Mother's Time Alone - Good for the Family

*Guest Post written by Janice

I absolutely adore my children. With that being said, I also enjoy personal time to myself. If because of the busyness of life, I skip my alone time, I can feel the negative effects in my mind, heart and spirit. There is something within me that yearns for the space and place to be solitary and do as I please, whether that is just time to reflect and meditate, take a bath or go for a run in the woods. The activity doesn’t matter so much as does the habit itself. I need this time, and as I grow more and more into my role as mother and wife, I realize how much I benefit from the act of being alone for a moment each day.

Treat Your Mind and Body like a Ferrari

“Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”  ~ World Health Organization (1948)

Sometimes we spend so much time focusing on our mental stresses, or on trying to exercise, we forget that our body operates best when we allow each area of our life to function together. And sometimes this means making simple changes in other areas of our life so that we can focus on the place that needs most attention.

For example, you may have a deadline at work, or you might be learning a new position and feel the stress of either situation in your mind. You come home drained from all that intense focus and effort. But instead of collapsing on the couch and flicking on the TV, your mind and body might recharge more efficiently if you take a few minutes to create a simple healthy snack (or meal) and drink a big glass of water.

When we stress our brain, we stress our body. Our brain, after all, is intricately connected to all functions of our body. Too much junk food or a lack of any food at all, and not enough clean eating will cause our bodies will rebel. Do you ever feel lethargic, develop sudden skin problems or get sick more often than you think you should? It may not just be the stress at work. It could be your eating habits.

Some of us treat our minds like a finely tuned Ferrari, but turn around and treat our bodies like a junkyard truck. It is time to treat your whole self – body, mind and soul – like the beautiful instrument it is.

Take small steps to start to tune your body, and your mind and soul will function incrementally and noticeably better.

The Intention to Connect

Today I have the great pleasure of being the host on Day 8 of the Virtual Book Tour for the E-Book Parenting Responsively for Connection. (To order, visit http://heartwiseparent.com/responsive-parenting-e-book/), written by ACPI Parenting Coaches for parents to deal with the most difficult task of maintaining connection with the growing child whose behavior changes and shifts.

Yesterday, the book tour focused on Influencing Character Through Connection at the site: http://parentcoachsedef.blogspot.com with Sedef Örsel Özcelik. Visit now if you haven’t had the opportunity to meet all the authors. 

Today, enjoy this book excerpt below on one of my favorite topics: Intention.

Setting the Intention to Connect

©  2011 by Sherri Boles-Rogers

            Most of us would agree that at one point or another, we all yearn to be better connected to our children.  Perhaps this is because deep down we understand that a strong parent-child bond will help us weather the many storms we will encounter on our parenting journey.  Just as our children's mind and body need to be nurtured, so does our connection. But do we truly understand how to nurture it?