Hey My loves,

Recently, I read that your adult child’s happiness is all based on their mother’s happiness and I was so shocked to hear that and immediately thought…oh great another thing to add to a mother’s list of things she’s responsible for; but when I think about it, as a mother you are the nurturer- so it would make sense to be able to nurture yourself before being able to give that to someone else. So as moms, it’s important that we make the time to prioritize ourselves, always. I’m not going to lie though the pressure is intense.

If I could go back and start over I most likely would never have a child without going to therapy first -to heal the traumas that I’ve dealt with it and in some way still dealing with. It’s so funny because one of you girls wrote to me a few days ago and said that I should definitely get back into therapy because we come from Jamaican parents which means our entire childhood is traumatizing. I nearly died laughing, but it’s true lol- although I’m sure not all Jamaican parents are awful. Mine were extremely awful but that’s for a different time.

Now that I do have a child, I want him to feel safe in my presence- I want to make the effort to constantly work on me, so I can be a better parent to him. I know I won’t be perfect- but if he can leave this house knowing he was loved and that I tried my best, then I’m fine with that. It’s crazy because as I’ve gotten older I’m much more moodier… like I swear my attitude was not this bad as a teen lol. I find myself most days just annoyed and not really wanting to talk to anyone for no particular reason. Until I did some research on other symptoms I was experiencing and saw that moodiness is one of the symptoms of Peri-Menopause. When I saw that for some reason I felt better, I didn’t feel crazy anymore; I knew it was hormonal. Now all I had to do was come up with a solution to help with most of the symptoms; and to sum it up it meant putting me first.

how to be happy as a mom

If you’ve been following me for a while then you know I love walking, walking became therapy for me. I would listen to podcasts, and music, and even talk to myself when I’m out there{Don’t laugh}. I actually used to run many years ago and found out walking is actually much better for you, so I stuck with that. But now knowing what I know, I make walking a priority and honestly it truly makes me happy. Another thing I’ve been doing which I’ve always kind of done was working out. Working out is a must for me I mean I like to say I hate it- but for the way it makes me feel afterward; I’m truly happier.

Another thing I do in the mornings to start my day is I move slowly, everyone knows to leave me alone not too much talking, or asking me questions, just give me the time I need to have my tea drink my warm water with lemon and relax which takes a good 30 minutes. I swear guys, just moving a bit slower is a great start to the day; and I find myself overall happier. Eating my favorite meals really boosts my mood too because mi love nyam and I try to eat my favorite things at least three times a week or more. That includes jerk chicken on the grill, salmon, curry chicken, and my famous breakfast salad which I literally just had. Also when my pantry is stocked with a variety of teas-omg I’m in heaven lol, so figure out what it is that you love the most and make it easily accessible to you.

Dancing is another love of mine, I will put on music which we all know- music is healing and so therapeutic. I will dance and sing and just enjoy my own company and it feels amazing. Hmmm… along side nourishing my body with nutritious food I take vitamins especially Vitamin D which is an instant mood booster. Self care is also up there for me it definitely makes me happy. I try to do my nails and feet and I have a solid skin care routine that I enjoy. A lot of you when asked what are the things that makes you happy did mention self care too as well as journaling, cooking, painting, therapy, reading books, meditating, and having lazy days.

Therapy is next on the list for me as I know it would help tremendously. I did try twice but I did not mesh well with either of them and thought I’ll just get back to it. But I want to have a therapist going into next year for sure. So there you have it. I pretty much summed up all the things that I do to ensure that I’m happy-which then makes me a better mom overall.

Thanks For Reading,

Xo