The common sentiment among many of my parent friends is that there's really not enough time to keep your house spic and span 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Some have resorted to hiring cleaning ladies to help keep up with the day-to-day chores. I would love someone to clean the house once a week but at this point it's more a luxury than a need.
It's not everyday that our house is a 'disaster' zone but when things get busy (like around the Holidays) ...things just start to pile on top of each other. It's 8 days before Christmas and there is lots to do to get ready! From unwrapped presents to laundry to groceries to scattered toys.....everywhere I look there's something that needs to be done. We won't kill ourselves over a laundry basket that hasn't been put away for a couple days. We know that things will get done.....eventually.
I'm sure a lot of parents will agree that sometimes you feel that you can't catch up to where you really want to be. My wife and I just try to really try to have a sense of humour about everything. She's really good at keeping things in perspective. I think I mentioned before that I asked her once why she doesn't 'worry'. She said it's because, "I'm just a happy person".
She's just a happy person she says. Phew! At least one of us is in a generally happy state 24/7. Meanwhile, I tend to think of the micro-details of everything and get caught up in its web too often. I struggle to get myself untangled. When I get those moments, I hear my friend's voice in my head saying -- "Don't get too stressed out - STOP CARING SO MUCH!" It's not that I shouldn't care. I just need to 'relax' a little.
A year and a half into this parenting business, I'm not really sure if it's getting 'easier'. As each month passes, the previous month just becomes a bit of a blur. Each month I just think -- we survived another one. I take comfort that my wife and I are still standing -- together.
Getting married and raising a family was what we wanted for our life as a couple. The 'reality' is just a tad different from the 'dream'. But I'd rather have the reality over it just being a 'dream'. Every time I see our son sleeping peacefully each night, it's enough of an accomplishment for the day. All the dirty dishes, unfolded laundry, and whatever chore that's been left undone -- doesn't seem so important. Whatever we did during the day that allowed our son to sleep peacefully - it's enough.
This is truly all we could hope for each day. Tomorrow we will try again.


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