Don't Wait. You deserve it.

I give my nieces and other significant young women in my life unsolicited advice all the time. Fortunately they are all tolerant of their Aunt Rosie and listen patiently. Sometimes I catch a thoughtful look and even get some questions asked. Even better are the times when a lively discussion of said advice ensues.

Laughing and talking with my sisters and nieces recently I realized that one of the things I'm most passionate about with them is not waiting. If I regret anything in my life its when I've put something off. Most of the stuff I put off usually had to do with taking care of myself. Women do that.

For instance, do you take care of your skin? Remove your make-up every night? I didn't really start to take care of my skin and moisturize until I was 40. Alarming isn't it? I used the excuse that I couldn't afford to buy a moisturizer. What my logic for not removing my makeup was I can't even remember.

What I do know is that if something is important and you make it a priority you find the money or you make the time. It makes a difference. For me the moisturizer was a symbol of me taking care of myself. It was a beginning.

So I say to you. Don't wait. You deserve it.

What about exercising? Do you walk? Jog? Yoga? Swim? I answered no to those questions for years. I was too tired after working and chasing after kids. Get up earlier experts said. Plan meals. Make a week's worth of meals on the weekends. What. Ever. It's darn hard to find the time and energy to do all that, work full time, be a wife and mother and the occasional team/room Mom, go on field trips... There was always something. I say that knowing that I'm a pretty organized person. I was forever looking at other women and wondering how in hell they were fitting everything in. Every other woman seemed fit, healthy and happy. Why couldn't I get it together?

I guess I'm a bit thick sometimes because I finally figured out that ANY exercise you do is better than NO exercise. I became a walker. Ten minutes after dinner. Around the block. I found that it all helps and it all matters. It also makes you feel better. Exercise really does give you more energy. I sometimes think I was the last person on the planet to figure that out.

So, really, don't wait. You deserve it.

Why the soapbox and unsolicited advice? Because sometimes when I'm feeling particularly grateful and happy about my life I realize that the only real regrets I have are for those things I didn't do sooner.

We all have a process to go through, but if I could wish anything for other women it would be to remind them not to be so hard on themselves and each other. We all deserve to take care of ourselves. When I wonder why I waited so long for one thing or the other I realize that most of my logic was just excuses. I didn't want to change or was afraid of change. At the end of the day the REAL reason I was so inert was my belief that I didn't deserve it.

So whether it's something as innocuous as moisturizer or as important as taking the painting class you always wanted to take, please, don't wait. You deserve it.