A View From the Couch: All Kinds of Nourishment at Costco

I just left Costco and am proud to say that I spent under $200. Woo hoo!!

 I only bought food that we needed, it was mostly healthy and things that we will enjoy and nourish our bodies (frozen pizza and those flat pretzel thingies included).   What I saw when perusing the aisles during a mid-morning weekday was what looked like many  moms stocking up their carts for their families.

Yogurt, milk, juice, fruits and vegetables and the all too common granola bar of one form or another.  Why this struck me, I am not sure.

I snickered thinking about the moms in America loading up their carts in this huge warehouse to feed their families.  I went so far as to imagine moms in other countries trekking to the village to grab many of the same items from local markets also to feed and nourish their families.

That is what we do; we nourish our families physically, emotionally and spiritually.  I was listening to  a really good podcast today during a walk prior to the Costco adventure.  The guest on the podcast, Elyse Resch, was talking about intuitive eating for kids.  One of the things that most resonated with me was to create a healthy relationship with food for our kids, we need to first address our own relationship with food.  I heard her talk about nourishing ourselves both physically and emotionally in order to be present and grounded to nourish our kids.

I have worked with many women who forget that second piece: the self-care. These are the women that are at Costco and Target, they volunteer at school, make the cookies for the teacher back-to-school lunch and many of them also work.  When I ask what they do for themselves the common response is "there is no time for me."

My friends, we have to make time for ourselves, or we aren't any good for those that we love.  I have used the metaphor of blowing up a balloon; that is how we inflate ourselves so that we aren't saggy and enervated.

By filling ourselves up in the form of yoga, a good book, a movie date or a girl's night out we can become bouncy and buoyant and playful.  I always find that I am more available to help my family and clients when I have filled up myself.

I honestly had no idea where this post was headed after seeing the carts at Costco, but on the way home it started writing itself in my head.

 I must have sensed that one of the moms orbiting around the grapes and bananas seemed overwhelmed.  I saw signs of a saggy balloon and wanted to give her a big burst of self-care.