You know those days when everything is just blah? Cooking dinner is blah. Playing with the kids is blah. Hanging out the clothes is blah.

Unfortunately, feeling blah is a part of life, especially when you’re a parent and especially when you have little children that don’t seem to understand or appreciate all that you do. It can be hard to find the effort to make a breakfast that the kids throw on the floor, to fold the clothes that will end up stained in mud in five minutes, and to clean the dishes when the kids are going to decide they are hungry again the moment that final dish is put away.

Beat the Mummy Blahs

Feeling unmotivated and low on energy is a feeling I know all too well. And I can honestly say I hate it. But, apart from going to bed at 8pm, trying to eat high energy foods and surviving on coffee throughout the day, are there any other ways to kick blah to the curb and transform your mood?

There sure are. We’ve rounded up some easy suggestions to incorporate into your regular daily routine. Try these for a few weeks and let us know if they made any difference!

Make the Ordinary a Little Special

1. We all have those chores and errands during the day that are so mundane that sometimes you really can’t be bothered. But there are little ways to make these chores a bit more exciting. Washing dishes, for example, has got to be one of the worst chores of the day. But you can treat your hands and your senses while scrubbing up.

Palmolive has just come out with two multi-layered fragrances designed to be a treat for your senses. The Palmolive® Ultra Concentrate Divine Blendsâ„¢ dishwashing liquid range includes Violet & Apple Blossom and Vanilla & Berries and they retail at a recommended retail price of $3.49 for a 375 ml bottle and $4.99 for a 700 ml bottle. Both do the trick when it comes to cutting through the hard grease but they also bring a little pleasure into this annoying daily chore.

Add Colour to Your Life

2. Consider using different coloured laundry baskets in the laundry room to make this endless task a little less mundane.

3. Or, when you are doing the weekly house clean, why not have a fresh bright candle ready for every room that you finish? Once I finish cleaning a room, I light a scented candle. It’s stupid, I know, but it also signifies that, yep, I finished scrubbing the toilets, and now I am rewarded with this delicious smelling candle and a clean washroom (for ten seconds before the kids need to pee).

Dance Like No One is Watching

4. Put on music. Lifting your mood is all about enhancing your senses and in addition to enjoying a pleasurable aromatic dishwashing experience with Palmolive®, you can also bring out the good vibes with good music. I am so uncool that I haven’t purchased a CD or even downloaded more than a few iTunes songs for my iPod in years; however, you can easily find ready-made playlists via YouTube. Simply type in things like “top 40 rock/pop/country/hip-hop music” and you will find pre-made playlists that you can stream from your computer. And, bonus points, you also get to find out what the cool kids are listening to these days.

Whenever I put music on in the morning, I end up dancing with the kids in my pyjamas while making their lunches, putting away the dishes and doing all those other annoying morning routine chores. And I always end up laughing. Seriously.

Get Outside

5. I’m not going to say that you need to take up running, swimming, hiking or any strenuous activity. You don’t even have to walk. Just go outside. Sit there. Lie there. Breathe in the air. Something about being outside, especially in sunny weather, will help lift your mood.

Know Your Triggers and Take Control

If you are feeling extra blah or extra stressed, then you need to recognise this emotion and try to gain control before it takes over and you lose control. Everyone handles stress differently but here are some of the things I try:

6. Take a hot shower. The steam and the five minutes away allows me to just take a break and think about what needs to be done.

7. Spend five minutes in a dark room. I take my ‘time out’ in my closet and yes, sometimes the kids are screaming on the other end of the door, but I ignore it for five minutes, close my eyes and breathe. It actually works.

8. Say it out loud or write it down “I am having a hard time.” “I am stressed.” “I am feeling very blah.” “I am not feeling too awesome about myself right now.” Once you admit this, the answer to fixing it will often come a lot easier.

Keep in mind, that everyone, especially parents, have super stressed and bitterly blah days. It’s totally normal. These tips are designed to help you see past the mundane and push past the ordinary in simple, sensory driven ways. Thanks to Palmolive® Ultra Concentrate Divine Blendsâ„¢ dishwashing liquid range, you can get this divine feeling easily, every day!

Find your Divine Blends moment and you could win a $1000 Freedom Voucher or a Divine Blends prize pack

To celebrate the launch of Palmolive® Divine Blends, Palmolive is giving away a $1000 Freedom voucher and 30 Divine Blends prize packs.
To be in the running to win, simply upload a photo to Instagram sharing your own “Divine Blends” moment. Get creative share your favourite coffee or smoothie blend, your floral doona or striped scarf, a picture of your child’s colourful artwork, a pattern that you love, a blend that delights your senses!
Finally, hashtag your entry with #PalmoliveDivineBlends and you’ll be in the running to win!

For more information and terms and conditions visit www.palmolivedivineblends.com.au

We can’t wait to see your creations! Head over to Instagram now and share your photo!

Palmolive and Divine Blends are trademarks of Colgate-Palmolive Company. Instagram is a trademark of Instagram, LLC. iTunes is a trademark of Apple, Inc. YouTube is a trademark of Google Inc.