If you live in New England, you know that every March you have to brace yourself to take those last few hits Mother Nature’s got in her before she’s ready to let go of winter. The boom before the bloom, if you will. Because my office is in our home, having the kids home for a snow day can mean a much less productive workday, to say the least.
My Aunt Maureen taught me a lesson many years ago: Throw money at the problem. When I was home with the kids and G was working 24/7 on start-ups, I was going completely mad as a stay-at-home mom with four babies. The thought of getting a sitter for a few hours felt like such a luxury item. But, because I adore my aunt and completely trust her guidance—I took her advice. I began hiring help for things that overwhelmed me: the kids, cleaning the house, those D-I-Y projects that I was never going to D-myself…etc.
As soon as those snowstorms were on the horizon throughout the last two weeks, I lined up a sitter for the kids. As a result, I weathered the storms a whole lot better. Another great thing about getting help? I stop bad-girling myself for not being everything to everyone. Come on March—show me what you’ve got!
Welcome to my blog! Here you can read about what’s on my mind as I try my best to recover from screaming at my kids and nagging the bejesus out my husband.
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Kate Grimes says:
Ok, have to write a comment on this one. God bless you Aunt Maureen and where were you during my early days of motherhood. I, too, thought “babysitters” were a luxury that were not for me. I think it was a worthy thing, a “I couldn’t do that” but didnt really flesh it out the why. Or perhaps, being a worthy thing (&Im sure rapped up in my mother’s constant state of “lack”), I prob didnt have the inclination to explore the depths of that either. “What would be good for Kate right now” is not a question I would have known was a legit question to ask, even to a mother experiencing PPD. So now we know. We can care for the self. And everyone around us is happier, healthier for it.
mags says:
Thanks so much for your comments Kate.
It’s kind of one of those lessons that’s never too late to learn, and good-on-you for figuring it out!
Now, it’s the keeping up with the self-care that’s the work.
We can do this!