The winter cold season arrived and as this years virus toured our household, I thought I’d escaped its clutches, when bang 🧨 it caught me. As I sat dosing myself with paracetamol, surrounded by tissues, I reflected on the importance of looking after yourself. As Mums and Grandmums, we tend to put our own health and wellbeing last as we care for the family around us.

Since moving in with our daughters family, I have had to lower my expectations on keeping the house clean and tidy. It’s impossible with four boys in the house. You’d think it would be easier now they are all at school, but it feels like an ever turning merry go round, sweeping crumbs from the floor, and cleaning sticky finger prints from windows and walls. The bin is always full and the washing machine and dishwasher do at least four cycles each per day. With seven bedrooms and five bathrooms, there’s always a bed needing stripping or shower in need of a clean, so there is little time to just sit and relax.

As I sat nursing my cold, feeling guilty that the jobs were not getting done, and listening to my daughter, cussing as another load of washing was piled into the machine, I contemplated how we could look after ourselves a bit better to enable us to care for the rest of the family, without it taking over our lives.

In theory this might sound wonderful, but in practice its not so simple. Kids by their very nature are demanding, hungry, dirty, untidy and ungrateful little things. So if you don’t take care of yourself, they certainly won’t, and eventually you could suffer the consequences, being exhausted and stressed, like my daughter, or in my case be knocked out by the cold virus. 

So I have drafted a personal care plan for 2019 :-

1. Realise I can’t be everything for everyone and to not feel guilty about it 😬
2. Allocate days for the house, either cleaning or decorating and not let it spill over into other days, wherever possible.
3. Continue to schedule in time for myself, having my nails and hair done, lunch or tea and cake with my girlfriends
4. Schedule in relaxation and recharge time with the hubby, by catching up for dinner or drinks with friends. Go to the cinema more or even the odd date night.
5. Make time every week for some exercise. My hubby and I love a walk. It’s often the best time to talk without interruption. To make plans or just catch up. These walks have slipped off the radar recently, so (he doesn’t know it yet) I aim to resurrect a weekly walk with him and continue my monthly walk and natter with girlfriends.
6. Eat and drink well. I already try to do this, although I have slipped over the Christmas period and as I am about to embark on a two week all-inclusive cruise, this part of the plan is on hold till I return in March 🥂🍸 🥘.
7. I enjoy a good read, but seem to only make time to drift off into another world whilst I’m on holiday. I promise myself I will relax and read at least one book per month.
8. Last but not least, get enough sleep! I do find it so difficult to get my brain to switch off at night and infuriate my husband by watching the news and paper review in bed before settling down. Not sure how I’m going to achieve this one but I plan to try.

As I set off on my cruise, I am hoping to top up my vitamin D levels in the Caribbean sunshine, recharge my batteries as I’m looked after by the crew and return home with a new burst of energy ready to put my personal care plan into action and look forward to the exciting year ahead.