Sometimes you Need a Timeout and a Good Cry

I'm sure I'm not the only mom who needs to put herself in timeout and just have a good cry...at least I hope I'm not.  But that's what happened last week, possibly on a couple of occasions.  It's the same old story.  We as moms, and women in general, take on a large amount of responsibility.  Even though we are juggling the kids, the household, and (for some of you) work, we find it necessary to add more to the laundry list of responsibilities...pun intended.  Take last week for example.  I decided to have a garage sale to get rid of some junk and hopefully make some shopping...uh, pocket change. I was reluctant to have one, and now I know why.  Talk about a lot of work!!  It turned out ok, but I think I may have had my share of sales for the next few years. 

Anyway, the garage sale left us all exhausted and the house a complete and total mess.   Which is never a good combination.  I felt as if I was taking one step forward and three steps back in an attempt to catch up.  Suddenly the every day occurrences seem so much worse.  Like, the full load of laundry that was folded and ready to be put away that was instead dumped over and cascading down the stairs.  Or the report you are in the middle of working on for the upcoming board meeting disappears from the computer and you look up to see your kid holding the plug with a sinister grin.  Or...ok, you get the idea, and hopefully why I felt the need to get it all out.  I literally locked myself in the bathroom and let the tears flow.  I also asked for help and prayed for strength and patience...which I don't do nearly enough.  Then comes the guilt.  I felt guilty for leaving my kids knocking outside the door even if it was only a few minutes, for not being able to remember how incredibly blessed I am rather than feeling sorry for myself, and for possibly losing my temper one too many times.  I can't say I have it all together, but at least I can say these days are few and far between.  And knowing I'm not the only one who feels this way makes it feel makes me feel like I suck a little less.  :)  Let's face it, no mom truly has it all together.  But does anyone??  We all could use a good cry once in a while so go ahead and put yourself in timeout.  And if Daddy's home, add a bubble bath and a glass of wine for good measure.  You will thank yourself.  But also make sure you know that God has it under control... even if you don't!!

Stuff No One Told You About Mommyhood: Part One

Before I had kids, I considered myself pretty kid-savvy.  After all, I am the youngest of all of my siblings and step-siblings, so I had my fair share of diaper changes and spit up to think I was an expert.  But I quickly came to the conclusion that no matter how much knowledge you think you have when it comes to kids, you are sadly mistaken.  I have a feeling this will be a recurring post, so let's just call this "part one" and start with my very first experience in the world of the unknown, which took my confidence level from expert, to beginner.  Buckle up and enjoy, because it started even before the kiddos came along. 

It was Memorial Day weekend.  I recently had a baby shower and decided to get a head start on washing some baby clothes.  Nesting perhaps?  Regardless, I felt ahead of the game.  To make a long and incredibly boring story short, our washing machine decided it was going to go through an entire cleaning cycle without draining the water.  Picture this.  A full load of towels sitting in stale, dirty water with your only option being to wring them out one by one and re-wash them at mom and dad's.  What is this?  College?   Then, try finding a repair man on Memorial Day.  And what you get, folks is a man on his way to a BBQ leaving his wife to wait in the car while he does the job.  Oh and did I mention the steep price tag of a holiday repair man?!  Yep, that was fun!  But here comes the exciting part.  Mr. Handyman asked if we had any little ones other than the one that was clearly on the way.  He continued to share with us that tiny socks get caught in the drain, causing it to clog.  Light bulb!!  Before washing...uh, trying to wash...the load of towels, I attempted to wash all of Cooper's new clothes.  Remember?  Sure enough, an hour and $200 later, we had nothing to show for it other than a little blackened sock freshly pulled from the drain.  At first I felt like an idiot.  How could I have not known about this?  Then I felt like I must have been the only lucky one this had happened to, because there was no way my friends and family would withhold this very important, very expensive piece of information from me.  We will never know.  But today, you're in luck!  Because I'm here to share it with you. 

So what's the solution you ask?  A lingerie mesh washing bag found at good ole Target (Sorry, Dad!  I'm sure they have them at Wal-Mart too!).  Who knew?  Not only does this gem keep the socks out of the under parts of your washing machine, it keeps them separate from the rest of the load so the dryer doesn't turn them into lint.  We all know this happens!  There's a bonus too.  If you have multiple people in your family, just assign a washing bag to each individual and allow them to match their own socks.  Brilliant, I tell ya!!  So, take advice from me, and buy a few extra lingerie washing bags (or just dust off the one that's not being used for lingerie now that you're a mom) and make your life just a little bit easier.  Trust me, you'll thank me one day!