Say YES Challenge

Yesterday I challenged myself to SAY YES to everything my kids requested and be present for them.
It was interesting... 
I never let on to what I was doing (and they never suspected what was happening) because it could have gone very poorly. But I did what I challenged myself to do- say YES.
And here is what I discovered:
I thought it was easier to say “no”, thinking about there ness I would have to clean up or the arguments (and whining) that would ensue when it came time to do XYZ. I thought it would be easier to redirect and play something else, it’s cold outside!
What I discovered is I 👈🏻 ME👈🏻 who wanted to not participate, to not get cold, to not clean up because I am so tired.

Tired of no sleep.
Tired of cleaning.
Tired of arguing.
Tired of whining.
Tired. Of. Everything.

By saying “no” I was creating arguments. I was creating stress. I was turning fun games into a hectic mess. I was turning cuddles into “I have to get this done”. Their excitement was costing me so much energy- and I realized, it was ME creating my own MOM GUILT. You know at the end of the night when you feel so bad for not taking that moment to cuddle, or read the book or even just paint a picture (insert ANY messy project here), because you were trying to do “get stuff done” and now you feel awful. The Mom Guilt and it’s my fault.
“Don’t feel guilty, let that MOM GUILT GO. “ Yup, uh huh... because that is so easy to do, right? This isn’t the type of Mom Guilt you might feel because you are taking a moment to yourself or because you have to go to work or even a trip away that you desperately need. This is the Mom Guilt of saying NO when really, we should be saying yes- and we know it.

Read the book.
Play the game.
Paint the picture, hell- even play with slime!
Cuddle.

Yesterday I said YES, I was present and it was a great day and I will keep saying yes because I want to be happy.