We took our kids on an evening walk.

I watched my little girl ride her bike next to her baby brother in his stroller, and I realized how much life has changed since this month last year, how our family has grown.
So much growth, in such a short time.

Motherhood seems to be like that. So much happens in such little time.
All the little things are actually big things. All the moments are strung together and woven in and out to create a tapestry of motherhood and childhood, combining the highs with the lows and the little moments with the monumental ones.

Along with the growth of my children, I’ve also grown to understand that the little ways in which we are able to care for or neglect ourselves in this season of motherhood make a huge impact on us as well. Even the little things make a big difference.

I didn’t realize before motherhood how much the chance to shower would make or break my day. It’s not so much the shower, but the moment to care for myself amidst the hours I invest in caring for the little souls in my home.

A shower, a walk, a bottle of water, a healthy snack, a moment to read or sing, a moment to create; these things all add up in our well being.

Maybe I don’t get to sit at the piano for hours, but maybe the five minutes while my babies are playing happily together will act as an investment to my soul’s well being.

I’ve been trying to replace all the free moments I often waste on scrolling the internet and filling my head with new worries I didn’t even know existed yet, with things that make my heart sing.

Sometimes it’s a mid day root beer float at the kitchen counter. Or turning on my favorite songs in the car. Or wearing my comfiest sweatshirt. Or reading a book instead of holding my phone in my hand.

I’m not in a season where I want to leave my little ones while we go on trips or overnights. I waited so long to hold these sweet babes that I find myself content to hold them close for this short season when they need me so much.

But I am human, and find myself needing breaks from being needed. And so my breaks, while seemingly short and small to the outside world, are really big to my own world.

I know that this season carries so much importance. I hope that one day when my children and I look back at these years, we’ll all remember how we made the little things count. And maybe all those tiny acts of nurturing our bodies and souls will result in the next generation doing the same.

I’m not perfect at this. In fact, I wouldn’t even say I’m good at this yet. I’m prone to over committing myself and then stressing when I can’t keep up with all the things. If I’m being honest, a lot of my burnout comes from things that I’ve signed myself up to do because I’ve historically struggled with saying no to people and setting boundaries with my time. But, I know what’s important to my kids and to myself and I’ve been actively stepping back from things that don’t nourish and nurture us right now, and stepping into the things that do.

I don’t want my kids to feel like my burnout is because of them. I hope instead that when they see me stop for a moment to rest, they see that it’s because their childhood is the light of my life and I want to be fully present for all of it!

Motherhood can easily drain us. Especially when we live in a society that doesn’t actively work to support us in our child raising years. But I’m not ready to surrender the Joy of motherhood to that.

Root beer floats at the kitchen counter and minutes spent creating music or these articles are my tiny acts of resistance towards Mom Burnout.