It’s been a little stressful over here in our household for reasons that I will chat more about in Monday’s blog post. But needless to say that the anxiety and stressfulness of the times has definitely lead me to be even a little grumpy at moments. I have even noticed that my patience has not been at its normal levels and I find myself being easily irritated at the little things.
I know that a lot of us go through these periods from time to time. And it is often those around us, including family members and loved ones, who notice our altered mood before we do. Taking time for self care is not only important for our own metal health. But our mood directly impacts those around us, so we owe it to them to do activities and make time to uplift our spirits.
I have started to pay more attention to the little things that put a smile on my face. And slowly, I took note of the small ways that I could lift my mood even if circumstances were not resolved. Today, I thought I would share some of those activities that I have started incorporating that have brought a little joy in my day. I hope you are inspired to start adding a few things in your routine to make you smile!
1. Get Outside
Especially if you live here in Dallas, I feel like we have had a lot of on and off gloomy weather. Weather and lighting highly affect my mood. Our apartment gets very little light. And on especially dark days, I find that I can get down on myself more easily. I figured out if I made some time in my day to get outside and receive some of those golden rays, that I couldn’t help but smile with the feeling of the breeze and sun on my face. I like to take little Oliver on a walk in his little push car. But you can get a run in, walk around a trail, or simply sit on a pool chair and soak it all in!
2. Play Some of Your Old Jams
It’s an obvious choice to play some music to help you feel more happy and excited. But I actually found that if I took it back and played some of my favorite songs from a few years back (specifically when I was studying aboard in Austria) that it brought a completely different smile to my face. I couldn’t help but dance around my room as the memories of those fun times came flooding back. And it has actually become a little ritual in our house now. Oliver has been so into dance parties recently. We play some music on our little speaker or the record player and we have a family dance party! It has us rolling in laughter watching his little dance moves. I can guarantee that I will feel better after watching that little guy dance.
3. Get Dressed or Put on Makeup
There are times when simply putting on a cute outfit, a little mascara, and a lip color can make me feel better. It takes less than five minutes, and it makes all the difference on how we carry ourselves throughout the day. Especially being a fashion blogger, I used to feel like I had to do all or nothing when it came to getting ready in the morning. If I didn’t do “the works” was it really worth getting ready? But since I started working from home, I found myself simplifying my style. Some days I will put on a floral dress, statement earrings, and mascara alone and it will make me feel put together. Or on days that I don’t want to do my hair, I started throwing in a silk hair scarf with a pony tail instead of a messy bun. Sometimes putting in just a little effort feels better than none at all.
4. Explore a New Place in My City
This last way is probably my favorite way to lift my spirits. Although dancing with Oliver is a pretty hard comparison! But I am a busy body. I am not a homebody by nature. This can be a challenge when I work from home a daily basis with little Oliver running around as well. Although it has been a huge blessing to be able to be home with Oliver, there are days when I feel like I just need to get the heck out of the house! I am sure some of my mommas feel me on this! On days like that, I love discovering new little pockets in my city that I haven’t gotten to explore yet. I actually keep a list on my phone of coffee shops I want to go to, restaurants that I want to try, or even places I want us to shoot blog pictures.
What are some of your favorite ways to lift your mood? I also have to add that when I make time for prayer and silence, it can also been that much needed space that I needed to feel uplifted.
Thanks so much for reading today’s post!