If you are just joining us for the Frumps to Pumps Challenge, read the opening post here.
This week’s challenge focused on knowing why you get ready. I know that may sound silly but it makes all the difference. For a long time I didn’t bother. You want to know my logic? No one sees me but the kids. My husband says he doesn’t mind. (Thought I’m not sure if I fully believe him). I have nowhere to be. No one cares how I look.
Can you see the mental downward spiral into self deprecation and depression? We all have a reason why we should get ready in the morning. It won’t be the same for each of us. I get ready because I want to set an example for my kids. For months my daughter would barely ever get out of her pajamas, and I realized I wasn’t setting the best standard for her. I noticed that she was a happier more active child when she didn’t just wear pajamas all day. The same goes for me. I wanted to be a happier and better mom. For me, part of that entails getting dressed. I also do it because it makes me feel good to know that I look good. I can be more spontaneous because I don’t need a 20 minute warning so I can quick get ready.
My husband is another factor. I love this man with all my heart and he has seen me through many difficult times. He deserves to come home to a wife who looks like she is happy with her life. I can’t keep the chaos at bay very long in our house. I can’t stop the kids from making messes, always get dinner ready on time or make sure the cute outfit I put on doesn’t get smeared with something while cooking (though I’m beginning to embrace aprons and realize why they wear a staple wardrobe item of women in previous generations). But I can show him that I’m making an effort. If he came home to find me in the same clothes I wore to bed, glassy eyed on the couch cuddled up with my laptop and headphones while the children ran around in circles, that makes it look like I don’t value or enjoy my life. I’m not talking about the occasional bad day, I’m saying an everyday pattern of low self-care and low interest in my daily life.
I don’t always love my stay-at-home mom life, but I’m grateful for it. I don’t relish every moment with my children, but I realize how blessed I am to be able to stay home with them. Dressing myself is my way of saying, yes, this is the life I’ve chosen, not the life I got stuck with. I’m choosing to make the best of the difficult days and try to provide a ray of sunshine, just by taking a few minutes each morning to focus on myself. That is why I get dressed.
Inspirations I’ve imbibed
Know your why. This is a hard one for me some days, especially when I don’t want to get out of bed and face another day of dishes, laundry and screaming kids. But ultimately, I know that I am here for a reason. I am the best mom for them. Why kind of mom do I want to be? I know that I feel better about myself when I get dressed, I am happier and more positive. This in turn makes me a more patient and joyful mom. So, in part I get dressed for my kids. But I also get dressed because I like to feel good. When I feel good I am more energetic and efficient. I like getting to check all those items off my to-do list and feeling like I really made some kind of progress in my day. I know that is unlikely to happen if I don’t get dressed. I’m also getting dressed as a way of honoring the God who made my body. He has great works for me to accomplish, even if it seems like I’m just a mom. How can I be available to him if I’m not dressed and ready?
Challenges I’ve pursued:
Getting dressed everyday. Morning exercise helps with this. After a run, I’m so gross that a shower and change of clothes aren’t really optional, so it’s not much work to pick real clothes instead of glorified pj’s.
Suggested additional challenges: The book suggests writing down your “Why I Get Dressed” and put it someplace you will see it as you get ready. This may be as simple as a post-it or index card on your bathroom mirror. But if you want to get crafty with it, go ahead, Pintrist away. Make a collage, create a graphic image, frame a favorite photo and write on the glass. Anything that helps. Just don’t let your excitement distract you from getting dressed.
So how have you done with this challenge so far? Are you getting dressed everyday? When you don’t, what are the obstacles that keep it from happening?
Next – Frumps to Pumps: Dress Differently, Act Differently
Catch Up Here:
“Dressing myself is my way of saying, yes, this is the life I’ve chosen, not the life I got stuck with.” I love that! It’s a perfect Motto to Frumps to Pumps. 🙂
Thanks, though it’s easier to say than to always do. I’m surrounded by a culture where my choice to stay home with my children is often undervalued or distained. Thanks for reminding me via my own words how important respecting my position in life is.