Mommy Talk – Cure Post-Holiday Blues

It hit me about 9 a.m. yesterday morning – Christmas is over. All the wind up, the preparation, the crazies (which I could have totally lived without) and sugar rushes are now just a memory and, whew – I feel a little low.

While we kept it all pretty darn modest this year – no big ticket purchases, mostly handmade, we even talked Ken’s mom into skipping the turkey and gifting us with perogi Christmas dinner (who needs the other stuff when you have homemade perogi?), it was full of fun.

And, as usual, I start to move into the “what do I do with myself now?” phase of the year – which usually results in demands for a trip toward sunshine some time around mid-February:)

I have to admit that, as I was cruising Facebook and trading notes with my cousin on the other side of the continent, I’m relieved to hear that I’m not the only one coping with a bit of the post-holiday blues.

There are some bonuses to having Christmas fever leave the building as my brain can now delete all of the seasonal lists taking up far too much space and get back to the business of processing things like work, schedules and speaking in complete sentences that don’t end in falalalala.

I’ve already frozen all of the baked goods and chocolate that didn’t get devoured at Christmas dinner in an attempt to re-regulate all of our blood sugar and not have the midwife gasp when I get on the scale at our next visit.

And, I find myself planning ahead again – a big fan of forward thinking, I am. Short term isn’t very satisfying unless it involves the aforementioned chocolate.

November, January and February are my annual “Months of the Blah.” I plan for bitchiness. Ken hides in his cave until March.

So, I’m also plotting a few new techniques to reroute my overly-programmed brain like:

- leaving the twinkle lights up on the mantle until February. There’s something sweet a lovely about that extra sparkly glow and taking them down is a sad moment for me. They’re LED, and Im justifying it by not using any other living room lights.:)

- Trading the comfort foods that make me a sleepy slug (oh how I love you potatoes) for some fun experimenting with gourmet salad and soup options. I really love fresh veggies, and I know if I cut the heavy carbs my mood tends to be a bit lighter too. This is NOT A DIET. This is a kitchen adventure.

- Daily walks with friends. I have been a troll the last couple of months. it’s time to lighten the loneliness and see all of those folks the tiny person and I love so much for some fresh air.

- Getting my art groove on. There are some days when I just can’t mentally or physically leave the house. We are definitely going to start trying out some new (and familiar) Waldorf-inspired art projects that have a bit of an ethereal vibe to brighten and lighten dark days. Anyone want in? Rosina, Jane, Carol, Kyla, and others, I am so ready for this one.

- Daily power naps. I know, you all are like “who gets a nap every day?” That, my friends, is why the universe invented television.:) I am so much nicer after a brief afternoon snooze. My pal Vashti is right though, keeping it to about 20 minutes is key to not waking up grumpy (or to a house that has been destroyed).

- A hefty dose of girl movies. Seriously, Ken gets his hockey nights, I get my chick flick nights. Bust out You’ve Got Mail and Grosse Pointe Blank. Make a b-line for the video store for nothing more substantial than Something About Mary or The Wedding Crashers. Maybe even get totally bold and rent Chocolate and The English Patient (or my fave, Out of Africa) in one sitting. Pair it with popcorn and a beverage and you can cure anything:)

- Planning ahead for our Spring garden. Window gardening seems like the perfect cure to Winter blah blahs. We’ll see how it goes. Last year’s experiment wasn’t pretty:)

Anyway, I hope you all are enjoying your holidays.

If you have any post-holiday blues survival tips, please share. I have the second book in the Twilight series (the most obvious cure for all that ails you) for a random commenter.:)

Tags: blues, children, depression, health, holiday, mom, parenting, tips, wellness, Winter, women

Category: The Doctor Is In, THINK GREEN, Your Healthy Nature