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I think one of life's greatest lessons is flexibility, and not in the yoga downward dog sort of way. I am talking about rolling with and through life's literal punches. I have been learning this lesson ever since I became a stay at home mom.
For some reason when I worked full-time, I didn't really see the need to be flexible. I knew what each day was going to contain and rarely found myself in unpredictable situations. The hardest things that I faced were grumpy dental patients and sick babysitters. And I got pretty good at dealing with gum-flapping non-teeth brushers and my babysitter rarely cancelled. Easy peasy.
It is not same anymore. I used to wonder why stay-at-home-moms complained about not having enough time in the day to do this or that because I only had two or three hours to do what they did in eight. I now understand why things don't always work out.
I can't tell you how many times a week I get an unexpected phone call from a friend to watch their child/children last minute. One hour of babysitting often turns into three or four. I also can't count how many time V decides napping is not a priority and therefore my "alone" time gets kicked out the door. I should also note that Mya thinks destroying any pile I create is the best activity on the planet...so folding clothes is not a realistic option and doing dishes is a joke when she is awake.
To top it all, one of the four of us is almost always sick. Runny noses, itchy red eyes, tummy aches, headaches, backaches, coughs, fevers plague us. I recently learned I have a cyst in an unfortunate spot of my body which causes me a lot of pain. I take some medicine to make me feel better, and it makes me sleepy within three minutes so I can't really take it when I have to care for my peanuts which means I just feel blah all day.
I'm telling you...flexibility...is one of life's greatest lessons. I feel like I am bending all the time and sometimes I see improvements in how far I can stretch myself. It's pretty amazing. I felt awful this morning but received a phone call from a frantic dad needing my help to watch his daughter for the day. I looked in the mirror and examined my tired eyes and worn out body as he explained his situation and agreed to help him because you know what...he was worse off than I was. I chugged a coke in a matter of minutes and felt better before he knocked on my door.
I didn't think I'd survive today, but I did. I always do.
How are you learning to be flexible?
Oh, it IS difficult to become flexible, especially when life used to revolve around ME ME ME and then suddenly the center of the universe becomes this tiny, needy person! At the moment my little Dot is going through a clingy phase, so I can't step out of the room without feeling as if the neighbours will call child protection services from her screaming! It means I've learned to let the little things go, learned how to balance an 11-month old on my hip while doing lots of chores around the house, and giving her a pile of towels to "put away" in a drawer while I fold laundry (it works! And a few small towels are easy to fold once you're done!). It's still hard though, and yes, when naps aren't happening, a Coke is DEFINITELY needed for that energy boost!
ReplyDeleteGreat opening line woman. Well done.
ReplyDeleteI stay at home w my 3 kiddos and I completely agree with struggling with the art of being "flexible." I also run my own freelance makeup business which I do while I'm at home, which is even more difficult than if I had a "real" office outside of my home to go to. I can't just get away from my kids to have peace and quiet to respond to emails and contact clients- I have to be flexible around their schedules and moods! Great post for sure!
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