My hubby always used to say, “You do you, I’ll do me”, telling me to basically worry about myself and he will worry about himself. This was earlier on in our relationship, way before marriage and and children were even a thought in our minds but it still applies at times. We do have to worry about and take care of ourselves first, in order to be the best we can be so in turn we can take care of others (significant others, children, clients, etc).
So why am I on this tangent today? WELL, the other day on our Facebook page I asked about whether or not your spouse understands the importance of keeping your child on a schedule. Most of you said yes, some said no, and others said yes but family and friends do not understand. That’s what brought me to this topic today: Worrying about Yourself!
How many of you are tired of being judged by family? By friends? By strangers in public? I am going to tell you something POWERFUL today that is going to release you from even CARING about the thoughts of others…are you ready??
YOU DO YOU!
Yes, it’s THAT simple! Just as my hubby used to always say (and occasionally still does!)…worry about yourself and I will worry about myself. So what does this look like in your life? This looks like it’s time to tell people to keep their unwanted (and unsolicited) advice on your child’s strict schedule to themselves! If your kid has a strict schedule they need to follow and it makes YOUR life easier to stick to it (because you know YOU will have to deal with the consequences if you intentionally decide not to follow it) then you owe it to yourself to be kinder to YOU then you are to a family member or a stranger who doesn’t have the slightest clue what YOU have to deal with when your child is “off their schedule”.
It’s not easy, but when you are the parent in charge of your child (not that relative or stranger) just remember that no one else’s thoughts on your child’s strict schedule matter when you and your child are back at home and you have to deal with the happy or not so happy consequences of the choice YOU made. So make sure whatever choice you make is YOURS. Own it! Don’t let others persuade you otherwise. And certainly do not allow yourself to feel any guilt over it!
If this is something that is hard for you, just start one day at a time. The next time you have to choose to keep your child on schedule or not…and YOU prefer to keep them on the schedule, I challenge you to follow YOUR desires and YOUR decisions, not the words of someone else.
To leave you on a lighter note today, did you see the video that was circulating facebook of the little girl buckling herself into her carseat that told her father “worry ’bout youself!” when he asked if she needed help? See, we can all learn a thing or two from children 😉 They sure are the greatest teachers, huh?