Friday, February 21, 2014

A Mom Rut


I cannot be the only one…who checks them self periodically in order to determine if they have fallen into the dark crevice that is the Mom Rut.  The checks are easy to determine, have I worn these same jeans more than twice this week (check), have I resorted to only sort-of blow drying my hair (check), and when putting on my face (as my grandmother called it) did I only apply mascara (check). 

Outcome: I am in a Mom Rut.

For those of you Mama’s who also find them self in this careless copacetic existence, I offer you the following suggestions that I use when I need to break free of my Mom Rut:

1.     Dig into my closet and pull out something that makes me feel great about myself and wear it out.  Now, I would love to wear a sequined evening gown and stilettos, but dropping junior off at school could be awkward. Although, those skinny jeans and a fabulous blouse or sweater would be perfectly fine for my day-to-day chores of life, and who knows I may garner a couple of compliments, which always inspires me to try harder on my appearance.

2.     Skip eating my love bug’s left over mac n’ cheese or dinosaur nuggets.  After a week or two of refraining from these handfuls of extra calories, I feel more in control, confident, and even possibly a smidgen lighter in my boots, a win-win-win.

3.     Create a quick, but more comprehensive, make up routine. I get it, a full put-on face is a little much at 7:55 AM for the pledge of allegiance, but a neutral eye shadow, clear or lightly tinted lip gloss, and shaped brows make me look more put together when I glance in that rear view mirror to make sure that little mister’s lunch box made it into the car.

4.     Make a plan to hit an early evening out with a girlfriend.  I tend to skip the coffee shop or yoga class, I prefer somewhere with a bit more ambiance, like the bar at the local Mexican or Italian restaurant. Both of these places serve coffee (and drinks, wink-wink) but the people watching is kicked up a notch, which reminds me of my life before “Mama” was my name.

5.     Put myself out there.  When I step outside my comfort zone I tend to care more about how I am presenting myself to others. Joining a writing group or a dinner club give me another reason to slather on that make-up and ditch the jeans with holes in the crotch (there is no guarantee that people aren't seeing those holes, by the way).


These are just a few of the things I do to put my Mama-self back in check every now and again, what do you do to dig yourself out of a Mom Rut?

14 comments:

  1. I know exactly what you are talking about! I usually take my 'mommy time' where my husband stays with the kids on a weekend and i go out into the real world without kids. i will usually just sit at panera with my laptop and people watch or something like that, but it is fun to just be by myself and not have mommy stamped on my forhead :o)

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    1. I find it is so easy to forget who I was before the Sonny Boy stumbled into my life, taking a moment to be me again reminds me of how I used to care about silly things like brushing my teeth and wearing clean clothes.

      Thanks for stopping by!

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  2. Same jeans tow days in a row? No makeup? Man, you are hitting too close to home for me! Come Monday, I am going to try a little harder!!! Why not today? Well, I have to clean out the garage....

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    1. Monday sounds like a great plan to start trying a little harder on my appearance, then again, Tuesday might fit in my schedule a little better. Of course Wednesday....

      Thanks for the comment!

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  3. I play the jeans 2 days in a row as being "green" and saving on water by not washing. I guess the same can be said for pulling my hair back and skipping a day of washing it. Mom rut or environmentally conscientious? Well, since I had to spell check conscientious, probably a mom rut. :)

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    1. Hahaa!

      Marcia you're right, it's not that I don't care about my appearance, it's just I care about the environment even more!

      I can always count on you to put things into the right perspective, thanks!

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  4. This is so true…it's so easy to get in a rut, especially in the winter. I have school-age kids but work from home so it's easy when it's cold and snowy to just never go anywhere! Great perspective.

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    1. Thanks Sarah!

      I also work from home quite often and promised myself I wouldn't drop Sonny Boy off at school in my pj's, but the way I've been dressing lately...the pj's may be an improvement.

      That's when I had the Mom Rut realization!

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  5. I can completely relate! I work full time outside the home and when I'm not working, I have no desire to dress up at all. All winter I've been dressing in hoodies and jeans. I'll probably switch it up in the spring and summer, but not by much. These are some great tips! I have to get out of this mom rut!

    Thanks so much for sharing on Turn It Up Tuesday! We love having you! :)

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    1. Hoodies and jeans sound like my fashion repertoire lately also, but I am trying like you wouldn't believe to bust out of this Mom Rut (well, I guess I could try harder, like simply putting on that lip gloss).

      Thank you for stopping by!

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  6. Hi, Courtney, here from The Brown Girl with Long Hair blog, stopping in by way of Turn It Up Tuesday. Yes, I am in a Mom Rut. Actually, I'm past the rut stage. I liken it to critical condition. (I've got 2 under 3 and I am hanging on by my ratty, unmanicured fingernails. Shopping always gets me through, though. Well, that and sleep...and since sleep is not happening these days, man, I've turned to shopping in full force. Huge bags under my eyes notwithstanding, at least I'll be well-dressed when spring hits. :-/

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    1. Thanks for stopping by Courtney!

      Shopping is a great way to bust out of the rut. Once that old sun decides it's time to share some rays, you'll be ready to be rut-free.

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  7. I love this! I've been in a mom rut now for, oooooooooh, almost 2 years??? Ha!

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    1. Thanks for stopping by and commenting!

      I know what you mean, my Mom Rut is going on year six, my excuse of "I have a baby" is no longer valid!

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