When we become parents, we learn everything we need to learn about how to prepare for our children, to keep them safe, how to nurture them, the best developmental programs for them at each stage of their growth, etc. We invest and justify amazing purchases for the perfect strollers, cribs, bouncers and high chairs, and we never blink or feel guilty about providing "the best" for our children. The journey of parenting is far from a straight line. In fact, it can be a daily dose of zig-zags as we learn what really matters and how to truly enjoy the journey and not just make each day a list of to-do's.

I have made time at least once a week for the last fourteen years to be alone with myself because I deserve, need and want some time to be me. I invest in myself by fueling my life with things that I enjoy such as books, working out, "stay-cations," manicures, education, mentorship and more. My story of beginning my motherhood experience understanding that I would always stay connected to the "me" in mommy is a unique one, but it has allowed me the opportunity to share with thousands of women that you don't have to embrace calamity as your new normal. You have the power to influence your schedule, to say no, to ask your family to help you, to take off your cape and say that you don't like to fly.

For me, taking care of myself first has allowed me to take better care of my family. "Me Time" matters because it has allowed me to be clear about what I really need to do to begin with, what priorities to accomplish first, and what I need to scratch off my list because it is unimportant or taxing. I don't struggle with taking time to be alone because my alone time has allowed me to be completely present to my family and not resentful that the day and expectations never end.

Turn on any television show about mothers or parents, or read stories about their journeys, and you will soon learn that embracing calamity is the picture of parenthood. Typically, when we see order represented it usually accompanies a zealot mom who might have peculiar ways to get the children to learn, eat or dance. Where are the moms like me? I don't see them on television and yet I meet them every day at school. Disorder isn't my love language either and I don't have a radical approach that requires my family to suffer while I thrive or vice versa. As a result of knowing myself better, I am able to share all of me with my family including the things I love, want and yes, need. This example has modeled a life for my children that says that giving to others and refueling yourself are both important and they are not in conflict.

Self-care is an intricate part of my family's values along with love, honesty and respect. Taking care of one's self is not a dirty word in my home, but a language that we all understand and support. Yes, I'm making the case that perhaps what parents need in the beginning of their parenting journey is to know how to create life systems that are sustainable. They need to know that just as you create and prepare for your baby, you need to prepare and build community and learn how to grow your own life. Enjoy my vlog about why "me time" matters to me. I can't wait to read your...

Motherhood is great but at times, it can be extremely difficult. I am the mother of a 14, 11, and 7-year-old, and every day, my children provide new joys to celebrate and new challenges to overcome. Our days are a blur of meals to be prepared, assignments to check, assemblies...

Whenever I spend time with my girlfriends and mention "Me Time," there seems to be confusion about exactly what it entails. Though we know that we must take care of ourselves to be better mothers, we always seem to get sidetracked. There's always something else to do and someone else's...

Over the last fourteen years, I've been a working mom, a SAHM and a work-from-home mom and business owner in my motherhood journey. Because I am college-educated with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and worked as a Corporate Trainer for a Fortune 500 company, the reaction of relatives and...

Like most moms, I've struggled with either gaining too much weight while pregnant with my three children or losing weight after each pregnancy. Well, except for my second pregnancy, but then I gained weight while nursing and craving chocolate chip cookies! I've gained anywhere from 10 to 40 pounds per...

No matter what stage of motherhood you are in, you have probably wished at some point that someone had been around to tell you all the things you had to learn the hard way. You've probably read quite a few parenting books, which can be helpful, but no book covers...

Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years. ~Simone Signoret

I've been married to my husband for 16 years. We met during the summer of 1995 and he proposed to me in November. We got...

So many women lose themselves in motherhood. I call this the "Silent War," the process of slowly fading away from yourself, your interests and your passions without even realizing that it is happening.

At some point, all mothers face this crossroad in parenting. We come up for air and...

My husband and I try to go on a date once a month to keep our connection strong and to enjoy one another's company -- without the children. Sometimes we fail because we get tired, or the sitter falls through, or, unfortunately, we forget to make the date a priority....

According to Pam Dryer in her article "How Women Use Social Media," 53 percent of American women regularly use social media. 75 percent of them use it to connect with friends and family, 57 percent use it for fun and entertainment, and 52 percent use it to "connect...

We've all heard the term "helicopter mom" to describe moms that are over-protective and overly involved in their children's daily activities. For those of you who have encountered a hovering mother, it is probably apparent that she is the last to realize that her need to stay informed, be involved,...

Work/life balance is one of the best three little words in marketing. These words sell us all what we really want in motherhood -- peace of mind. Over the years, I, like millions, played along and listened to the many theories that told us that having it all is the...

Last year, I decided to complete my first Iron Girl Triathlon. The Iron Girl would require me to swim .62 miles, bike 17.5 miles and run 3.4 miles in August, 2011. I've always wanted to do a tri event, but the biggest obstacle facing me was that I did not...

The kitchen is a pretty dangerous place. According to an article on foodbeast.com, "Your Kitchen is Trying to Kill You," over a million people visit the emergency room for cutting themselves at home every year. Kitchen fires burned down over 150,000 homes last year. 100,000 people a year...

In 2007, the Washington Post ran an article on the relatively new phenomenon of "email bankruptcy," citing statistics such as: there were 6 trillion business emails sent in 2006, that workers were increasing their daily workload by up to three hours by having to respond to the endless deluge of...

Have you ever asked your friends to tell you the best play to see or to let you know if Lionel Richie tickets have gone on sale in your town? (Shhh, I'm his biggest fan.)

I have to admit that I am a mom cyber junkie that loves real-time...

For years, I have coached clients on strategies to incorporate self-care into their daily lives as well as hosted hundreds of national Time for Mom-Me self-care groups. No matter what the socio-economic, ethnic or the family demographic is including work-at-home-moms, stay-at-home-moms, homeschoolers, or professional moms who work outside...

More than 13 years ago, when I was six months pregnant with my first child, my mother asked me to consistently make time to practice mom self-care. Self-care wasn't even on my radar at the time. At this stage of pregnancy, I was much more interested in choosing a baby...

Staying organized during the holiday season is something that we all need and want, but forget to consider while shopping for presents, cooking, entertaining, wrapping gifts and decorating. This year, I decided to ask Jacquie Ross, professional organizer and owner of CastAway the Clutter, some secrets to keeping this holiday...

Oprah said it best, "Motherhood is the toughest job in the world." It is also the most rewarding. Each day as I run through my Mommy To-Do list I am reminded of why taking time for myself is necessary. After drop off, a full day of work with deadlines that...