I don’t think it’s sad to reevaluate your heart and your motives. Well, maybe in that you may realize where you’ve fallen short, and guilt never feels good. This isn’t an easy post. It isn’t some fluff piece for moms, you are absolutely right. And I didn’t want it to be.

Being a Mother and a working one, I get daily breaks from Mothering but crave for “once a year” vacation to be away from City life and its hustle bustle.

I don’t view motherhood (or fatherhood) as a “job.” They are callings. They are moral obligations. They are the purpose and greatest thing we can do with our life. So, I posed the rhetorical question, asking YOU to consider if the time you do take to yourself is selfish or not. I did not say they always are, or that they even often are. I believe your motivation behind them tells you the type of getaway, break, or escape it is. It is to the women who selfishly demand “me time,” who are constantly looking for their next big escape, who loathe their position as a mother, who would rather pass their children off to someone else for a weekend so they can be who they “used to be” again that this piece is really designed for. Women should take breaks and get away sometimes, but maybe so they can recharge their souls, happiness, friendships, and come home refreshed. I am not here to shame anyone. I want to encourage everyone to reevaluate the time, whether 10 minutes before their children are awake in the mornings, or nap times, or evenings after the children are asleep, or a girls night out, or whatever, and see if it is really helping them, their family, or their homes. I believe everyone has room for improvement.

As a SAHM I found your post to be a complete let down. What a way to shame moms by using the word selfish when talking about moms getting some time to be human. Woman/men who work outside the home put in 40 hours a week and no one shames them for running for the exit door come Friday at 5 pm to go frolic about doing whatever they fancy for 48 hours. We don’t call them selfish. Why act like mom’s should reevaluate their priorities or get right with Jesus for needing a break after a 98 hour work week and being on call for another 70 without help. I also don’t feel like quay little time off get should be spent on paying for guidance on how to be better ah what I’m already doing my best at for those 168 hours a week. Maybe SAHMs should do whatever makes them happy during their time of and not be made to feel guilty for wanting a little slice of that time once a week fora few hours

Thanks Elizabeth! THat’s exactly the question – what is motivating our “escapes”?

Church can be seen as work, but I hope you don’t see your quiet, private devotional time with God as work. 😉 And exercise is a great way to recenter our lives. For sure. It allows us to clear our minds, hearts, reflect, and perhaps even offer up some pleas to God. Absolutely.

Yes! Precisely Nina! Thank you for you insight! Moms do need a break and a getaway every now and then. Everyone does. It’s fun and it can recharge you. But, if you constantly feel that way, then, yes, chances are you have some issues to really confront and deal with on the home front. My solution is turning to God to really prioritize and appreciate the craziness of motherhood.