SuperWomen Do IT Less…Or a Helluva Lot Better!

SuperWomen are working women with children. This is the norm, not the exception. They feel the pressure of having to do everything even if they have a significant other to help with the home and children. From the minute she awakens until she goes to sleep, her life centers around the children and her second job outside the home-- five days a week, her job is never done.

Many women with total home responsibilities do not have personal time to even take a long, hot bath or quick shower until the children are put to bed or before they awaken. It is essential to be able to break away from the daily routine of work and homemaking to take care of Mom—the health of the family starts with you. Even if you get overwhelmed and just throw up your hands, you will still have to continue the next day to take on your Mom duties—with all the things you did not do the day before.

“Mothering” is complicated but easy to define: It is what a Mom does without being asked. Mom is the one most likely on-call from the kids, school, company and the significant other. How do Moms get time for themselves to take that bath or exercise? What do they have to sacrifice to get personal time in minutes of her day that probably starts at 5:30AM and goes to 9:00-10:00PM? What gives them the energy to continue when they feel they cannot? There is usually no choice.

Taking care of yourself is the most important thing you can do for your family. Did you ever notice that when everyone in the house gets a cold, Mom does not? She cannot. It is that simple. The most important thing you can do as a Mom is to get organized and run your day as if it were the only job you have.

Plan your Monday -Friday on the weekend: Prepare menus for meals and shop for what you need with a list and a budget—skip taking the kids if you can. Prepare meals such as stews, soups and casseroles in the crockpot or pressure cooker and freeze them in plastic bags. It is cheaper than getting fast food takeout and more nutritious—and you can use inexpensive cuts of meat that provides a lot of protein. Using the crockpot for cooking up dried beans, meats and veggies for dinner makes fast, easy, nutritious and delicious meals. Veggie omelets are fast, easy and inexpensive meals. Set the table after dinner for the morning; put out clothes for work and school; set alarms for the kids so they can get themselves up. Get the dishes out of the sink every evening! With a clean kitchen in the morning, you and the children will have a stress less start for the day.