There’s a new buzzword floating around: self-care. We are being inundated with the idea of taking care of ourselves. As a mom, it sometimes feels like one more thing I have to do. I love how so many articles address self-care as something you should do to become a better mom. So wait, is it really self-care I’m only doing it to “be a better mom”? Self-care involves pretty much any outlet: working out, meditation, spa time, more sleep, nights out, vacation with the hubs, etc, etc. But I’m here to tell you, my self-care is Girls’ Weekend. I have no idea if going on a girls’ weekend makes me a better mom but I do it every year, some years more than once! 

There is a perception that after a vacation, you come home refreshed. I always come home from my vacation needing another vacation. Laundry is coming out my ears and everyone is off schedule. Girls’ weekend is no different. I usually come home tired and potentially hung over. I’m easily annoyed with the amount of time it takes for my kids to get their shoes on and GET. IN. THE. CAR. But you know what? I had fun. Girls’ weekend is about eating too much food, sleeping in, then waking up to sit around in our pjs drinking coffee. We get ready, hair AND make-up, without having to turn the TV onto Nick Jr. We talk about EVERYTHING and the only thing that interrupts us is ourselves.

You nervous?

I understand the anxiety of leaving the kiddos and husband at home and the guilt of having fun without them but I also remember how deeply I could breathe because the only person I had to take care of that day was me. I remember saying, “Wow, I didn’t realize how bad I needed this!” and I can count on two hands how many of my friends have said the same thing when the weekend came to an end.

Girls’ weekends are only as involved as you make them. They can be as easy as getting a couple girlfriends together to rent a hotel room downtown for a night.  Or you could head the extra 20 minutes south to Hyatt Lost Pines, a beautiful resort! One time, a friend sent her husband and the kids to the grandparent’s and we binged the Netflix Gilmore Girls reboot and crashed at her place for the night! My gfs and I have spent the weekend in Fredericksburg several times, its always a blast! Cute B&Bs that accommodate any sized group, plus wine tasting with shuttles to and from your B&B, and a fun main street full of shops. The history chicks in the group might enjoy the National Museum of the Pacific War too! It’s a pretty affordable trip and offers lots of different options. This year we have a big group heading to Waco. We’ve rented an adorable house and plan on hanging out with Chip and JoJo! (Or just at their store, same diff.) 

Since I’m Aggie married to a Longhorn, my husband and I don’t often enjoy football games together but I try to get to College Station at least once in the fall to make a game. Friends and I will start planning in July which game to attend and make hotel reservations. It’s usually a whirlwind of a weekend, but it gives me the opportunity to see my college girls. We live all over the state (and even the US!) but we make it a priority to get together every few years. 

Do all these trips make me a better mom?

Or even a better person? I’m not sure but they make me HAPPY. Isn’t that what self-care should really be about? Let’s not dismiss the important one-on-one time Dad is having with the kids too. Notice, not once have I mentioned how lucky I am to have a husband that “lets” me go on a girls’ weekend. I’m lucky he works Monday – Friday so our weekends are open for these opportunities. I’m lucky that we can usually swing it finically. I am not lucky to have a husband who watches our kids when I’m not there. That’s what he is supposed to do. And you know what? Its what he wants to do! Of course, we have a discussion and work out the dates, but it’s not asking permission. I encourage you to have this discussion with your significant other and girlfriends. Carve out some time for yourselves. Invest in some actual “free time” and in your other relationships. It’s not a treat. It’s self-care. 

1 COMMENT

  1. Great article, Caitlin…..wish I had tried that when our boys were little. I did enjoy my “free weekends” when hubby took them on scout campouts.

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