This past month has been pretty good for the Pizza family. Baby Pizza, who is nearing 21 months old, and Lil’ Pizza, who is 4 years old, are spending longer periods of time playing together as well as independently. I’m also finally feeling more confident, more relaxed and simply more like myself these days with the two girls. I’m sure the changes in the girls as they keep growing and learning has helped me get to this place, but I have intentionally been doing a few small things that I think have also been a benefit to me.

The Scientific 7-Minute Workout

When it comes to working out, I think of every possible excuse to not exercise. My friend told me about the Scientific 7-minute workout and it’s helped me to start exercising again. There have been numerous articles about it including in the New York Times, which was published a few years ago, explaining why and how this exercise works. I know it’s probably not the only form of exercise that I should be doing, but my heart rate goes up, I break a sweat when I really push myself and it being “only  7 minutes” motivates me to do it again and again.

Put on makeup 

Too often I was doing errands hoping I didn’t run into anyone because I was in my sweats only appearing half-awake. I don’t always want to put on makeup, but I realized that I felt more confident leaving the house if I at least put on foundation. A few months ago, I switched my foundation and tried Sulwhasoo ‘Perfecting Cushion’ Foundation Compact and I love the coverage it gives me.  It probably takes me a minute to put on so I don’t know why I didn’t use it for my day-to-day until recently.

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Don’t skip the coffee

In our house, Mr. Pizza is the big coffee drinker but this past year I’ve become more dependent on my morning coffee to get my day going.  Sometimes I try to skip the coffee in the morning but noticeably feel more sluggish and easily irritated.  Last year, Mr. Pizza switched over to using a French press and I’ve really enjoyed the taste.  An electric kettle makes the whole process fairly quick.

Clean up earlier

I used to wait to do the dishes until after the kids went to sleep and Mr. Pizza and I ate and relaxed a bit. But the pile of dishes waiting for one of us to do made it hard to completely relax and enjoy our nights. Now that Baby Pizza and Lil’ Pizza are playing together more, I’m able to get the dishes done before the girls are ready for bed. It feels so much better to not stare at a huge pile of dishes when it’s finally our time without the kids. Throughout the day, I’ve been trying to get the girls to clean up with me so the house doesn’t look disastrous at the end of a long day. Sometimes, I will turn on a 5 minute timer or listen to a few songs to make the clean up time a bit more playful and less of a chore.

Quiet time together

While Baby Pizza takes her afternoon nap, Lil’ Pizza and I have our own quiet time. Lil’ Pizza can be content with reading a stack of books, listening to audiobooks, drawing, coloring or writing (she enjoys copying words from her favorite books). I will use that time to read, go on social media, clean, or cook. I have found that Lil’ Pizza enjoys this time most when we are sitting next to each other doing similar activities, so I try to start this time also reading and writing alongside her.

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I know all these actions are pretty minor, but sometimes it’s all the small things collectively that help makes the difference in our days. And you know, when a mom is happy, the whole family is happy.

What are the “little things” that you do that you enjoy?