Skin Deep

I was curled up on the couch trying to pretend I was feeling miserable enough to justify curling up on the couch instead of, you know, doing my job. Taking care of the kids, de-cobwebbing the house, that sort of thing. It was just one of those times where curling up and dying seemed preferable to facing up to the overwhelmingness of my mental To Do List.

Emma, my darling four year old, walked over and stood in front of me, a concerned look on her face. She reached out and stroked my cheek, and I smiled up at her, sure that she was about to say something sweet and endearing that would warm my heart and help get me up and moving again.

Instead she said, "Mommy, your nose has got red spots alllll over. And you have holes in your cheeks. They're everywhere!"

And all I could do was laugh, albeit with a slightly hysterical edge. Sometimes she's more than just a cheerleader. Sometimes she's a motivator, reminding me that I need to shift my priorities. In this case I needed to shift my priorities to include not sleeping in my makeup anymore.

It's a tricky cycle to get caught in, that not taking care of yourself physically so you feel crummy, so you don't do much, so you feel crummy over not doing much, so you take even less care of yourself (why would you expend effort on someone so crummy and unproductive as you, right?).

I'm so grateful that Emma is old enough to pull me up short. To remind me that it doesn't just affect me anymore. I need to take care of myself as much for their sake as for my own.

Now, anyone have any good skin care tips?