With 2018 just around the corner, December is usually a month of hectic Christmas and New Year’s Eve planning.

We’re willing to bet that between getting your kids ready for their daily activities, tending to the household, your own job and prepping food, you don’t have much time left to take a breather and reflect on the past year.

And if that’s the case, then we offer seven resolutions you should consider fulfilling starting this January 1st. Make it your credo, your new mantra, a promise to yourself.

Sleep is NOT for the weak

“You can nap when your kid naps” is probably the biggest pile of baloney parents utter. Their kids are either the soundest of sleepers, or they just try to mask the suffering of unslept nights. Most of us wait for the youngest ones to fall asleep so we can tend to other things in the house we can’t do while they’re up. But in 2018, try to slow down your tempo. Leave some things unfinished to catch those half hour worth of Z’s. The world won’t end, even if you think otherwise.

More dates

Remember those? Remember the time when you and your significant other could just go to a dinner and a movie, or just walk down the park and eat those delicious hot dogs in the cool night air? Yeah, me neither. Like an unwritten rule, your love life (and sex!) take a back seat when the kids arrive. But whether you’re a new mom or a true veteran matriarch, fighting to rekindle the fire with your significant other never stops. Do yourself a favor starting this January, and hire a sitter at least once every two weeks to go on a date night.

Sex

Another whopping topic on our list is every mom’s sex life once family cuts in. We tend to neglect intimacy simply due to exhaustion and the lack of mental stimuli (there is nothing stimulating about overdue projects, long work hours or heaps of laundry and kids’ homework). Try and include tiny little signs of affection (such as dirty texts, exchange looks and simply be gentle with each other), and see how you slowly build the much-needed attraction back up.

More you time

By “you time” we don’t mean necessarily going shopping or out clubbing with your girlfriends (although those are welcome, too!) You time can also include reading a good book, watching that movie that’s been collecting dust on your Netflix list, paint your nails, or take a bath. Not only will you feel better, but it’ll also allow for your mind to recalibrate. Be honest with yourself – how long ago did you start forgetting about all that needs to be done throughout the day? This might be just what the doctor ordered to remedy the issue.

Treat yourself

Once a month, just once a month at least, designate a day when you will pamper yourself in full. Visit a cosmetic surgery clinic and get that makeover you’ve been dreaming of the past few years. Or go take a day off at the spa. Buy that small haul of new clothes without guilt – the world is your oyster! This 2018 is the perfect year to work more towards being the best woman you can be, and not only a mom.

Focus on the important

Going down the lane of „always remember everything“ will ultimately drive you insane. We’re expected to keep everything in our head: know where everyone’s socks are, which shelf the cereals are on, if those bananas in the fridge are still good (like they can’t tell themselves!), and much more. Storing a lot of irrelevant information will start to push out the relevant ones, and lead you quicker to exhaustion. So start designating who remembers what around the house, so that you can spend more time focusing on what’s really important.

Reflect

Last, but not least, reflect. Think back on the entire year, and what you’ve achieved. Where could you have done better? What could you have done differently? What was the proudest moment of 2017, and how can you get more of those moments in 2018? Spend more time with your family even before New Year’s Eve, and appreciate them, flaws and all. ‘Tis the season to be grateful for what we have.

In the end

We spend far too much time rushing and running around, thinking we have to be super moms 24/7. But it’s far from true. We’re human, and we need the break humans get, instead of the world on their shoulders, like superheroes. Prioritize yourself sometimes, and it will return tenfold. Stress far less in the next year and don’t fret the little things. Everything will come into place.