Based on responses to the now-closed giveaway I hosted for the book The Mother’s Guide to Self-Renewal, here are some great self-renewal tips from readers:

1. My favorite self-renewal tip is to get some sea salt (fine ground), safflower oil and your favorite essential oil (I use lavender) and make some homeade salt scrub (you could use sugar of course). I take it in the bathroom and give myself a foot massage with it. Ahhhh. It might not be life changing, but it sure rejuvenates.

2. Okay, here’s my tip – it’s hard, but oh so worth it – COLD shower. Nicest way: warm up the bathroom, and massage yourself all over with almond oil (can scent with a few drops of essential oil of your choice), then when you are read, step in and out of the cold water about three times til it doesn’t feel cold anymore – it will knock the breath out of you and leave you feeling amazing, awake and re-energized.

   If you can’t quite manage the whole thing, doing your face, hands and feet isn’t bad either.

   Don’t do it in pregnancy or in the first three days of your period.

3. I sleep in!  When I can, that is! When I can’t I bake. Baking is therapeutic to me, and it’s an “unnecessary” bit of cooking that smells divine and is often something sweet. 

4. Reading a good book is a great way I love to self-renew.

5. I knit and have been using lavender to help me sleep when I get pregnancy insomnia at 3 in the morning.
6. I love a hot bath (BY MYSELF). I don’t get to do it often as my boys love bathing with mummy. But a good soak and dimmed lights often leave me feeling new again. Especially if you have special bubble bath or salts that only get used by you.
7. My favorite tip for self-renewal is making time for yoga. Yoga is a tremendous physical and spiritual practice for me, and when nothing else is right, it usually is.

8. Self-renewel tip: I love music. Pop in my favorite cd. Turn it up and dance and sing until everything else fades away
9. I drive around aimlessly in my car and listen to my music as loud as I can! This dissipates my moodiness in just minutes. Another favorite renewal activity is hiking by myself as often as I can.

10. Tip: I love to take time out for coffee with friends or a birth movie night with my doula sisters!

12. My favorite tip is getting a pedicure and reading a magazine. It makes me feel better.

13. Yoga, baths, and footbaths are my favorite recharges. Thanks!

14. My favorite way to recharge is to take foot bath. Boil some hot water, find a nice quiet location, put on some soft music, or just listen to the birds outside your window. Pick some fresh herbs, (or use essential oils) like lavender, lemon, mint, cinnamon and just put your feet in and relax. If you have some river rocks you can put those in the bottom of your pan and roll your feet over them, and you get a massage and a foot bath!
15. I love to renew by reading a good book and holding my son…who is 4