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Spring View, photograph by Lydia ShermanIt is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23
As a homemaker, it is interesting to me that the mess I left the night before because it was too overwhelming and I was tired, is so simple to fix the next morning! We need not be discouraged. Even problems that seem to overwhelm the mind, are a little less threatening when morning comes. The house is easier cleaned in the morning, and quicker, too. The daunting projects that made you sigh in exasperation the night before, are simpler.
I remember growing up how we would have to take naps, even when we thought we were too old. When we woke up, life seemed new, better, simple.
"There is no day so bad that it cannot be fixed by taking a nap." Susan Branch.
23 comments:
Thank you for this little reminder Lady Lydia!
We had a friend who used to always say, "Sometimes the most spiritual thing a woman can do is to get a good night's sleep".
It offended me a little at first but that was back when I was offended by the thought that sometimes I am influenced by my hormones!
Jill
Judging from old books, sleep was also considered the best beauty treatment and the best health treatment.
Is that a picture of where you live? Maybe this is not exactly mature but I am jealous! The view from my run down apartment building is nothing like that.
but Catherine...you are in Oregon. Even apartments have some views of rivers, lakes, fields, valleys, etc. How can this be possible?
Nowadays it's not considered "productive" to take a nap, even though it really is! This is another area where we can't let the prevailing worldly culture tell us how to live. If I or my toddler or my DH needs a nap, we take one!
Thanks for the lovely photo. It has reminded me to take a nice walk today and enjoy the beautiful blue spring sky!
I've been taking a mini-vacation and reading Grace Livingston Hill's "Aunt Crete's Emancipation" while the kids play outside. Her stories always refresh me and make me feel ready to take back up homemaking when I "hit a wall".
In the story I'm reading, a rich Nephew comes and "rescues" a long lost spinster aunt from her life of daily toil at the hands of other family members who take her for granted.
He has lost his own mom and wants to adopt her as a mom and treat her right! The first thing he does on the first day he visits is send her upstairs for a nap! It is the first nap she can remember taking since she was a child, and she wakes up looking younger and more beautiful right away! :)
Thank you for your website, it is my daily bread (homemaking-wise, of course, after the Bible!)
Julielou
Almost daily my 5 year and I take a nap together, precisely because it helps keep us fresh and rejuvenated - ready to keep going throughout the day!
I feel truly blessed that my 5 year old mostly delights in our nap-times too.
I can see the days that I have not gotten enough rest, greatly influence not only the state of my house, but also my mind-set. I have to work harder on those days to keep a good outlook. :)
It is so true how adequate rest enables us to do that which seemed so impossible with little rest.
Lovely picture, Lady Lydia! I yearn for a country home (that's close to the city! lol) with a view like that. It's beautiful.
I love that quote by Susan Branch...it's so true!
Brenda
I nap almost every day..I have to due to my fibromyalgia. Some things you cannot control. I am a much better wife when I have had my nap, that is for sure.
Deby
I had that very thing happen last night. I have had an extremely busy week and by last night, I was too tired to do the dishes. Even though they had been rinsed, the stack looked like it would take hours.
When I got up this morning, I put them in hot and soapy water while I had a cup of coffee. I had them washed in no time at all. What seemed enormous at night was so simple in the light of day.
Last week was one of the few times I work outside the home (only at the beginning and end of semesters at the bookstore when they are busy). Monday morning I wanted to walk around the house and hug it, I was so happy to be at home in my world again!
This post is so incredible and so true! Just last night my daughter and I got home late to a crockpot full of sticky BBQ chicken and a few little messy dishes. It seemed like a mountain! When I got up this morning it took me less than 5 minutes to get everything cleaned up. I have always told my daughter when one is having a day that just doesn't want to come right, "Sometimes you just have to go to bed."
I needed this post. With a baby and a 2 year old it seems like the late afternoon until bedtime is just the worst part of the day usually leading up to a not very sweet sleep.
This was a nice reminder that sometimes I need to send me to bed too.
Also, I think I am just attempting way to much in this season of my life and it is not profiting me at all. I have a teething baby and a rebellious 2 year old (she is a very good girl, she just thinks she knows better than Mommy sometimes and yes, I am training her...which is exhausting)Cranky Mommy means miserable kids and Daddy wants to run.
I will have to rethink things tomorrow ...after a good rest :)
Lady Lydia, please write a book on surviving early Motherhood!
Many Blessings :)
Ace
Ace, it wouldn't be much of a book. It would say simplify your life so you can concentrate on the needs of the children and keep them safe. Do not worry about getting a lot of sewing or decorating done, and keep your house free of clutter, so you don't have to be keeping house all the time. Cut down on the amount of clothing you have to launder. Eat simply. Relax. Have nice movies that relax you or read aloud to your children. Keep them clean and safe. Diaper rashes are often cleared up after a bath. Don't feed them junk food. Train them consistently.
That is why I like to have the dishwasher ready.
Thank you for the reminder that it's okay to take a nap. Also that when you are a homekeeper the "job" is always there and a nap will help get it done. :)
When I had health issues that medical doctors couldn't seem to diagnose or fix, I finally went to a naturopath.
His first rule of regaining health was to go to bed as early as I could each evening because he believed the hours of sleep taken before midnight were the most restorative. 2nd rule was to take a nap every afternoon. 3rd rule was to eat food in its natural state. 4th was to drink more water. SO SIMPLE!
I had to totally rethink my life schedule and couldn't see how going to bed early would help since I rarely managed to sleep at night as it was. It seemed to me I'd just start my insomnia earlier each evening. SURPRISE! I learned that my body liked to fall asleep at 9 in the evening and then I seemed able to stay asleep better. I woke up early in the morning ~ sometimes very early! And I rediscovered what it can mean to the person who feels overwhelmed in their home to make an early start on the housework! My health came back under control and so did my out of control schedule and home!
The naps felt a luxury, but I could see that I needed them since I was waking so early. I learned a trick of making up my bed so it was pretty as soon as I could in the morning and my nap was taken on top of the pretty made up bed. I'd lay down a blanket or sheet and slip under a really soft blanket and then just think about how GOOD it felt to cuddle up in that bed. After a quick restorative nap, I could wisk the blanket and sheet away and tidy the pillows and there was that pretty bed again in less than a minute!
It made a HUGE difference for me. And here I am again feeling ill and my home is not as healthy as it should be either. I just realized I have spent a couple of weeks trying to rework my schedule so it works better and so that I could fit in writing. I totally missed the mark with the decisions I made for our daily schedule here.
I've gotten off track lately and my health and my home are suffering. I am not doing this wonderful health treatment at this time. Thank you for reminding me! Early to Bed, Early to Rise, (a Luxurious Nap in the Afternoon) makes a gal Healthy, Wealthy and Wise. I'm going to sit down with the children and rework this schedule "again."
Sometimes the best solutions are the ones that are most simple, but because they seem too "plain and simple" they are often overlooked.
Thank you for a healthy and timely reminder to set my schedule in order again :)
Kimberline
I put this into practice yesterday. We came home after a long day of errands which ended with grocery shopping. I put away all the cold stuff and we all laid down. When I got up 1 hour later I could easily put away the rest of the groceries.
We all take at least 1 hour out here everyday!
Those are just a few of the many reasons why I love my job. Who could have guessed that God knew the perfect job for me.
Thanks for the reminder that it is okay to go to bed with dishes in the sink on occassion. I usually feel so guilty and feel like such a failure when I let my dishes go until the morning. I really hate it when I get up to a mess in the kitchen first thing, so I try and do the dishes before bed. Sometimes that means doing them after I put my girls to bed. But it is true, they will always be there the next day. : ) Thanks for the encouragement! Deborah
This is a wonderful post and I also like the advice about how to survive motherhood when the kids are little. I have little children, and I often find myself being so hard on myself that my house isn't decorated nicely enough yet, or my meals aren't fancy or we don't have people over enough. Best to keep things simple at this stage!
~ Ann
I thought I was the only one who left a mess the night before when they were too tired. Good post!!!
I loved your thoughts on life with small children Lady Lydia. It really simplified what is truly important.
I find an afternoon nap such a restorative that one can be enthusiastic about cooking the evening meal,and enjoy greeting the family when they get back home.
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