Treading Water

As I sit and read through blogs of women older than myself, those in their 40s or 50s, I find a bit of a pattern developing. Those that no longer have young children at home, and some that do, are talking of how wonderful their lives are now that they've come through their divorce. They aren't saying that their divorce was wonderful, just that they are currently happier than they were in marriage.

Is that the way of it now? That you raise your kids then bail? Not on your kids of course. Yes, I'm rambling. When did it become acceptable to leave a 20 year marriage because the kids are finally grown? I don't know what went on in these marriages and it is none of my business. What is my business is what happens in my marriage. We celebrated our anniversary last week. 14 years. It came and went as often it does. We have become complacent and after reading one more blog about a woman succeeding at being single and 40 or 50 I decided that I had had enough. Enough of going through the motions of simply making it through the day. Enough of discussing the children but not each others hopes and dreams.

Every day is a gift. What if you were told that you had 30 days to live? Would you do the same thing you do everyday? Would you wait for your spouse or your children to say I love you? Would you wait to take that camping trip or to visit that national monument that you've always wanted to see? Make every moment count. Tell your family what they mean to you and start working together to create the bond you once had.

What is holding you back?

Procrastination Bites or You Can't Iron in the Dark

All week we've been in prep mode for back to school. I even had the kids lay out their clothes before they went to bed last night. This is awesome for me because Summer has been a little crazy.

Who am I kidding? Between having 4 kids home from school, working full-time FROM HOME and moving into a new house, I am surprised I'm still sane.

So why was I trying to iron in the dark?

The entire last few weeks have been nothing but doctor's appointments and school registration meetings. Work has been regulated to a couple of hours in the morning and in the middle of the night. I'm tired to say the least.

Soooo, last night, the night before the first day of school. I had some work to catch up on and figured I would work until 1 or 2am, crash, get up at 4 or 5am to pack lunches and iron my husband's work clothes. Made sense at the time.

Note to self: Check weather channel before pursuing lame ass plan.

Yes I awoke at 3am to a loud noise and the realization that the power was off. Not only was the power off, but it seemed as if the heaven's had opened up to release the wrath of Zeus. Lightening flashed so much that candles were only needed in rooms where there were no windows.

This is the point in the story where I'm praying that the power comes on before 5am and ready to beat my head against the wall because I didn't do all of my household chores before crashing. I wait til 6am and start fumbling in the dark for NurtiGrain bars and Pop Tarts. The true breakfast of champions.

Oh and those work clothes? Sorry hubby but you're stuck with jeans today. Sucks, but you can't iron in the dark and candlelight does no good because the iron is still cold. Who knew?

Thankfully we have power now, although all I want to do is sleep. If I give in to the sleepiness then I will procrastinate again. It's a double edged sword because I am very cranky and not being very patient. Then again I can't put things off because I have wet sheets in the washer right now. Procrastination will lead to some really nasty smelling sheets and my daughter sleeping on a bare mattress.

Ahh the joys of motherhood. And I thought most of my sleepless nights were over when my youngest turned three. Well, until my oldest is a teenager anyway. Oh hell, we all know that you don't sleep well until the youngest is out of the house.

Back to the point. Don't put things off because life will throw you a curve ball that will knock you in the head and make you see little tweety birds.