Selfless To Selfish: Using Your Newfound Time
There is a time on the horizon for every mom which often comes with dread. The day your children leave home is often very emotional, signaling the end of a long era, and one which you will have enjoyed a lot. Of course, while this may feel a little sad in the moment, the next few months are going to ones of self-discovery. With your newfound time, you will have the chance to do things which haven’t done for years, opening the doors to a richer life. To help you in securing this dream for yourself, this post will be exploring some of the common areas which people will work on when figuring out how to better use their time.
Education
It is easy to put your life on hold when you decide to have children. Of course, the time you spend raising them isn’t wasted, but it also can’t be used in the pursuit of bettering yourself. Instead, a lot of moms have to wait until the end of the time as a full time parent to be able to focus on their own education. Having been helping your kids for the last few years, you will be in a good position to pick up where you left off with your own studies. While this may not give you a new job or a career to build from, it will still give you a way to enrich your life.
Hobbies And Interests
A lot of people spent their teenage years fighting to get out of school as fast as possible, and it makes sense that some might not want to go back there. Instead, as an alternative to the learning approach, you could focus some time into something you love. Most people have hobbies as they grow up, or at least are interesting in picking one up. A lot of the skills you have to learn for pastimes like knitting, engineering, and gaming will all take some time. Of course, though, you have time now, and giving yourself something to enjoy is a great way to use it.
Giving Something Back
Throughout your life, there will have been loads of chances to give something back which your kids would have made hard to take. Spending weekends volunteering, donating money, and investing time into causes which don’t involve your children is hard when resources are limited. Your new time gives you the chance to embrace your compassionate side, and there are more options than ever to enable those due to retire to get involved. Of course, giving money away is satisfying, but you will feel like you’re making a much bigger difference if you do something hands on.
Something Social
When you look back on your social life before having children, there will probably be quite a few people which haven’t been part of your daily interactions for a very long time. As your children leave home, the kids of your friends will be doing the same thing, giving everyone a surplus of time which can be used together. Using tools like Facebook, it’s possible to connect with anyone from your past, as long as they have an account. Alternatively, there are services out there which can connect old friends, though these will often cost some money.
A Chance To Pamper
It’s likely that you’ve dropped the ball when it comes to your beauty regime since you had your first child. Without the time to go here or there, a lot of moms find it hard to keep up with hair cuts, treatments, and the other elements which make for your favourite version of you. With the time you now have, you can afford to spend more time in the bathroom than ever. The school run won’t be pressing on you, and you won’t be making breakfast for an entire family. This is another area which can be made into something social with the right kind of effort.
There comes a time in the life of every parent when they have to say goodbye to their children. Of course, these are not your final goodbyes, and they will always be a huge part of your life. As they start to form their own family, though, you have a lot to take advantage of. It’s unlikely that you’ve had a chance to be truly selfish for a long time. While it may seem like something small, having this opportunity can give you a fresh outlook on life, making it easier to adjust to the change.
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