the mom dilemma

Before I was a mom I had visions of grandeur involving what my life would be like as a Mom. Life was a rude awakening my friends. I am not a working-for-pay mom yet but I am assuming that these problems that I am having as a Mom would plague every kind of Mom. Here is my dilemma, in a nut shell: How does a person get everything done that is supposed to get done? Here is what I would like to get done on a daily basis: cook, daily cleaning and tidying, work out, a few minutes of alone time OR short nap if necessary, spend time with my husband. On a regular basis: big cleaning like mopping, bathrooms, etc, laundry, school work, job applications. Maybe I would even like to have a phone conversation or two. All this needs to occur with a toddler underfoot. Who takes everything out of her dresser when I am putting clothes away in the next room. Who pulls out her favorite books and walks over to me while I am cleaning and says, "BO-ok" and opens my hand and places the book in said hand.

I feel like I can have a clean house but never exercise again, ever and perhaps never let my daughter be a kid. (read: messy, independent, feeding herself, coloring and painting, etc.) Or I can be resigned to a messier house. Here is the kicker...we only have one child right now. Can you imagine what will happen if/when #2 comes along? Hopefully we will be in a bigger house where there will be a play room and toys will not be as invasive on my daily life. For instance, I could walk across my floor without twisting my anle and stubbing my toe and then setting off toys that make noise that have NO OFF switch. Seriously, who makes a noisy toy without an off switch?

It is at times like this that I remember my original blog title...overwhelmed and loving it. Motherhood is not as overwhelming as it was in those first days, and certainly not in the same ways. But life can still be hectic. It is in the handling of that chaos that our true colors show.

Oh, and I have yet to receive a phone call. Positive feelings are dwindling. :(