Stress

There are days when things just don't seem to go right (okay, who am I kidding, this is almost every day).  The kids wake up grumpy.  They fight over EVERY.LITTLE.THING.  Who knew that someone "stealing" your chair at breakfast could be the start of World War 3?  It doesn't matter if I wake up feeling like I am on top of the world, the fighting, complaining, whining, and simply not listening ends up grating on my nerves to the point where I'm grumpy.  Sometimes, I wonder what I am doing so wrong.  Little things start to annoy me and before I know it, my whole day could be ruined if I don't reign in my emotions. 

How do you take all the negative feelings and release them so you don't carry them with you all day?  Ah, I don't have all the answers.  But, here's what I do have.


1.  I know I am not alone.  We all think we have to be SuperMom.  We have to do it all, be everything to everyone, and wear a smile on our faces even though we are bone tired, worn out, and struggling to keep up.  I can tell you, I am NOT supermom.  I have failings and shortcomings just like everyone else.  I often feel I fail my kids on a daily basis. I fail as a wife, a mother, a friend.  I sometimes want to hide in a corner and cry.  Despite what it might look like, I don't have it all together, and I can't do it all and I'm not perfect.  It doesn't matter if we have no kids, 2 kids or 5 kids - it's HARD to be a woman.   We need to be willing to look into the mirror and say it's ok if we can't handle it all.  We need to expose ourselves, just a little bit, to others. 

2.  I have friends.  Friends who make me laugh when I am being stupid.  Friends who listen to my occasional rant, sometimes commiserate with me.  Friends who aren't afraid to tell me that I'm being petty, argumentative, selfish, etc.  Friends who will pick up a phone or send me an email or private message.  Friends who will make me giggle when I need it most.  Friends who will take my Fabs so I can have a moment's peace.  Friends who can tell me that I'll get through this, that I will survive, and that it will eventually be ok.  Not perfect, but ok.  You need to have friends in your life who are willing to speak the truth to you - even if it stings a bit. Friends who will encourage you, challenge you and help you grow.

 

3.  I have prayer.  You might not think this is important, but I beg to disagree.  When all the world is crumbling around you, if you can just stop and pray, it changes your mindset, your mood, your outlook.  Prayer has the wonderful ability to bring things back into proper perspective if you let it.  Not only do I have the power to pray for myself., but I have the power to pray for others - and this is huge to me.  When I stop to think about the friends I have who will stop whatever is happening in their lives, and give up just 1-2 minutes out of their crazy, hectic day to pray for ME, little ME, it gives me such feelings of warmth, value, friendship, hope, peace and love all wrapped up in one small prayer.  No, it doesn't answer all my questions, take away all my fears, fix all of my problems,
but it does make a huge difference in my thinking, my actions, my faith.

4.  I have a loving Father.  My Father doesn't want to see me struggle, hurt, or fail.  What He does want is for me to use those things to draw closer to Him.  To let His love shine through me.  He can do great things in me if I just let Him. 

 I've been feeling the desire to embrace the women in my life.  To support them, lift them up, let them know they aren't alone - that we all struggle.   So, I've begun to reach out to the women in my life.  I've begun praying for them - some by name, but also, in a general sense for all the women in my life.  I've been reaching out to those I feel need to hear the words "I care, everything ok?" the most.  And, I am working on embracing all the differences that make us unique and cherishing those aspects of each woman in my life.

 We need to be more supportive of one another.  We need to pray for one another, and we need to reach out to one another and not be afraid to share our shortcomings, our failings, our fears.  Most importantly, we need to let God guide our paths. 

I like to think I am crafty. But, really, I'm not. I am mediocre at best. I sometimes have great ideas, and lots of heart, but often, my perfectionism does me in. What I am really fortunate to have is an abundance of awesomely crafty friends who have vision and talent to turn my mediocre attempts into brilliance.

These Be-You-tiful signs will be given as gifts at our church women's tea next week. And, thanks to my friends, they have flare and sparkle beyond my wildest dreams.

So, thank you, dear friends for having talents where I do not!