Little Bites

I love all the lessons I'm learning as a new mom. One of the most important things is to alter the expectations I have for myself. I used to spend hours on a task until it was complete, but now I need to work around Zoe's needs and there are definitely not hours in between those. So, I'm trying to take things in little bites, breaking my goals into tasks that are further broken down into tiny nibbles that are easily accomplished during naps. So, instead of "clean the dining room," my to-do list says:

• Remove glasses from dining room table
• Polish table
• Polish sideboard
• Vacuum
• Water plants

It gives me more things to cross of the list everyday and definitely makes me feel more accomplished. I'd say this is one of my greatest challenges so far. I've always been so driven that not getting things done has been really hard for me. I like feeling these little successes everytime I cross something off the list.

A fun book I got a few weeks ago, The Rookie Mom's Handbook, advised new moms to create a "Done" list with things like "Changed 8 dirty diapers," "Dressed and re-dressed baby three times," and "Nursed baby four times for 30 minutes each." I haven't done that yet, but seeing it down in writing would definitely help me see how very much I DO in a day. It may not be the tasks and chores on my chore list, but taking care of Zoe is so much more fun and rewarding that cleaning the dining room is anyhow!