Fall: A Good Time to Let (Three More)Things Go

Hey y’all!

Wow, another hot minute has passed, and here we are!  And I finally got the blog back online—yes, the blog crashed a few months ago.  *womp womp*.  That’s what happens when you try to do all 37 updates at once, the server peaces out.  

I am thoroughly convinced that was God’s way of making me take a definitive break.  From blogging, from social media, from EVERYTHING.  Y’all, I had myself pretty convinced that I could do everything, and go about business as usual, after Rosie was born.  I thought for SURE that since this wasn’t my first rodeo, that I would get back into the swing of things sooner than I had after I had Lilly.

In some ways, I was able to do just that!  Babies really aren’t that different, so I completely skipped the “how the heck do I keep a tiny human alive?!” phase.  And Lilly adjusted so easily to being a big sister that that was also another blessing.

But I did not adjust as quickly, to postpartum life.  The first few months were a piece of cake, and I thought that I really had a handle on motherhood, at this point, but months 5 to now (almost a year postpartum), it’s been one rollercoaster after the other, and the severe lack of sleep has made everything exponentially more difficult.  Hormones took a lot longer to settle down (read:  not normal, but stable), and my body has taken twice as long to bounce back.  That was something I wasn’t expecting, mostly because I had bounced back so quickly the first time, and my postpartum body was pretty much the same as it was after Lilly.

Over the last several months, I slowly became aware of some things I was holding on to that were majorly impacting my mental and emotional health (more on that in a future post). For now, I just want to share where I am at and what was brought to my attention, so stick with me–the three things I have learned to let go of are ahead! 😉

Three (More) Things to Let Go of

1. The first thing I need to let go of was the idea that I can (or should) do it all.  That there will be days, and even weeks, where all I accomplish for the day is keeping the kids alive, and my house in order.  Most people would tell me to just let the house go, dishes will always be there, etc., but chaos and disorder make my anxiety exponentially higher, so a clean and ordered home is non-negotiable.  But I CAN give myself more grace in that area, and if I don’t make it to the laundry, it’s not going anywhere—I can tackle it the next day. 
   Thanks, Laundry, I know I can always count on you being there for me! 
   But I can celebrate that I have been able to stick to a cleaning schedule that works for me, and makes it easier to accomplish things like dusting, vacuuming, and mopping on a weekly basis—>  The Clean Mama has been a life and sanity saver!  <–Seriously, go check out her blog, her routines are simple, easy to incorporate, and have made a huge impact on keeping my house in order!
2. I need to let go of the idea that parenting my toddler in the difficult moments is a chore…it is a blessing! I need to embrace that she is exploring her identity, and  discovering her will.  She is just trying to navigate this big place called The World, and she has only been recently made aware that she can affect change.  That can be pretty overwhelming and intimidating for such a small person, when you think about it!
3. And FINALLY, I need to let go of the cycle of comparison I frequently get myself into, and focus on the blessings that God has given me.  I have so many things to be thankful for! I love the quote, “Remember the days you prayed for what you have now“. It’s so true!  I have gotten MUCH better about not comparing my life to others’ highlight reels on social media. Sometimes that requires taking a break from the internet, every now and then, just to reset.

And speaking of said-hiatus; I just might have time to *gasp*  get back to BLOGGING on a regular basis!!  Seriously, y’all, I thought that with everything going on, I was having to close that chapter of my life.  Between an exhausting season of motherhood, dealing with emotional and mental health, and the blog going down, I came pretty close to throwing in the towel.   But these last few months have been purposeful in reorganizing my priorities and putting things into perspective, as well as refreshing my creative juices—my mom brain had all but fried my creativity, and I am slowly regaining my sanity!

So there you have it, three more things that I am letting go of. I’ve come to the realization in my “old” age (I turn 30!!!!! tomorrow) that there will always be room for improvement, always something that God will be teaching me! And that we are always changing and growing, and to embrace those changes with open arms. Because if we stayed the same person our entire lives, how would we grow?

Just like the trees in the fall, I’m letting go of the old so I can embrace the new.

Stay Classy!

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