"Doing it All" (A Un-Monday Mommy Rant)

Lately I can't help but feel a little sad for my humble blog. It isn't that I've lost my passion for sharing our crafty do's or an on-trend handbag for that matter, the lack of postings comes down to two simple things, exhaustion and time. So when late at night I find myself wishing I could keep my eyes open for long enough to think of something witty or at the very least relevant to share, I can't help but wonder how do other women do it?? Sure there was a time I had hours in the day to devote to surfing the web, discovering the latest and the greatest, planning a new craft to do with my children for every day of the week and being all around on top of it all and fabulous. Looking back I question whether I was on speed without perhaps being aware of it at all. There is something about having that third baby that really gives everything a sudden urgency and Mothers (at least for me) a profound knack for never quite being able to finish one task in it's entirety. So too often lately I find myself filling out school pizza forms at 11:30pm and wondering where the day went so quickly. Three is a small entourage really and if you count most women's husbands, mine included, you can bump the number of needy whiners tugging at the hem of your dress and the edges of your sanity to four. Don't get me wrong I love my family but sometimes when I step back and look at the big picture of what is going on in any one pinpointed moment of the day I'm surprised not to hear the piping in of circus music. I am the ringmaster, sort of, and this home on any given day rivals the theatrics of any three ring circus. So on top of the diaper changes, the meals to be prepared, the fights to be broken up, the dirty laundry to be scrubbed and washed, the booboos to be kissed, the bottles to be fed and then boiled clean, the stories to be read, the lessons to be taught again and again....how is a modern day Mom to manage "doing it all."

Doing it "ALL" is not realistic yet most women I speak with hold themselves to these impossible standards, myself included. Well "so-and-so" manages to keep an immaculate home, head the student council, run a home business and lead an active and fulfilling social life so why can't I?? Let me tell you something, I'm as likely to believe that story as if you were to tell me that her farts smell of cotton candy.  I have been dubbed by those who have clearly not stepped into my house as of late, a "super Mom." While a cape would perhaps give me a little more authority with the 4-8 year old demographic, a super hero I am not. What I am though is a busy Mom who has learned that a stack of dishes can wait because building a fort with my growing children and having a Spongebob marathon is more important. That sometimes dinner will consist of a poptart in the backseat of our car next to a screaming baby because we have back to back dance classes that night. That cuddling with a baby on a quiet afternoon when your two older children are in school beats tackling a weeks worth of laundry any day. That prioritizing sometimes means just having a damn nap. Yes there are days where I somehow find the time to bake a loaf of fresh bread or a pie or give myself a pedicure or arrange a sitter to have a girls lunch out but that's because I have decided to let something else go to do something I felt like doing instead. There is no such thing as "doing it all" I have discovered and though at times this brings me a lot of anxiety it is something I am learning to accept. Our children are only young once so I say we cast off the heavy expectations we have for ourselves, take things one crisis at a time and live for the happy in it all. Hug your babies. Plan and enjoy date nights with your partner. Make "Mommy time" a priority in your schedule.  So please dear readers bare with me as I adapt to juggling a growing family, a home business, a child with autism, nurturing my marriage, building a social life and managing a household...while blogging. Maybe I should pull that cape out after all.