I don't understand why I feel so busy. I know just about everyone else in the world is busier than I am. All I have to do is raise two kids. I don't have a paid-outside-the-home job. I'm pretty good at saying "No." And yet, I either overschedule myself or I overestimate how much I can do. Bottom line: I am never on top of things.
I had one of those mornings last weekend. Between all the travelling I've been doing (Minnesota, Florida, Texas in a three week time period) I feel I haven't had much down time at home. So on Saturday, I declared we were going to stay in all day! I was going to clean the house. Do the laundry. Call a plumber and the cable company. That's it! Simple!
But, the kids started fighting and whining and crying and following me around fighting and whining and crying. I started movie after movie for them. I got out the play doh and crayons. I popped popcorn for them. I would sneak upstairs and try to fold a load of laundry, or change some sheets and next thing I knew, WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! He took my toy! That's mine! WAAAAAH. MOOOOOMMMMMMYYYYY? Where are you? Waaaaaah! OOOOOOWWWWW. I dropped a toy on my foot. WAAAAaaaah!
When I was on the phone with the plumber, both kids were SCREAMING and crying. I locked myself in my bedroom to finish the call. When I opened the bedroom door, two sobbing kids fell into the room. I would finally get one little task accomplished upstairs only to come down to find play doh scattered across two rooms, popcorn scattered across four rooms, breakfast smeared across the table and all four chairs, and every toy pulled out of everywhere. Two screaming/crying kids and a dirty diaper.
Geez. Why can't I keep up? That's why.
(The worst part of the WHOLE story is that the following morning, John was home. And the kids just played contentedly in the basement, leaving us alone on the couch, watching TV in peace! He thinks that is how my daily life is!)
Aging is for the weak, and everyone else
2 months ago
3 comments:
Oh Katie, Does it make you feel better knowing that you are not alone? That sounds like my yesterday and the part about the husband being home and the kids being perfect! Oh MY GOODNESS that always happens to me! It drives me nuts! I hate to admit this, but some times I wish they would be needy when he is home so he can see why we have so many days when the dishes are still in the sink and the laundry is still in a pile... ugh.
After being with your family for a few days while you were at concerts and rehearsals, I KNOW why you are busy! You could clone yourself and still be super busy raising kids.
Maybe they feel anxious because John is away and that makes the kids more clingy? Or you are anxious, and they sense it?
Have you tried involving the kids in doing more of the chores? A five-year-old should be able to fold towels, and maybe a two-year-old can match socks to their mates. They could put their own dishes in the dishwasher. You may have to re-arrange them later, but at least they'd be off the counter. It's always more efficient to do the chores yourself when the kids are little. However, the payoff for making them do it now is that in a few years (or 10 or 15) they'll do the work as a matter of habit, without nagging. Then, of course, they'll be out of the house and someone else will benefit from your training.
Love,
(Great) Aunt Linda
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