Hi All,
Today is Monday and I am home with my sick daughter. I admit to being relieved to just get a break from the work grind and her fever is down a little so I can say that without too much mom guilt. This morning I got thinking about the unique challenges that face sober Moms. Last weekend I hit a kid's birthday party where the beverage du jour for the Moms was a giant box of wine or some vodka spiked strawberry lemonade. All of the parents in the kitchen (who seemed to be drinking) appeared to be having so much fun. I admit to a pang of not jealousy but something--envy? I thought quickly about driving my kids home with a buzz (not so cool) and then thought even more about how (for me) there was never a moderate buzz so it would be more like driving them home with a buzz, stopping at the store for a six pack, heading home--drinking the rest of the six pack and feeding my kids peantut butter and jelly--if they were lucky. Because I have not drank since before they were born I dont know what kind of drinking Mom I would be. I pretty much assume I'd be the same alcoholic freak only with kids to haul into my drama tornado this time. Not a pretty picture.
The challenge here is being a parent without the end of the day glass of wine to take the edge off that other parents utilize--seemingly without major problems. It means that I have to find healthy ways to de-stress and/or find ways to not get that stressed in the first place. I think that line about an ounce of prevention is applicable here. Preventing stress or managing it is way easier than attempting to peel myself off the ceiling once I am already there. I have found for me that when I think about drinking is when I allow my life to get unmanageable--if I can keep things mostly together (or as together as 2 kids, a cat, a dog, a full time job, and a marriage allows) then things are a little easier.
One of the ways that I have been really working on to keep myself more sane and my life more manageable is to get organized. I realized that I spend a lot of time being frantic and frazzled because I cant find what I need. While I am looking for whatever it is (small plastic container to kids bento box) I start telling myself nice thigns like: you really need to get your act together loser. Or even my favorite just repeating to myself: wtf? wtf? wtf? over and over. This does not make for a positive or serene beginning of day.
So today I actually organized all of my plastic wear. It may sound like a small thing to all but to me this represents one small step into a more manageable morning. Skills like organization and time management dont always come easy to me. I think somewhere along the line I decided that organized people were annoying and so I discounted just how important being organized can be. Now, I see the error of myways and I am ready to humble myself before my type A counterparts to seek their advice and tips. Look out. Super K is on her way...xxK
Today is Monday and I am home with my sick daughter. I admit to being relieved to just get a break from the work grind and her fever is down a little so I can say that without too much mom guilt. This morning I got thinking about the unique challenges that face sober Moms. Last weekend I hit a kid's birthday party where the beverage du jour for the Moms was a giant box of wine or some vodka spiked strawberry lemonade. All of the parents in the kitchen (who seemed to be drinking) appeared to be having so much fun. I admit to a pang of not jealousy but something--envy? I thought quickly about driving my kids home with a buzz (not so cool) and then thought even more about how (for me) there was never a moderate buzz so it would be more like driving them home with a buzz, stopping at the store for a six pack, heading home--drinking the rest of the six pack and feeding my kids peantut butter and jelly--if they were lucky. Because I have not drank since before they were born I dont know what kind of drinking Mom I would be. I pretty much assume I'd be the same alcoholic freak only with kids to haul into my drama tornado this time. Not a pretty picture.
The challenge here is being a parent without the end of the day glass of wine to take the edge off that other parents utilize--seemingly without major problems. It means that I have to find healthy ways to de-stress and/or find ways to not get that stressed in the first place. I think that line about an ounce of prevention is applicable here. Preventing stress or managing it is way easier than attempting to peel myself off the ceiling once I am already there. I have found for me that when I think about drinking is when I allow my life to get unmanageable--if I can keep things mostly together (or as together as 2 kids, a cat, a dog, a full time job, and a marriage allows) then things are a little easier.
One of the ways that I have been really working on to keep myself more sane and my life more manageable is to get organized. I realized that I spend a lot of time being frantic and frazzled because I cant find what I need. While I am looking for whatever it is (small plastic container to kids bento box) I start telling myself nice thigns like: you really need to get your act together loser. Or even my favorite just repeating to myself: wtf? wtf? wtf? over and over. This does not make for a positive or serene beginning of day.
So today I actually organized all of my plastic wear. It may sound like a small thing to all but to me this represents one small step into a more manageable morning. Skills like organization and time management dont always come easy to me. I think somewhere along the line I decided that organized people were annoying and so I discounted just how important being organized can be. Now, I see the error of myways and I am ready to humble myself before my type A counterparts to seek their advice and tips. Look out. Super K is on her way...xxK
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