Highs and Lows

Ahhh, the ups and downs of motherhood! J was out of town for work from Thursday at 8 a.m. until Saturday at midnight. You might wonder why I note the times...because with two toddlers, every minute (and especially every bedtime) on your own counts. I was pretty proud of myself for the first couple of days...and only for the first couple of days...

Thursday: It was T's birthday and we enjoyed the park with friends, some ice cream from good old McDonald's, and then had some friends over for the afternoon. We skipped naps and the kids were in bed by 8! Glorious! I watched the Office and 30 Rock leisurely by myself.

Friday: We spent the day out at The Grove LA with a friend, ate lunch out, and got T a free birthday Sundae (you've got to milk these things - you'll see a theme here). Minimal naps and kids in bed by 9. Too late for my taste, but not the worst thing ever. I went to bed right after them.

Saturday: Fire House day! The kids had the best time chasing this mini Freddie the firetruck around, climbing on the trucks, eating their first snow cones, getting hats and balloons from a giant Dalmation, watching demonstrations, and enjoying free chips and drinks. They were so happy and we had a blast! We followed it up by redeeming T's free Rubio's meal coupon and then we headed out for our nap drive. Things were pretty good.

Then, we got the call about daddy's delayed flight. And it all went downhill. You wouldn't think seeing him 3 hours later would be that big of a deal. But you would be wrong. The kids didn't realize it. It was me. See, I had geared myself up for "single-mom" status for only a specified amount of time. And that time was up.

The real problem was, I had let the kids nap assuming that I would have daddy be able to help me get them to their beds. Bedtime with two kids of the same age is difficult. They each have a little soothing routine (B with me and T with J) and without that they do not fall asleep easily. Neither one will go to sleep knowing the other one is still awake. It has to be simultaneous. So, all you can do when you are alone is put on Curious George the Movie for the third time and wait until they fall asleep watching. This is significantly later. In the case of Saturday, it wasn't until after 10 p.m.!!!! I was not a happy mom. I was an extremely grumpy mom. I thought I was going to lose it. I just kept grumbling to myself about how I was going to be ringing in Mother's Day with two toddlers who are still awake. Whine. Whine. Whine.


Then, upswing the next day! That morning J and I alternated sleeping in. We took the kids to the beach in Malibu (the beach is my favorite place in the world!), ate Chipotle for lunch, and chased that with some frozen yogurt from a delicious new little shop. And best of all, I got to play with my great husband and amazing kids. So, I guess all's well that ends well. J travels again all too soon and for a lot longer. Oh Boy!
Here's to the ride!


B loved the ladybugs she and daddy found in the sand. She was all about picking them up. Unfortunately, some met untimely deaths because of her enthusiasm :)


:) Author's Note: After I wrote this I remembered my last Mother's day with a 12 month old and a 15 month old, neither of whom slept through the night and in fact still took bottles in the middle of it. Add to that the fact that I spent the day in urgent care with a horrendous sore throat finding out that I had mono and it would take 4-6 weeks and a lot of bedrest while caring for two toddlers to feel better. How's that for some much needed perspective for myself. A 10:30 bedtime doesn't sound so bad after all. :)