picks up where Book One ends. Jimenez outdoes herself in the sequel. Keep the tissues nearby for both tears of joy and sorrow, as this surprise love story looks to be an impossible dream despite the book title.
For more great reads, you might enjoy Quality Reads For The Whole Family: CanCan Mom’s Top Book Recommendations.
Tip 3: Elevate Your Parenting by Adding Adult Field Trips on a Regular Basis
Sure, I still love to accompany my younger children and their classmates to local museums, zoos, and theatrical experiences, but I’ve also discovered that jaunting off to places that interest me and me alone has been very therapeutic.
For instance, I decided to visit all the grocery stores I don’t regularly shop at to browse the international food aisles and bake options to plan menus that would tantalize my children’s taste buds.
I even started visiting consignment and antique shops just to browse and become inspired. I grab one of my besties to tag along for an added bonus. We moms need to stick together!
Tip 4: Doing Extra Special and Unexpected Things for My Family
If you want to elevate your parenting life, it helps to think outside the box. I’ve noticed when I remove myself from the daily fray, I become excited about the possibilities of doing things I haven’t done in years, like initiating playing a game of Trouble or Monopoly with my kids because I want to spend time with them, not because they are bugging me to keep them occupied.
I’ve even mailed my husband a few love letters to his office and left my kids their favorite treats with the front offices at their schools just because!
Feeling Re-energized
As I finish writing this, the tangerine and coconut paint scheme is drying in our main bathroom. With some of the interior makeovers going on inside myself, the energy is starting to mount for the house makeover I’ve been dreaming about this past year.
I recall hearing some great advice from an anonymous source not too long ago: “Always Keep Doing You.” I used to think that was a bit selfish, but not anymore—once you start redecorating the internal, the external areas will soon follow.
For all kinds of mom-centered creative ideas, visit me on Instagram at CanCanMomCB or on Pinterest at theCanCanMom. If you have questions or suggestions, email me at Cheryl@cancanmom.com or leave a comment in the box below.
