Before I became a mom, I swore I wouldn’t become a short order cook at dinnertime.

I had memories of my own experience growing up, we simply ate what my mom made for dinner, and I was never consulted as to what that would be.

It’s funny how much we think we know before we have to actually walk the talk!

I still feel strongly about having dinner as a unified family meal, but it didn’t take me long to realize that my desire to include my children’s preferences to some degree in the meals they eat, paired with different actual food needs or restrictions, makes for a daunting challenge.

I needed to find a way to keep myself from literally making a different meal for each person pulling up a chair to the dinner table.

Want to hear what my solution is? Click here to read the rest– I’m at Simple Mom today!

It’s 9:30am and we have already been up and going for 3 hours now.

I have all three kids outside playing and things are going smoothly until…BAM.  I can’t even pinpoint why the shift, but I am just feeling irritable.

The kids are bombarding the next door neighbor as she is trying to go out for a bike ride, my youngest is beginning to fuss for his next feeding, and I’m trying to catch my little girl and carroul her inside as she runs away from me.

And I feel it rise.

You know, the inner volcano bubbling.  I’m losing the buffer zone of patience and calm. It’s at this moment, when that first flickering of overwhelm starts up, I remember–I fed everyone else breakfast but myself.  I’m hungry.

Do you know how quickly a hungry mom becomes a stressed out mom?

If you are me, the answer is fast.  Very. Very. Fast.

I have a loose “checklist” of things I’ve come to identify and understand about myself and how I manage and handle stress.  I also have figured out what works well for me in keeping myself resilient in the face of high stress times.

Restoration techniques that are fast acting, diffuse my inner overwhelm, disarm the stress response and help me keep my composure even in the most intense situations.

Sometimes, like this morning, just being aware that I was shifting into a stress mode, gave me the pause I needed to identify what I could do to set myself back on course.

Sometimes I need a deeper look into what is off because my stress levels seem to be rising way too often or feel way too intense.

Here are a few of my personal check in points.

*I check in with my nutrition ::  have I eaten?, what have I eaten?, what foods might help turn things around right now?

I know specific key foods that help me calm down, become centered and grounded and help me nourish my body.  A healthy body has the reserves to handle stress infinitely more than a nutrient-starved  one.

*I check in with my time management :: am i taking on too much in this moment? am i “checking out” with too many trips to the computer?  do i have a sense of schedule for my day?  am i anxious about a todo list that i’ve assigned myself?

* I check in with my home environment :: is the house cluttered?  have we been inside for too long?  could i shift the mood quickly-put on music, open the windows, go into a different room?

* I check in with my self care maintenance ::  have i given myself alone time lately?  have i gone for a walk in the woods lately?  have i stretched, moved, massaged my body lately?  have i breathed deep calm breaths lately? have my inner thoughts and inner dialogue been negative and corrosive?

* I check in with levity, laughter and joy :: have i laughed much today/lately?  have i spent time in prayer, talking, listening to the Lord?  have i tuned into the wonder of life, of being alive?  have i spent time doing something i love, just for the sake of happiness?  have i read something inspirational?  have i talked with a good friend?  have i had quality, loving time with my husband?

By knowing these things about myself, I have a guide, a way back on track.

By knowing the subtle cues my body and thoughts give off that stress is starting to take over, I can correct them before I blow up.

This is ultimately my goal for our 4 weeks together in my upcoming course, The Stress Cure for Busy Moms.

• To help you get really clear on what is happening to your body, mind and emotions when you are in a stress response (so you can let go of guilt and blame and work with your nature to stay calm).

• To help you identify what supports your body in order to be on top of your game by checking in with solid nutrition and nourishment.

• To help you internalize outer stress less, especially when you are in a high stress situation.

• To help you have tools to shift your body and mind into a calm response in order to counteract the automatic stress response we too often fall into.

Does this sound like something that would make a difference in your life?  Will you join me?

I really. really. hope you do.

Are you stressing out your kids?

I recently took a fantastic course on Scream Free Parenting led by Susan Heid at The Confident Mom.  I can not recommend Susan’s down to earth, balanced and inspiring course on Scream Free Parenting more.  The material is top notch, but so is her seasoned, compassionate and approachable manner.

If you are interested in hearing how I came to see that my stress was effecting my kids and the way I was parenting, hop on over to her site.  I’m guest posting today about whether your stress is stressing out your kids!