Most mornings, on the way to the gym, I listen to one of my favorite songs, 'Rise Up' by Andra Day. Although the drive to the gym is short (less than 10 minutes), this is one of my favorite times of the day. It's usually still dark out, and I am one of the few cars on the road. I find something so serene about the darkness and the solidarity while listening to this song. I use this time to set my intentions and think about what I need to get done that day and what I want to get done that day.
Over the years, if there's one thing I've learned as a parent, your time is not always yours. You have to be realistic (and fair to yourself) about what can be done in one day. For me that meant setting goals around what needed to be done versus what I wanted done. Simple things like having a clean kitchen or the laundry put away quickly fell from 'need' to 'want'. But in exchange, I found thatt I consider things like hugging my kids, stopping and listening to a silly story they made up and going to a class at the gym a 'need' rather than a 'want'. We all have definitions for these two words and they may represent different things for each of us. But being able to recognize what they they represent for me ,in my life, helps me find some level of serenity and strength in myself.