The past three weeks have been a whirlwind of activities. I am certain I am not alone. Parents in most of the United States, (I write this as I have many people visiting this site from across the globe), are in a frenzy with end of the school year activities. I was no exception. The past three weeks have been filled with celebrating birthdays in our family, going on stage for Listen to Your Mother-Providence Show, camping for Girl Scouts, Talent Shows, being a guest on a radio show (podcast to follow), hosting my mother for who lives out-of-town for a week visit, a couple of gatherings with friends, and taking care of and spending time with my children, husband and of course work. So, I took a break from posting.

I was practicing self-care. The pace of the past few weeks has been so hectic, I found myself needing as much sleep as I could get, which meant going to bed at a reasonable time instead of staying up later than would be helpful. I also scaled back on early morning writing and exercising. I did not eliminate exercise or writing; instead I prioritized sleep, rest, and listened to what I needed instead of letting the guilt of the “I should be doing something else” creep into my mind. When I did exercise, I made sure to practice yoga and found myself meditating more often paired with gratitude exercises that helped me to manage and decrease stress.

The break served me well as I am more rested and ready to head into the final busy and demanding weeks with my children, school activities and work. This week, I will be sharing a two-part post on parenting: Understanding Sibling Bullying and Helping Your Child Resolve Conflict.

I would also love to hear from you! If there are topics or areas of interest you would like to see addressed, please contact me here. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and ideas!

If you are like me and in the midst of the demands and stresses of life, you may want to read information on self-care,  here and here.

© Copyright Dr. Claire Nicogossian 2014