Been a long time gone...
Lord, I ain't had a prayer since I don't know when
Long time gone
And it ain't comin' back again
-Dixie Chicks
I know, I know. I have been a very bad blogger lately. I would blame it on being a single mom this week (Derek's gone to Pennsylvania with a group of students) but that really doesn't explain why I haven't written anything in the prior three weeks, does it?! Honestly, things have just gotten crazy and blogging has dropped down on the list behind more pressing chores like laundry, dishes, and feeding the kid. But blogging is still above vaccuuming, which explains why Jay is currently eating a cheerio that appears to have been around since I crawled around on this very same floor. That, or it says I haven't been so successful with the "feeding the kid" chore.
Seriously, though, I've had some good ideas for what I can blog about. I mean, I have whole posts floating around in my brain. So I do THINK about you, dear readers, even as I'm ignoring your need for updates. And I promise, I'll put finger to keyboard and share them with you soon.
For now, I'll just share one little story about my brief foray into single parenthood. One night, I'd nursed Jay to sleep twice only to have him wake up screaming as soon as I laid him down in the crib. (I know that nursing him to sleep is not a great idea, but sometimes you do what you gotta do.) On bedtime attempt #3, I'd JUST gotten him to doze off in my arms when my cell phone rang. I was sure it was dear hubby calling, so I ever-so-gently stood up to take Jay back to the nursery so I could call him back. Then, right as I walked past our landline phone with him in my arms, it rang. While I wasn't looking, someone had apparently changed the phone's volume setting from "Ring" to "SUPER EXTRA LOUD ALARM RING." (You see where this is going...) And yes, he woke up screaming, yet again. Sigh.
I put him down screaming, thinking that this time I'd just let him settle himself down by crying it out. (Yeah, that's not usually effective, but nothing else I'd tried was working either.) So I called dear hubby back. He proceeds to launch into a story about how the hotel staff was just falling all over themselves offering their group cookies and coffee when they arrived. (Remember, kid is still wailing in the background.) Poor baby, I know it's hard to sleep in a hotel room. I mean, you just can't really feel at home without having a layer of small toys & rattles scattered across the floor and eau de diaper pail wafting from the nursery. And it's just so hard to relax when the only sound you hear is peace and quiet...
I know it's hard to travel, and I'm sure I'd miss my little Torquil Jay terribly if I was on the road. But I do believe that it's easier on the person who's gone than the one left at home. This week has truly given me a new respect for single parents. I don't know how you do it.
Posted at 07:31PM Dec 19, 2008 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[0]
Jen, Jen, Jen, Jen, Even the Moms that you think have it together, don't. We hate to admit it but most of us are hanging on by a thread. Would it make you feel better to know that I was 15 minutes late for Gabe's speech appointment and "yelled" my kids into the car. Oh right, probably not because I've never pretended to have it together. Just want to let you know that you aren't alone.
Posted by TOOJ on November 18, 2008 at 08:53 PM EST #
Nope, sorry to tell you but it does just get worse the older the get. They do help pick up but more times than not, they have left for school with their dance shoes in the same place they dropped them when they came home the night before. And the laundry, the piles never go away but the bright side is that as they get older, they don't mind living out of the laundry basket because they don't want to fold the clothes. Even with almost 11 years of experience under my belt, I still don't have it together and admit I never will.
And just remember, the ones who appear to have it all together are the ones who loose it in private. To be so secure to not have to maintain that appearance is what it is all about. Hugs!!!
Posted by Marcy McWhorter on November 20, 2008 at 09:54 PM EST #
Remember the wise words of this poem from 1958. (Google it for the rest of the poem.) Keep being the wonderful mother that you are and the rest will take care of itself.
Love, Mom
Cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
For children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.
Posted by Mom on November 20, 2008 at 10:57 PM EST #
Your mom has hit the nail right on the head. Your most important job is to be the best mom you can be. Having an unkept and unclean house drives me up the wall but it is far more important that I love on P and spend as much time with him as possible to soak up every second I have with him that it is to have everything neat and in perfect order. Working from home and having an awesome hubby that helps out a lot allows me to be the mom I am.
Posted by Bethany Watkins on November 21, 2008 at 02:34 PM EST #
I think you're a great mom - but from one McLean to another, PERFECTION IS BORING !!! Why DO we try to do it all? In the end, it's all about the people (family, friends). Hang in there ~ Love, AJ
Posted by AJ on November 21, 2008 at 07:44 PM EST #
LOL! Jen, I've wondered on-and-off all day about what on earth you would have written about me on your blog. I'm finally able to get on and read, and, in fact, you ARE writing about me. Except I'm not even on the escalator -- I've given up and am sitting at the bottom with my chin propped in my hands wondering if there is a secret elevator somewhere! Drop by my house any time you need to feel better about your own housekeeping skills!
Posted by Amy Galvan on November 24, 2008 at 12:02 AM EST #