Lessons learned

Now that I am a stay at home mom, there are certain things that I am learning along the way.  I have had to really lower my expectations in terms of what I have to show at the end of the day.  I have to be okay with the fact that the house rarely looks put together, that my daily wardrobe now consists of sneakers and sweat pants (I think I actually teared up at a recent visit to Ann Taylor when realizing I have no more use for their clothes), and that showering has now turned into a marathon sport.  I am also learning that my interactions with adults have been limited to texting my BFF, Stephanie, no less than 43 times a day, stalking my mother in law with pictures of the kids via text, and my conversations with Eric over dinner.

Eric: "So the meeting went really well today and they liked my idea. How was your day?"

 

Me: "I changed 6 poopy diapers and scolded Cooper for destroying Ansley's flowered hat." 

Cue crickets

Me: But we also got our electric bill in the mail and it wasn't as bad as we thought it would be....And your kids are alive and wearing relatively clean clothes!

Our neighborhood has a really active Mom's Club that has weekly play dates, occasional weekend outings, mother's night out, etc.  So back in December, only a few weeks after Ansley was born, when I signed up to "officially" join the club, I also (in what I can only describe as a fit of postpartum delirium) offered to host a play group at our house.  

I am not sure why, but as the date neared I got anxious about the upcoming event.  What if nobody came?  What if too many people came?  What if our toys weren't challenging/numerous/coordinated enough?  What if I didn't have enough snacks?  What if someone had a gluten allergy?  You get the idea.  Neurotic to the bone.  But that is what happens when you stay with two kids under 3 all day and are hungry for adult interaction.  

So leading up to the day, I baked, cleaned, etc.  I wayyyyyyy over thought the day.  Because at the end of the day, the kids didn't care what we ate, or what they played with.  And the moms didn't care either.  We were just all looking forward to meeting with other people in our same stage of life.  

And as for the cleaning, well, you can see the before and after pictures.  Lesson learned: Lower expectations yet again.  

Nobody cared that I made three different types of muffins.  That's right people!  Three.  Except for Eric and Liam who were not allowed to eat the muffins prior to the play date.

BEFORE: Notice the absent layer of dust and doggie paw prints on the floor.

AFTER: Not visible were the turned over chairs, fragments of all three types of muffins ground into the carpet and couch, foot prints on the coffee table, and puzzle/toy pieces spread to all corners of the house.  That is what 10 kids will do!

Mommy's idea of a real play date.