Practically Joyful Mom

Car time can often feel like wasted time but we can choose to reclaim these moments to prepare our kids for wherever we're going. Conversations about appropriate behavior and about loving the people we will be around are a great way to make this time worthwhile instead of wasted. 

We all go through seasons in life, some are easy and some are challenging. Part of being a practically joyful mom is choosing to adapt to the season we are in rather than trying to live like it's summer when we are in the midst of a winter season. 

It can be  so easy to run through our days without really looking at our kids, really pausing and giving them our eyes and our attention, seeing them clearly and letting them know that they are important to us. Eye contact is a powerful tool to connect with our kids, strengthen our relationships and increase cooperation. 

What’s in our hearts matters because it is what will come out in our words and actions. It can be easy to focus on our children’s behavior because it’s what we can see but what’s in their hearts is where that behavior comes from. The same is true for us as moms, what’s in our hearts is what comes out.

Moms are busy. Our days are often very full but there are also little pockets of time sandwiched between diaper changes and school drop offs, between messy meals and trips to the park. We often end up turning to time wasters during these little moments because we think we can't accomplish much in 5 or 10 minutes. But what if we chose to use those little time pockets to invest little by little in the things that matter most to us? 

The little things we do regularly have a much greater impact than the things we do once in a while. If we want to grow in an area, consistently making small investments can have huge effects. But it’s not always easy to consistently do the things we want to do and it can be easy to get caught up in an all-or-nothing mentality rather than choosing imperfect, but consistent action. Listen in to today’s episode for encouragement about building consistency in your life in the areas that matter most to you.

 I’m so happy to be back with you after taking July off to rest and recharge! We are all designed to have people walking beside us to encourage us, to help us grow and learn. Today we are talking about ways we can support each other and how to walk together even in the messes of life.

We all have a nemesis. A thing we spend more time dreading than doing. Maybe it’s dishes or laundry or clipping your child’s nails. But we don’t have to stay stuck in a place of letting dread of these tasks drain our energy and drag us down. We can make some simple shifts in our perspectives and practices to choose joy even in the mundane tasks of everyday life.

We all have a nemesis. A thing we spend more time dreading than doing. Maybe it’s dishes or laundry or clipping your child’s nails. But we don’t have to stay stuck in a place of letting dread of these tasks drain our energy and drag us down. We can make some simple shifts in our perspectives and practices to choose joy even in the mundane tasks of everyday life.

As moms we have the power to affect the mood of everyone in our home: “If Momma’s not happy, nobody’s happy.” But instead of focusing on our ability to sabotage the mood of our entire family, we can flip this negative saying on it’s head and dare to say, “If Momma chooses joy, everyone’s happier.”

When we start and end our days with these two simple practices, we shift our focus away from the frustrating, negative and disappointing parts of our day and choose to focus on the good, the lovely and the wonderful parts of motherhood. 

Starting our days by waking up grateful and ending our days by looking back on the happiest moments helps us to train our brains to focus on what was right in our day, instead of what was wrong. This doesn’t mean that we ignore the hard, sad or difficult moments of our day, but that we choose not to focus on them and give them power over our whole outlook on our days and our motherhood. The stories we tell ourselves about our days and our lives matter and have powerful effects. The good news is that we can CHOOSE which stories we tell!