Back to School Renewal

For many SAHMs with school-aged children, back to school can be a bittersweet moment. Some of us love the carefree days of summer and getting to spend A LOT of quality time with our kids; others, crave the routine of the school year.

For me personally my only baby is going off to kindergarten; there was a time when I prayed for this moment to come; during the toddler years my son and I did not have the best relationship; it was a really trying time.

Now that he is five and more mature we have an amazing relationship and I never thought I would say it but I am sad I won’t be spending my days with him. I have a lot of passions in my life that can easily fill my days, but I have never had this much time to myself. Sometimes I wonder what I will do with it all.

Then I realized what a perfect time this is to recharge and renew myself. Before I had a child I always took a week in the year to unplug and review my goals, dreams, and aspirations, as well as, spend a little time pampering myself. So this year, after we get used to our new routine I am going to take a week just for me, and to focus on the next stage of my life, and my family’s life. I generally do this at New Years but it is always good to re-evaluate half-way through the year. I encourage you all SAHMs to join me.

Here are just a few things I will be doing:

• Spend one day (or more than one) doing only things I enjoy such as, knitting, reading, watching a movie, and dancing.




• Go for a massage, take a yoga class, and get a pedicure.




• Spend time writing down my goals and aspirations for the rest of the year and into next year. Check on how I am doing with past goals, and most importantly create a task list with some dates to reach those goals.




• Organize the house, and create an environment where the whole family can thrive in their shifted responsibilities.




• Take lots of baths, naps, and spend time in quiet reflection. The answers you seek come to you during these times.




• Create a calendar that includes the activities and tasks for the whole family, plot in the times when I can work on my goals, study, write, and get in shape.

What will you do to renew and recharge when your kids go back to school?

Dina is a Certified Massage Therapist and Yoga Instructor and has studied Herbal and Aromatic medicine for over 10 years. When she is not using her husband, son, and dog as guinea pigs for her natural creations she is writing her blog www.familysanityreviews.com, or belly dancing, East Indian dancing, knitting, reading, cooking and drinking wine; sometimes all at once.