Little Sleep Clears Things Up! 2 Fascinating Thoughts

Good, quality sleep is hard to come by these days this late in my pregnancy.  It’s been weeks, many weeks, since I have had a good stretch of shut-eye or downtime.  This lack of sleep combined with my primary requirement to take care of my toddler has forced me to shift my day and schedule around.  Some of which is disappointing to me and while others I am more forgiving in its change.  Below are a two things I find fascinating about this transition.

My schedule may have changed but my priorities have remained consistent. 

At the beginning of the year, I did some work to really understand what it was that I wanted in the next year out of my life.  What was it that I dream of each day?  What are those nagging visions in my head, if only I could make it better?  For me they included living healthy, living with financial understanding and comfort (something I am clueless about), living by giving back and inspiring women, and living with gratitude and inspiration.  In this list, there are challenges, places where a lot of learning needs to happen, and places where I simply dream of something nicer.  To me, my well-balanced priority list takes a lot of work yet in my sleep-deprived-just-enough-energy-to-get-by world, I still tackle each item nearly every single day.  Is it hours upon hours of work? Not necessarily, but I do something

.

Being easy on myself is far better than not.

I absolutely think that people are simply too hard on themselves, especially women.  I run into it all the time and I am constantly re-assuring people that their efforts and thoughts are not only enough but strong enough.  Thing is while I talk a good game, I have my own inner struggles of what I wish I could do better, easier, stronger.  I think it’s also human nature if not a part of our culture (to think this way).  One of my girlfriends always ends our conversation with “be easy on yourself”.  While most of the time I want to “yeah yeah” her, I am disappointed in my “shift in my schedule”.  Yet, I have to know “it is for the greater good”, “what’s important will prevail” and “that life will take you off course”.  I have taken the attitude of “do what I can”, “don’t sweat the small stuff”.  (How many little life quotes can I throw in here?? Ha!) Point is: being easy on yourself and allowing yourself to work with the schedule and commitments that are reasonable to your situation is not only more than okay but also makes for a nicer day.  What am I accomplishing by doing so otherwise?

These are two things I have been thinking about. It’s fascinating to me how:

• What’s important stays important and

• How little good comes from being too hard on yourself but great things come from being nice to yourself.  

Have a great weekend!

XOXO,
Ashleigh

**image from pinterest