What My Trip to the Spa Taught Me About Being a Better Mom
  

What My Trip to the Spa Taught Me About Being a Better Mom

The weather was perfect. It was slightly warmer than room temperature with a gentle breeze. The sky was blue with a few fluffy white clouds in it. My mom and I had just spent some time relaxing in an outdoor hot tub.  Snuggled up in our soft spa robes, we walked out to the beautiful grounds behind the spa and lay on padded, reclined chairs to dry in the sun and enjoy the beautiful view.


I could feel stress leaving my body as I felt permitted to take the time to relax, to take in the beauty in the nature around me and to just "be". We surveyed the scene in front of us and noticed a couple of hammocks blowing in the breeze across the field. We quickly agreed that we wanted to go to them. We walked across the gorgeous gardens and got settled in the hammocks.



Laying there, listening to birds chirping around me and a distant wind chime, and kept warm by my soft robe, I could not imagine feeling more relaxed!

If you've read my post about my visit to the spa, then you might recognize the experience I'm referring to. I wanted to take a moment to share with you some of the reflecting I have done since that experience and what I have learned about motherhood from our trip to the spa.

It's interesting because the whole point of taking a trip to the spa was to escape the pressures of home. For me, that included mothering. If you're a mother then you can understand that need to occasionally get away and recharge. Taking a break from mothering can give you a new burst of energy and renewed motivation to rock that job when you return home!

After I returned home and reflected on my time at the spa, I noticed a thread of similarity that ran through some of my favourite parts of the experience. I loved the delicious, healthy meals that were provided for us. I loved the pampering of a massage and a relaxation and meditation class. I loved how kindly everyone treated us. As I thought about these things, I realized that what I loved most was that I was being taken care of!

After returning home, I joked about how nobody provided me with a gourmet meal when lunch or dinner rolled around. Then I thought about preparing dinner (a task that I just about loathe) and it occurred to me that as a mother, I am the one who "pampers" my family. I'm the one who gets to provide my children and husband with that experience- that feeling of being taken care of.  (I should maybe put a disclaimer here: I do not cook meals every day for my family. I'm happy to have a husband who likes to cook and is better at it than I am!)

But thinking about my experience at the spa made me see some of my "housewife" duties differently. Rather than seeing them as annoying tasks to dread, I was able to see them as opportunities to bless my family.

Maybe this is something that you've already figured out or maybe it sounds really corny. It would have sounded corny to me before something clicked in my mind during the time just following our spa getaway.

Now I'm curious... how do you feel about your chores/tasks/duties at home?  Do you like them or dread them? Do you think much about how they affect the others in your household? I wish we could be sitting across from each other, having this discussion because I'm always interested to hear how others feel!


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10 comments:

  1. Oh Heather, I absolutely love your new take on family life. You are completely right... we do pamper our families and we are so very lucky to have families to pamper.

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    1. Thank you Christine! It's so true and it's good to get that renewed perspective!

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  2. This is so inspiring! I do share this philosophy too: when a person is relaxed, she can enjoy and appreciate what is around her! I am glad you did

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    1. Thank you so much! Just looking back on the memories has a similar effect. I'm so glad we got to do it!

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  3. I am someone who shows my love by my caring actions, so I totally get where you're coming from. Sometimes, I just need a thank you, and I'm good!

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  4. Aww that is so beautiful! Sometimes I do view chores as oh my goodness I hate this and I can't do it but then other times through simple acts we are showing our family and spouse how much we love them through these little actions. I dread it some mornings but for the last twelve years I wake up every morning at six with my husband and make our coffees and his lunch before he goes to work.

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    1. It really makes it easier when you can see it from that perspective!

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  5. Acts of service is also my love language (like Lindsay's), so I can totally understand this too. Sometimes I feel like a drudge doing the house work. Other times, I think about how the little things make a difference for my husband and kids - even if they don't notice that I did it for them. You're so right that as moms, we get the chance to pamper our families. Thanks for sharing this!

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    1. I'm not sure what my love language is- I've had different results on the same test at different times ;) you're welcome & thanks for taking time to comment! :)

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Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment- I love reading them! :)
~Heather Lynne

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