My Daily Habits (that keep me sane)

A week or so ago I met a new friend for coffee - it was so fun getting to know each other! During our conversation I remember her saying to me something along the lines of "you really have it all together, you're an inspiration." I was taken back by the really nice compliment.  In fact, I didn't know how to respond so I just said thank you followed up by "sometimes I have to fake it."

Both things are true.  I do have it together -  most of the time and I fake it - some of the time. Fake it till you make it, right?!

That whole conversation got me thinking about my daily habits that I believe help me to "have it together" most of the time.

Before Gabe was born I started to focus on turning some daily activities that made me feel pulled together and organized into habits.  After Gabe was born I kept up with these habits and they've made a difference in how I feel and how my family's day is positively affected.  I think it's also important for my kids to see their mom be able to take of herself, her home and her family (with help from my husband of course) so they can have a solid influence for adulting someday.  

I know that what I just stated could be controversial given the blog or Facebook post that's been floating around about society's expectations of a mom.  I want you to know that I have never felt that way.  I believe it's because my mom, and my husband's mom, set a good example for both of us growing up which were: control what you can control, take care of your family, take care of yourself, be a good person.  (Enough of that rant, that's like a whole other blog post.)

Anyway... back to my daily habits.

Here is the list of my daily habits.  Keep in mind that this is not a routine because these are not scheduled habits, I do my best to fit these things in at some point during the day.  A routine would imply that these need to happen at certain time or they don't get done.  Make sense?

Habit 1 - Get up before 6:00am.  Sometimes it's 5:59 but it's before 6:00am.  I need a head start on the boys or chaos become inevitable.

Habit 2 - Get ready for the day.  That means shower, do my makeup and do my hair.  I may hang out in workout clothes around home but if the rest of me is ready, I can throw on a pair of jeans and be out the door pretty quickly.

Habit 3 - Eat Breakfast. If I make myself breakfast I know that I've at least got one good meal in until supper time.

Habit 4 - Read the First 5 app. This is a good way to start the day - spending some time with God. Sometimes it's the way I end my day.  Either way, I'm spending time being grateful, thankful, and asking for help.

Habit 5 - Exercise. This is usually 4-5 days a week.  The Beachbody on Demand app has been a great time.  Tabata workouts are also quick, easy and beneficial.

Habit 6 - Do Dishes. I always do dishes, and clean up the kitchen, after supper.  I feel so much more at peace if I know that I'm waking up to a clean kitchen.

Habit 7 - Play. Each day I try to take some time to play or spend time with my kids.  I don't do this enough so it's a habit that is in progress.

Habit 8 - Pick up the House. Either after the kids go to bed, or first thing in the morning, my husband and I pick up the main floor of our house. Again, it brings peace to our household and I think it teaches our boys how to respect our home and in turn, their future homes.

Here's what I want you to know... I have bad days too, where the chaos becomes too much.  In fact, I had a really bad day earlier this week.

The other thing I want you to know is that if you feel like your life is chaos and you don't have it together, create a few habits for yourself.  Having it together, most of the time, is possible as long as you decide what that looks like for you.  Research tells us that we can form new habits in like 17-21 days.  Give it a go - you got this!