In the Hen House

"A mother who radiates self - love and acceptance

vaccinates her daughter from low self esteem."

I remember watching an Oprah episode in 2004 on raising children. I was still dreaming of becoming a mom at that point, however, this quote struck a chord within me. I quickly grabbed a piece of paper and pen and wrote it down. I am not sure who the great mind behind the quote was, but I knew that when I finally became a mother that I would remind myself of this statement from time to time.

It is not always so easy to feel accepting of oneself when the day is focused on trying to make sure our children's needs are met, our home is in order and our bills are paid on time. There is much more I can add to this list, but I think any mom can grasp where I am heading with this. I start my day by putting my "mommy uniform" on. This consists of my black sweat pants (of which I have four pairs thanks to my friend who works at Ann Taylor Loft), t-shirt (a rainbow of colors to choose from thanks to the great prices at Old Navy), and my wonderful No-nonsense socks (all of which are white to make the laundry a tad easier). This is a far cry from the beautiful blouses I used to wear, along with sexy fine fitted pants and a pair of high heels. It is all about comfort for me these days. I like to run around in the yard with my Little Chick and climb the monkey bars. When we are indoors I am either on the floor doing puzzles with her or running around cleaning the house and cooking. I do not always feel so beautiful and the twenty something pounds I have put on don't help either.

So I need to refer back to the quote from time to time to remind myself of how important it is to take care of me for my inner well being, as well as for my daughter. I want her to be able to learn from my example and to be inspired. I know that my "mommy uniform" does not define who I am and how I feel as a person. But I do find myself getting so caught up with wanting to do everything as a mom and I end up losing a part of myself in the process. This is the balance that I am trying to learn so that I can inspire my daughter in every way and re energize myself.

It is every moms conundrum to find the time for herself. And when she does, not to feel guilty that she should be doing the dishes, balancing the checkbook, or cleaning the dreaded bathroom tub and toilets. We moms are all on this journey together working on figuring it all out while we lovingly try to create the best environment and life for our families. And so begins my blog about my own personal journey as a mom who is trying to find the balance necessary to be that mom who "radiates self - love and acceptance."