Taking Time for Myself

I've recently found a great support group of moms on Twitter. These women seriously make me want to be a better mom every day. They are so inspiring!

One constant reminder that they all seem to recommend moms do is take time for ourselves. Time for myself? What is that?! I'm kidding. Sort of.

With M working 90-100 hours a week normally, I don't get a moment of peace until all my 3 little bugs are in bed at night. No quiet in the bathroom, either! However, when M is home, he is really supportive of giving me some alone time. And I so appreciate it!

The day after we got home from vacation I headed up to the outlets. I needed to pick up something for Kate so figured I might do some looking for myself. After all, I was alone.

My favorite store is Ann Taylor and when I walked in I was quite nostalgic. I used to buy all my suits there when I was in the professional world. Then I bought all my clothes there when I was teaching. Now that I wear t-shirts appliqued with spit up and jeans every day, I don't buy so much there. Maybe 1 or 2 shirts a year. So sad.

Walking in I admired all the suits and dresses that I have no reason to wear. The gorgeous materials and styles were calling my name. I couldn't even pretend I would have somewhere to wear them to. But as I worked my way through the store I started to find lots of things that I could wear throughout the day. Lots of it! Before I knew it, my arms were completely full and someone was offering to take the clothes and put them in a fitting room for me. It was a good thing she did. In 5 more minutes, my arms were full again! Wow, I never feel like I can find anything when all the kids are with me. This was like shopping used to be before I had kids!

This is what the dressing room looked like when I walked in:






I should mention that I took these pics with my phone and they weren't the greatest. However, there were piles and piles of clothes in that room! And the fact that I was able to try them all on, while taking my time was... priceless!

I ended up spending almost $300 and didn't feel an ounce of guilt about it.

Here's the weird part. The entire 45 minute drive there, I was feeling guilty for leaving the girls. I am literally with them all day every day so I couldn't understand why I felt guilty. But I did. A lot. Mommy guilt is a fierce thing. Once I stood in the dressing room with new clothes on, the guilt dissipated. I was finally feeling a bit like my old self. Happy, free, and shopping!

Seriously, a little alone time really can make you feel so much better! I went back home on a shopping high and refreshed. I was ready to handle whatever flung itself on me when I walked through the door. And that just happened to be 2 cute toddlers and a baby!