The Mother's Guide to Self Renewal Book

Crystal: An interesting book I came across today...I haven't ready it myself, yet, but from what I've seen it looks like it might hold some great ideas.

The Mother's Guide to Self Renewal by Renee Trudeau

I feel that it's really important for mothers to have a self awareness about who they are and what they want out of life. When you have kids, you tend to get so wrapped up in the day to day, that you forget what living is about. For me, having children completed my life, and everything I do in my life is in a roundabout way for them...but I also realize that for the purpose of my sanity, it's important for me to also just be me and do something for myself once in awhile...and sometimes it's hard to figure out who that isor what I want when your whole life has been repurposed for your children.

I don't know that this book is the final solution, but it's probably a good start. I read the mini review from an an Urban Baby email I received last year (that I'm now barely reading)...this is what they outline as some of the suggestions in the book...all fabulous ideas in my mind!

• Go to a deli or natural foods store and pick up items for a delicious picnic. Bring your treats to a local park and enjoy your meal under a shady tree.
• Head to your favorite bookstore and browse the career, self-improvement, women’s health, psychology and spirituality sections. Take note of what topics are most interesting or appealing to you. Make sure you take time to be quiet; sip a relaxing beverage. Resist the urge to turn this into a shopping trip; this is your time to reflect.
• Visit an ice cream or yogurt store and enjoy a new flavor as a special treat. Maybe indulge in a sundae while you sit outside and just chill.
• Take off for a relaxing walk in nature, perhaps near a local lake, river or pond.
• Write a poem about your life and how it’s changed since you’ve become a mother.
• Visit a bookstore or gift store and buy yourself a new journal. Take time to break it in while sipping on green tea.
• Go to one of your favorite outdoor spots to relax and journal on twenty things you’re grateful for.
• Visit a wine bar and have a glass of your favorite wine. Reflect — what are your three favorite things about yourself? Have they changed since you were 20?
• If it’s rainy, use your imagination: where can you find a cozy, quiet kid-free corner in your neighborhood to relax, unwind and de-stress?

And if you don't have kids of your own, you could always pass this along to your own mother...this can also apply to a lot of fathers out there. :)

Jen: What a fabulous book! It reminds me of a book I have called "Snap Out of It". The whole point is to become self-aware and give back to yourself.

Mom's have it rough! I just watched the Mother's Day episode of that new show, The Middle. It showed 3 generations of mothers and daughters melting down over their pressures and stressors (in a hilarious way!). My mom really related to it, as she told me later. Maybe I should get this book for her ;)