 Just months ago, I was weighing myself almost every day and fretting about how my body had softened over the pandemic. I was particularly critical of my belly, which seemed to expand two sizes over the course of the day to overflow the top of my pants. I'd look at the side view of my body in the mirror, disconcerted. I'd sit on the carpet to play a card game with my kids, but get bothered by how the waistband of my jeans cut uncomfortably into the folds of my belly. [Side note: I'm 5 foot even and, depending on the day, don't quite meet the weight requirement to donate blood. I acknowledge the thin privilege I have even as I write about my discomfort with my own body.] I recently made ONE change that has made all the difference in feeling peace with my body. One change that's meant I no longer weigh myself all the time. What is it? I bought pants that fit. Instead of continually being dismayed that my body felt too big for my pants, I honored my today-body by getting pants that fit it, now.  Not gonna lie, it took a long time. Time to give up the idea that I should be doing something to fit back into my old jeans....time to mourn no longer being the "number" I used to be....and time to try on enough pairs to find some winners! (Fun fact, of the jeans above, I only took home one pair (the 3rd one)....and there are at least a dozen more I tried over multiple weeks that didn't work.) I was encouraged by posts like these from Mindful Closet and Stasia Savasuk's own side-by-side of how different jeans fit her body. Between "Real women have curves" to "body neutrality" to "body positivity" to "fat acceptance" to "intuitive eating" to "health at every size".... it's hard to know how to think about your body. I don't have all the answers but I will encourage you with what I've learned: Get pants that fit your today-body. You will feel so much more at home with yourself. Because brave self care isn't giving in to diet culture and poor self-esteem. To honoring our bodies in their present form, 
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 Gang, it's official. I've become That Mom. I'm as surprised as anyone to be serving as PTSA (Parent Teacher Student Association) President at my son's elementary school this year. (Well, except for Greg, my partner. He 100% saw this coming.) I didn't used to think the PTSA was for people like me, but after joyfully working with other parents and staff last year, I've learned I can show up as myself... A proud Seattle Public Schools alum, 4th generation Japanese American, life coach and thrift store enthusiast.  With this role have come a million thoughts.
And honestly, I've been wondering similar things for a few years now. I took the summer off of PTSA leadership. But I'm tired. Still so tired. What I know now is that I need to rely on self care more than ever to stay in this important work and not burn out. I'll want to notice the warning signs of my Monster Self... Not set myself up for failure... Know I will mess up when talking about race... Invest in friendships that will sustain and hold me through the tiredness. It's time to walk my talk. Click one of the links above to see the kind of self care I'm practicing these days. And hit 'Comment' below if you're ready for personalized help making your own self care plan! As a life coach for moms (and nonbinary parents), I help my clients - whether stay at home moms or working parents - drink their coffee hot, find time for themselves, and feel proud of the person they're becoming.   My heart is racing and I'm starting to feel tension spread across my forehead. It's been a coffee-for-breakfast, late-daycare-drop-off, dental-appointment-then-a-school-meeting kind of day. And coincidentally, a newsletter-writing day. What could I possibly write you in this frenetic state? I'll tell you what I'm needing to hear myself today. Breathe in. Breathe out. A deep breath is a self-care tool that is always available to you. It calms our nervous systems, helps us come back to the present, and returns us to our bodies. Keeping it simple today and I hope you, can, too! To breathing through the stress,  |
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