I don't like overcrowded days

I just have to write a few words about my little girl's wonderful teacher. She is such a classic preschool teacher, with many years of experience , who really knows children! And she loves her job! I understood that already during the introduction. I feel confident leaving in the morning, because I know E will have a great day at preschool and a lot of that is down to her. Of course, she doesn't work alone, they are a team. But she's the one who does that little bit extra that you might not see, but that you feel. And I like that. I like leaving my children with people who love their job. Just wondering how I would feel if I left my kids with someone who only went to work because they had to. Extra kudos tonight to Mait for letting me bring home a happy and playful girl every afternoon!

I wasn't surprised this morning when I woke up and realized I had caught a bad cold! It's almost comical! I have had and have a huge stress load from various sources and the sum of these has broken down my immune system and after a few bad nights sleep, the cold breaks out. When I don't give my body the opportunity to rest and recover it immediately punishes me, bam! And I am grateful! Grateful because I am so sensitive and because I know how my body works.

Last night I wrote that I don't like full days and today I can only conclude that one consequence of full days is poor sleep. At least for me. And then hocus pocus I'm in a vicious cycle. I need time for recovery, otherwise I don't switch off at night and have trouble falling asleep and sleep restlessly. The next morning I wake up feeling like I never fell asleep and that's no fun. Especially when a busy schedule awaits again. Tonight will have to be an early night. Hopefully it will help to break the vicious cycle. And next week I'll have to try to plan better! Sleeping 8 hours every night has not been something I've managed during my autumn detox and it feels like a big failure. Because that part of the detox is at least as important as the food I eat!

It's time for bedtime stories for my youngest daughter. She chooses "Mamma Mu builds a hut". I read "Mamma Mu stood in the pasture. Nice with autumn, she thought. Nice with all the colors on the leaves." Yes, I think, it's beautiful outside right now, especially on a day like this when the sun is shining and the air is warm. Forgetting about the autumn clouds that were here last weekend, I do like Mamma Mu, focusing on the beautiful colors.

I am a trained Postpartum Doula. In California I was never asked what I offer when I work as a Postpartum Doula, now I get asked that question pretty much daily. And I understand why! Sweden has a very different social system built around pregnancy and childbirth compared to some other countries. BUT that doesn't mean Swedish women don't have the same basic needs as women in the US for example. After all, we are all women!

You can use your gut in many different ways, but one thing is for sure, you should never defy it. That's one of my basic principles.

A simple example from earlier today was when I came back after leaving the kids at school and preschool. As I entered the kitchen, my gut told me to check the bags from the US one more time, because that's where the missing Manuka honey lie. I don't know why my intuition was giving me these signals at the time, but I did what my intuition told me to do. And sure enough, at the bottom of one of the bags in another bag lies the honey! Just like that. As I had thought and searched before without getting anywhere. And how appropriate that it turned up just today, as the girls and I are struggling with a sore throat.