7 Personal Routines to Help a Momma Feel Human
I was recently asked by some of my viewers on YouTube to share my personal daily routines. Particularly, one viewer asked the question, “When do you have the time to get your hair done and get yourself ready? Have you done a video about your personal routines?”
On my JamerrillStewart.TV YouTube channel I have a heart to encourage moms in motherhood, homeschooling, and family life. While my personal routines are just that, they’re habits I’ve developed over time that work for me, I thought that some of you might like to know just how I get a few things accomplished around here and attempt to feel human most days.
“Feeling human” is nice. Don’t you agree? 😉
Be sure to watch the full video of 7 Personal Routines to Help a Momma Feel Human on YouTube. Go ahead and subscribe to my channel while you’re at it. This tells YouTube that you think what I’m saying is important and should be heard by others. I appreciate it!
7 Personal Routines to Help a Momma Feel Human
- Get fully dressed every day. What I mean when I refer to “getting fully dressed” is to put on a matching outfit including jewelry, doing my hair and make up, and yes even brushing my teeth! Or am I the only mom who has had days in which I realize by afternoon I’ve never stopped long enough to brush my teeth? Maybe it’s only me. I have to get dressed first thing. Otherwise it realistically may not happen.
- Have Jesus time. I mentioned my schedule swings in my YouTube video, and I also mentioned them in my article about my work-at-home mom schedule. If I’m in a week in which I’m getting up early (early being 4 AM-ish) this means I have ample “quiet time” to get myself dressed and then move on to having my “Jesus time” as I call it.
This time can look different for me on different days. For the most part it means that I’m reading chapters in my Bible and journaling my thoughts and prayers. In the video I also share about how to get back into Bible reading if it’s a habit that you’ve gotten out of. At almost 36 years old I can say that I find myself at various times getting out of this excellent habit. In the video I share how I get back on track when I fall off course.
- Have a hobby. For me, I consider my journey using Trim Healthy Mama as my hobby. Daily following the Trim Healthy Mama program, reading over a small section of the book again as I’m able, and keeping my handwritten Trim Healthy Mama journal on my kitchen counter is a routine for me that I also consider a fun hobby. I mentioned in the video about my crafty mom friends who keep knitting nearby. Just having a project or interest available can be helpful. A few minutes here and there can really add up!
- Drink at least eight glasses of water a day. During different seasons I have found myself in the middle of the day feeling rotten, talking snappy, and being an overall crabby and impatient Momma. Then I realize all the fluid I’ve put in my system for the day is coffee, tea, or Diet Coke. Since starting Trim Healthy Mama last year I have slowly become diligent about getting in at least 8 cups of water a day.
My ultimate goal is to hit 16 cups a day (a full gallon), but I usually come in somewhere between the 8 and 16 mark. I mentioned in the video I feel more balanced when I’m getting the proper amount of water. My own quick Google search bounced back these water-related facts which sound pretty close to accurate, “The human body is more than 60 percent water. Blood is 92 percent water, the brain and muscles are 75 percent water, and bones are about 22 percent water.* A human can survive for a month or more without eating food, but only a week or so without drinking water.“
- Bible verse memorization. I try to have a verse that I’m clinging to and working through. Really, this is another routine that I do that is so simple, yet powerful. It’s just the act of having a Bible verse that I am on-purpose learning. And going way beyond actually memorizing the words is the act of meditating (thinking on) the powerful words throughout the day.
Many, many years ago during a particularly dark time, the Lord led me to Exodus 14:14. Sometimes I’ll stay on the same verse for weeks, months, or in the case of Exodus 14:14, years. Just this fall I was struck profoundly with Psalm 46:1. As I mentioned in the video, I even do silly things like writing the verse with a sharpie marker on the top of my hand. Whatever it takes to keep God’s Word in the forefront of my mind!
- Just go to bed. It’s true for me and it’s true for you. I have to go to bed at night. A few years ago when I first built Free Homeschool Deals I would have marathon days and nights when getting six hours of sleep was a luxury. I’ve learned though, whether it’s business or family life, there will always be more to do.
At some point you just have to stop. Putting business and blogs aside, I’m completely human and admit that I’ve had more than my fair share of occasions of getting sucked into being on social media late at night and looking up and realizing next thing that it’s 1 AM or even later. We can’t do that to ourselves. You and I both have to go to bed so we can wake up and be rested for our families the next day. It’s a gift to them and us.
- Get thyself to a white board immediately. I love my medium-sized kitchen white board. Believe me friends, it’s nothing fancy. Just a whiteboard I picked up for homeschool for about $15 almost that many years ago. In the morning, at some point after I’m dressed and ready for the day and I’ve had my Jesus time, I stand for a few minutes at the whiteboard thinking over our day and writing out tasks and goals for myself and for the children.
I may be giving you the impression that I’m a micro-manager, but I’m really not. I write out our day in 1 to 3 hour time blocks and write the task I would like to get accomplished during that time. It’s a very simple and light scheduled routine for me to manage the household. And as I say in the video, even if I only accomplish three quarters or even half of what is on my whiteboard, I am still victorious. There are reality days where what’s written on my board hardly gets a glance, but more often than not, tasks throughout the day are crossed off and we move forward.
Family management with a cheap white board–what I wrote when I originally shared the above photo on Instagram, “A good old dry erase board is not fancy by any means but certainly a lifesaver in my homeschool & real life world! Each morning I write out a plan for our day based on that day’s specific needs. Like this afternoon my husband and I have to take time to plan out our family budget for the month of February.”
In Conclusion
So friends, these are 7 personal routines that I have intertwined within my day. Getting ready first thing in the morning, having my Jesus time, incorporating a hobby lightly (in the video I mention keeping knitting handy for my crafty friends, or a book to read a chapter of as you’re able), drinking enough water, making sure I go to bed so I can get a solid 7-8 hours sleep, always having a running Bible verse in my head, and planning out our daily task goals on the white board each morning.
Need more encouragement? Hope for the Heart of the Homeschool Mom: Encouragement for the Days When Sanity is Limited
I hope my sharing encouraged you! Please don’t let anything I’ve shared weigh on you. If you feel something I’ve mentioned is a good idea then by all means give it a try. If something feels heavy, like a burden to you, then leave it be. It may not be a good fit for you and the season that you’re currently in.
This article and video was created in response to a question I received on YouTube. Please let me know two things in the comments of either this article or the video: Let me know #1 what some of your daily habits are that work well, and #2 what you would like to see additional videos about. I’m creating this content to encourage you, so let me know what you need!
