A Day in the Life
As a Stay at home mom that lives in Florida, many people seem to think I spend my days hanging around the beach or pool, going to Disney or other amusement parks and sipping away on a Mai Tai all day. As fun as that sounds it isn't me at all. Each day brings its own struggles and joys and I like taking life one day at a time. No two days are the same in my life. One day I may be at an amusement park, another I could be at home all day.
To be honest I am not nearly as scheduled as I thought I would be as a mom. I really thought I would have a schedule for everything because that is how I was before having a child. I knew exactly where I was going to be and what time I would be there. Planning with a child is difficult because depending on their mood you may or may not do everything you had planned for the day. Some days I have everything together and Xander and I are dressed and out the door on a new adventure. Other days we have pajama day and we watch Disney movies and build forts.
Going on a walk around the neighborhood is one of our favorite things to do each day. I like to point out the flowers and trees, while Xander is yelling beep beep for every car that passes. I try to make it a point to have a walk each day. These walks are something that we both look forward to,It gets us out the house, it's a teaching moment and it calms me down after I have visited the grocery store for the 5th time this week because I forgot something on my list. This is almost a daily ritual of mine. I am so thankful that he usually goes with the flow when I have to make those short trips to grab the ingredients I need for dinner that evening.
Cooking is a love of mine, I make sure to have dinner on the table for my husband by 7 each day. That is one ritual that I would say is scheduled in my home. Eating together as a family is a huge deal to me. Turn off the TV and the radio and sit down at the table and discuss the highs and lows of your day. That is something that my grandmother did with her family, my mother did with us and something I will continue to do with my family. This is the most important time of the day to me because it means my husband can sit down and have heart to heart talks with my son and I.He knows that around 6:00pm its time for us to start making dinner for dad. He loves being my little helper.
Our son knows that when dad gets home to walk right over to his high chair to eat. He knows when all the plates are cleared he needs to announce "MY BATH" because that is HIS time to spend with dad. I love to sneak in and hear the two of them playing, laughing and discussing algorithms and programming(my husband is determined to teach our son programming)This small ritual is something I cherish and love look in on, to see your son and husband bonding is a priceless gift that I am so appreciative of. Some days dinner may be takeout that my husband brings home because I've had a rough day but sitting at the table as a family is something we both insist on. It strengthens us as a couple and a family and we all look forward to those special moments at the end of our day.
The bittersweet reality of a day is that once it ends you can never get it back but if you had a bad day, there is joy in knowing a fresh day will start again soon. So what if I wasn't able to have dinner done on time, that I didn't get out of my pajamas all day, that I have cleaned up my living room twenty times and folded that laundry more times than I can count. To quote one of my favorite movies "After all, tomorrow is another day"(I am giving you the BIGGEST high five through the screen if you know what movie I am referencing) I remind myself on hectic days that I am not alone and there are mothers who are doing the same thing.
No matter what we accomplish in the day, we shouldn't put ourselves down. We can always feel great knowing that we did our best that day and we met the needs of our child. That's what is important at the end of each day.