It's pedicure day!!

Yea! Yea! Yea! It's finally the day I get to have a pedicure! I'm so excited - how sad is that? I've been waiting for this appointment for two weeks and finally the day is here.

I always seem to put hair appointments, pedicures, etc. at the bottom of my priority list. Everyone else's appointments always seem to supercede mine. But I guess that's because I let that happen isn't it? I hate the part that I'm responsible for putting myself last. Couldn't someone else look after me for a change? Clearly, that's not going to happen.

Self care is really hard to do when we're programmed as a mom to do all these things for our children first and to put ourselves last. No one ever said "put yourself last" but the implications are always that if you're a "good" mom, your children always come first. We're made to feel that getting a pedicure is a luxury and we can only do this is everyone else and everything else is already looked after. And I hate that. But I've bought into all of that too.

There's also that feeling of because I'm an adoptive mom that I should be willing to make all these incredible sacrifices for my children. Because I've taken on these challenged and challenging children, I must be some kind of hero, so therefore that makes me prime martyr material. I am so over that! Thank goodness. But it took me quite awhile to recognize that I was feeding into that stereotype by always putting myself last.

For a few years there, I was only spending time on myself after the kids had been put to bed after a day of getting all my attention, after the housework had been done, etc. As you can well imagine, there was no time for my husband or for me. I'd fall into bed mentally and physically exhausted. So over the years the kids have survived quite nicely without me being their constant companion and playmate and my house will never win the best housekeeping award. And now I feel ok about taking time for me. At least most days I do.

Which makes me think we need a new poll question - check it out and vote!