The Back to School Boxing Match

With one foot in autumn (back-to-school) and the other foot in summer (tired mama!!), we can feel torn about this time of year. Perhaps a part of you is shouting from the roof tops, "I CANNOT WAIT FOR SCHOOL TO START!" Then in the next breath, you have another part that feels Guilty about just shouting from the roof top! Maybe that part of you is frantically wondering, "If I wish them away, does that mean I don't love/want my children?! I must be a terrible mom! AAACCCKK!! Internally, it may feel like a Boxing Match - or anxiety.

Thank you @ Eden Whitmire for this picture and for thinking of me atop the cool crispy leaves.

You're not alone!

Here's the delio: you and a million other moms are feeling a flavor of this and it's ok. If we slow down and look a bit deeper, it all makes sense. Here's the gist of what might be going on. 

• You just may be completely fried after having your kiddos all summer. 
• You may be craving more of a routine.
• Your cup may be so empty that you don't even have a cup.
• You may need more time alone. Hello introvert?
• You may need more rest / sleep.
• You may crave your empty quiet house. 
• You may be tired of entertaining your kids / childcare costs ($$).
• Summer is a time of high energy and if you're an Empath or HSP, you may be feeling frazzled and kinda jacked.

If you look at this list from a neutral place, there's nothing wrong with ANY of these needs, and if they're true - they're TRUE! Even if you feel just ONE of these things, that part of you may be craving RELIEF which screams from roof tops: go back-to-school! Makes sense, right?

Here's the good news: you don't have to struggle in this time and can have relief right now! Here's a simple practice that will rock your world: 

1. Find a way to fill your cup every day, even just a little bit.
2. Practice PRESENCE with your child.

I'm not going to talk about #1. Just go do it and then come back here and read about #2. I mean it, go on and fill your cup! You can't love from an empty cup, you just pour sour and bitter. So, please take a moment, 5 minutes of quiet breathing does wonders. 

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I'm assuming you're back from filling your cup and you now have 1) a cup, and 2) it's a little bit full or filled up. Bravo! If not, please go back to step 1. 

Presence. So why presence? When you can be fully present with your SELF every day, even just for a few minutes, holy moly, you'll move mountains. It's a simple exercise of deeply knowing your Self.

​THIS particular exercise is to be fully present with YOUR CHILD for 10 minutes. Daily. It is important to focus on one child at a time so they can fully be with YOU and soak you up. This is super easy: 

• Set your phone aside
  
• Do something you love. Sit with them. Play a game. Go on a walk. Tell jokes. Give them a nice long hug. Tell them you love being their Mom. Paint their toes. Eye gaze. Read a book quietly side by side.
• While you're with them, notice how good it feels to be with them. Do you see their light shine? Does it feel warm in your body? If it doesn't feel good, go back to Step 1 (fill your cup) or connect with me.
  

If you're caught up in an internal struggle, a Boxing Match of wishing-them-back-to-school vs Feeling Guilty, it's exhausting AND when you look back at your summer, you might fear that you missed everything. If you take little moments of just being with your children, come school-time, you'll look back upon those LITTLE MOMENTS with joy, gratitude, and possibly relief! 

Here's another HUGE benefit: your children will feel your Presence so immensely that it will fill their cup too. They'll be so filled up that their Neediness will subside and you'll have more space to do your own thang in peace (your presence calms their system AND yours. Hello magic). 

Finally, here's the biggest WIN of all: just being Present with them is more than enough because it tells them really powerful messages about themselves: 

• You're lovable just the way you are.
• You're fun and interesting. 
• I love being with you. 
• You don't have to do anything to get my attention. 
• You're enough

You see, just you're PRESENCE gives all of those yummy messages. Just 10 minutes, or even just a couple of minutes if that feels like too much (which is just a friendly way of knowing you need to fill your cup first). 

Wishing you deep nourishing presence, and a very happy back to school. :0) 

Many blessings,
Jendi