I was reading a post from Pampers and Pinot called "Supermom is a Myth". It made me feel so much better to know that other moms go through what I go through on any given day. Somewhere, at some point, I was led to believe that moms should be able to do it all - keep the house clean, feed the family with nutritious meals, entertain the kids with educational activities, all while working a full time job. This is an absolute lie. People pay professionals thousands of dollars to make it appear true, but no one woman can do this on her own and still maintain any sort of life balance.
Now, while on mat leave, I've been able to master the nutritious meals component of this absurd reality. Thanks to Weight Watchers, Hungry Girl and a myriad of other online sources, I actually do cook my family very healthy meals. What will happen to this tradition once I'm back at work and coming home at 5pm when the kids have to be in the bath by 6:15 is anyone's guess. But meals are really where my accomplishments end.
My house is a disaster. There are toys everywhere, dirty dishes on the counter, a pile of laundry in the bedroom, piles of papers to be attended to "one day"... and believe me, this is all not for lack of trying. With the addition of our 4 month old daughter and my almost 3yr old's new potty training adventure, LAUNDRY NEVER STOPS. I am wearing a groove in the hallway from all the trips back and forth to the laundry room. The dishes never seem to reach that magic point where ALL the dishes are clean at once. I don't actually believe that point exists.
My husband, God bless him, works from home. This is not always as fabulous as it might seem from the outset. Yes, he is often there to take over when Mommy is about to lose her mind, or if I'm busy feeding the baby when our son announces he has to pee right then and there. On the other hand, as a self-employed computer consultant, his work could happen at any time, whenever a client needs him. He doesn't have standard days off each week to take the kids while I run around like a madwoman cleaning the house. There is no consistency to when I might have a precious pocket of time to clean the bathroom. As a result, I feel like I'm doing housework all day long, running to switch over laundry or wipe down a counter while the little man is otherwise occupied with his toys or something on (gasp) TV.
Yes, he watches TV. Admittedly, he probably watches too much TV. He also goes to preschool, swimming lessons, plays outside, goes to the park, goes for walks, colours, plays with his HotWheels, plays in forts we build...if throwing in "Cars" or "Up" for the 7 billionth time means I might get a few minutes of downtime, then by God I'm going to do it.
Judge me if you will. I'm sure the nice people at Disney/Pixar think I'm just swell.
You are not alone sister! As I sit hear taking a break from organizing the closet and doing dishes I realize that my house is in the same state. What is it about 3 year olds that makes them seem like cyclones of toys, clothes and messes that blow through the house on a whim leaving nothing but destruction behind them?
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