Surviving As Mom

Yesterday was our first big snow of the season. We had a Nor’Easter which gave us about 7 inches of fresh, fluffy snow. I love the snow but only when I don’t have anywhere to go. This is also the first snow in our new house. The landscape is absolutely gorgeous! We have such a beautiful view in every direction. Having everything coated in fresh clean snow is just spectacular! I can’t get enough of it.

I was thankful to feel pretty good when I woke up. I didn’t feel terribly sick, my body wasn’t too achy, and my energy was pretty good. I woke up in a good mood and wanted to enjoy the day. The schools were closed for the snow day so the kids stayed home. I was determined to make it a fun day for everyone! I turned on some nice music, as I try to do most days. The house was a total disaster from the kids, so I made everyone help me clean. I refused to clean everyone else’s mess again. It was also a good exercise in accountability and responsibility. I assigned each of the 4 children a zone to clean up and they actually did a good job. I was impressed at how well my plan worked. Everything was cleaned up in about 10 mins. I LOVE a clean home. I LOVE organization. When my home is clean and tidy, my mind is calm and I am happy and relaxed.

After this, we all got dressed in layers and headed out into the fresh snow. We have some small hills on our property so we were excited to go sledding. The 2 younger kids never actually had this experience yet. The older boys tried it once when they were toddlers, so they probably don’t remember. In the past, we had to go to a local park with nice hills to go sledding. We only did it once, since leaving the house with toddlers was too much effort for me most days. I’ve always felt terribly guilty for this. Back to yesterday… We all went outside, minus Dad. I wanted to be with the kids when they went sledding for the first time. I was excited for them and I didn’t want to miss it. I knew I’d probably regret the physical activity, but I wanted to enjoy the moment with my kids. I pulled them around a little and helped them get started. They loved it and we all had so much fun!

I love how calm everything is after a good snow storm. The air was pleasant with a gentle breeze and it smelled so clean. It was cold, but refreshing. I was bundled up nicely so I was pretty comfortable. I was truly enjoying the moment. All the walking through thick snow and pulling the kids started to tire me out, but I kept going. I didn’t want the fun to end. After about 45 mins, I had to give in and go back inside to rest. I was exhausted, but very satisfied. I came in to rest for a bit while watching the kids continue to play outside.

I was surprised that after I rested for only about 30 mins, I perked up again. I was still slow, but I was able to get up and move around. I was also quite motivated which is a welcome feeling. Throughout the rest of the day, I tended to the children and all their wet clothing changes and continued to tidy up the house. I even hung up some pictures and art around the house. I’ve never been good with hanging things on the wall, and I have a large stack of framed items waiting to be given a home. I only did about 6 pieces, but it was still something. I even cooked a proper dinner for everyone, which again, is a rare occasion these days. I love accomplishing things! This is always such a great feeling, compared to laying around being useless all day. I felt almost like a normal wife and mother for the day. I was in very good spirits! Overall, it was a great day!

Today I woke up feeling mostly ok again. I’m hopeful I can be as productive today too. I’ve been feeling a little less zombie-like the last few days. Dare I say my flare is coming to an end? I don’t want to get my hopes up only to be disappointed when it all comes crashing down again, but I can hang on to a little sliver of hope that maybe I’m turning a corner. As always, I’m just taking it day by day. Yesterday was a good day. Today seems to be going in the same direction so I’m hopeful. Only time will tell.