Life on a high wire!
When I had my first son I decided to be a stay at home wife and mom. It was a dream! I was June Cleaver! As a 3 month old David slept soundly in my Mai Tai, dinner in the crock pot and I washed a window, I thought "I don't understand how people don't keep up on housework!"
Well because you KNOW that I know it all. Or at least I thought I did ;) The months rolled on, David became more mobile and things got a little tougher but I was still queen of the house.
And then....
Well because you KNOW that I know it all. Or at least I thought I did ;) The months rolled on, David became more mobile and things got a little tougher but I was still queen of the house.
And then....
2 pink lines. Most ladies who have ever been pregnant, know what that means. 2 lines that change your life forever. I was pregnant again. David was 10.5 months when I found out. I was so excited. Life had gotten more perfect. The days rolled on, not a lot of morning sickness. David turned a year old, I was 7 weeks, we announced it that day. Yippee, yay, everyone was excited.
About a week later, the morning sickness set in, fatigue hit me like a tsunami and I was down for the count. How I waded through those next several weeks I'll never know. I have vague memories of David watching more Veggie Tales and Baby Einstein than I care to admit while I hovered between the sofa and the bathroom.
Morning sickness passed, my fatigue did not. And then came the mood swings. Yikes. But I was still able to wad through the days, cook some, clean some, but my house wasn't up to June Cleaver standards anymore. Maybe more "Roseanne" style.
Aaron's birthday came and went and now I had 2 babes under 2! David was 19 months when Aaron was born. I slept in the recliner for the first month of Aaron's life nursing every 1/2 to 1 hour and just getting used a newborn again. My husband was an amazing help with David.
The first couple of months passed. I don't honestly remember feeling exhausted from all the nursing and shepherding a toddler. But I think I just repressed those memories more so than I actually got rest!
Now I began to see why it was harder to keep up on the house, but I still managed. I learned to cook with a baby nestled on my back in a carrier. I could vacuum, scrub a toilet and even fold laundry that way. But I began noticing a few cob webs here and there and some dust on baseboards. "Well one day it will be up to June Cleaver's white glove test again."
Yeah.....that day never came. The months rolled on and then a year went by. I had 2 very mobile boys and less time to much of anything. I think there were days when Eric even asked if I showered. I honestly couldn't remember! I started getting a bit frustrated that I couldn't do all I had before. And I scarcely believed it when I would hear some moms say how they got up an hour early and either worked out, or spent time studying whatever religious/spiritual devotion or path they believed. It was hard to understand how their houses were spotless or they always had a smile on their face. Surely they were aliens or I just didn't know the secret that they did ;)
And then when Aaron was 22 months and David [who was already in his special needs school by then] was 3, I went back to work full time. A part of me was excited. But the other part weeped. Even though things were not perfect, I still loved being home, to be the homemaker. But such is life and bills must be paid.
Well at least now I thought, I'll be on more of a schedule and bam, I WILL be June Cleaver again. The first few weeks [because everything was new and exciting] I WAS June Cleaver again. Ahhhh, a dream recaptured. Then reality creeped up behind me and yelled "BOO!" And I stumbled off that pedastool.
Again my home fell below June Cleaver standards. The months went on. And before I knew it, I wasn't even on "Roseanne" standards. Being a work OUT of the home mother now meant, or more felt, like I had 2 full time jobs! And as mothers can attest again, there is something that just snaps on the moment we become mothers. We don't "turn off" anymore. Even when we are sleeping, we are still not "sleeping." I can't explain it. There are no words to do that. But most mother's will identify with what I mean.
And now, even Crock pot meals? That was way to much effort. Here's your hot dogs and macaroni! What is this? I think that's apple juice on the wall! And my heavens, what a work of art on this wall with the Crayola crayons! Oh well, I'll get it later. Praise God for magic eraser!
And this is where I stand today. On a high wire, precariously balanced. There are days, I can barely get a 10 minute shower to myself so I make no apologies about not doing my own religious devotion. There are days I'm just trying to get in and out of the store with a gallon of milk and a child [or children] throwing a fit because they can't have skittles. "No, because they have poison in them, that's why!" <----Yes, I HAVE used that line! So if you see me in a store and I don't say hello, it's truly because I probably didn't see you or I'm counting to 10 in my mind so people don't think I'm a total loon addressing my child.
About a week later, the morning sickness set in, fatigue hit me like a tsunami and I was down for the count. How I waded through those next several weeks I'll never know. I have vague memories of David watching more Veggie Tales and Baby Einstein than I care to admit while I hovered between the sofa and the bathroom.
Morning sickness passed, my fatigue did not. And then came the mood swings. Yikes. But I was still able to wad through the days, cook some, clean some, but my house wasn't up to June Cleaver standards anymore. Maybe more "Roseanne" style.
Aaron's birthday came and went and now I had 2 babes under 2! David was 19 months when Aaron was born. I slept in the recliner for the first month of Aaron's life nursing every 1/2 to 1 hour and just getting used a newborn again. My husband was an amazing help with David.
The first couple of months passed. I don't honestly remember feeling exhausted from all the nursing and shepherding a toddler. But I think I just repressed those memories more so than I actually got rest!
Now I began to see why it was harder to keep up on the house, but I still managed. I learned to cook with a baby nestled on my back in a carrier. I could vacuum, scrub a toilet and even fold laundry that way. But I began noticing a few cob webs here and there and some dust on baseboards. "Well one day it will be up to June Cleaver's white glove test again."
Yeah.....that day never came. The months rolled on and then a year went by. I had 2 very mobile boys and less time to much of anything. I think there were days when Eric even asked if I showered. I honestly couldn't remember! I started getting a bit frustrated that I couldn't do all I had before. And I scarcely believed it when I would hear some moms say how they got up an hour early and either worked out, or spent time studying whatever religious/spiritual devotion or path they believed. It was hard to understand how their houses were spotless or they always had a smile on their face. Surely they were aliens or I just didn't know the secret that they did ;)
And then when Aaron was 22 months and David [who was already in his special needs school by then] was 3, I went back to work full time. A part of me was excited. But the other part weeped. Even though things were not perfect, I still loved being home, to be the homemaker. But such is life and bills must be paid.
Well at least now I thought, I'll be on more of a schedule and bam, I WILL be June Cleaver again. The first few weeks [because everything was new and exciting] I WAS June Cleaver again. Ahhhh, a dream recaptured. Then reality creeped up behind me and yelled "BOO!" And I stumbled off that pedastool.
Again my home fell below June Cleaver standards. The months went on. And before I knew it, I wasn't even on "Roseanne" standards. Being a work OUT of the home mother now meant, or more felt, like I had 2 full time jobs! And as mothers can attest again, there is something that just snaps on the moment we become mothers. We don't "turn off" anymore. Even when we are sleeping, we are still not "sleeping." I can't explain it. There are no words to do that. But most mother's will identify with what I mean.
And now, even Crock pot meals? That was way to much effort. Here's your hot dogs and macaroni! What is this? I think that's apple juice on the wall! And my heavens, what a work of art on this wall with the Crayola crayons! Oh well, I'll get it later. Praise God for magic eraser!
And this is where I stand today. On a high wire, precariously balanced. There are days, I can barely get a 10 minute shower to myself so I make no apologies about not doing my own religious devotion. There are days I'm just trying to get in and out of the store with a gallon of milk and a child [or children] throwing a fit because they can't have skittles. "No, because they have poison in them, that's why!" <----Yes, I HAVE used that line! So if you see me in a store and I don't say hello, it's truly because I probably didn't see you or I'm counting to 10 in my mind so people don't think I'm a total loon addressing my child.
I gaze around my house and that artwork is still there, well wait, some of it is gone. I gazed at some 1/2 cleaned windows. I gaze a clean sink, but an unmopped floor. I gaze at a pile of laundry, a stack of unread books. I shake my head at the apple juice and crayon the wall. I get a little frustrated at the toys scattered about. And again I think, HOW do other women have it together. And then I go and chat with some great friends and they share some of the same sentiments, over and over again.
Indeed, some have and lived balanced lives with great discipline. It is only in the last month or so that I realize, this is not me. I rather like the spontaneous, nomad-ish life. But it's this "ideal" that a wife and mother MUST be this way. The reality is, we can make our OWN reality. As a mom who not only works inside the home, but outside of the home I realize that I can not and do not wish to be the epitome of a perfect wife and mother.
In the end, if the dishes are not done right then, or the pile of laundry clean, or all the windows sparkling, shiny walls, glowing kitchen floor, immaculate carpets....that ... is ... OK! It is ok!
Why? Because that stuff will always be there. But my sons will not be 3 and 5 and 4 and 6 and 5 and 7, forever. Just like mine, there childhood will be whisked away and soon the more adult world will beckon. I am trying harder to just relax and enjoy each day. Enjoy my sons, enjoy my husband, enjoy life! Because in the end no one is going to say "I really wish I had done that sink of dishes." But I know I'll say, "I really wish I would have hugged my boys one more time. I wish I would have went on one more date with my husband. I wish I would have just slowed down and enjoyed life more!" I love the days when all seems right with the world. Those days where I actually play with my children, as a child myself. Or have a quiet dinner with Eric [which doesn't happen often enough!], or spend time with a best friend. It's hard to fit it all in, but at least it DOES happen.
Life doesn't HAVE to "balanced" according to what everyone else thinks. It has to be balanced according to my own sanity and more importantly more balanced in that I'm loving my family with all that I have each and everyday, as if it were our last.
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