Radio Silence

My apologies for the dead air for the past two weeks.  A combination of busy calendar and kids testing my limits with yet another round of nap wars (sprinkled with a heap of general consistent defiance) have buried my blog thoughts a few rungs down on the priority list. But I’m going to survive. There’s hope.

Lately….

• The kids break through our slider onto the deck at 8am Sunday morning belting out Baby Beluga at the top of their lungs.  We vow to never introduce “the song that never ends.”
• Dylan declared “It’s not fair” for the first time when forced to clean up a deliberate mess he had made.
• I might be in the hundreds for telling Whitney “get back in bed.”
• Three times in the past week the kids have put on matching clothes on purpose in the morning.  “Look mommy, we have shark shirts!”
• While trying to multitask alongside Whitney who was playing, she said “mommy.  phone.  here.”  and pointed to the floor…this was the first (and hopefully only?!?) time she asked me to put the phone down because I’m not paying attention to her. 🙁
• I gave Dylan his first haircut with clippers (third haircut overall)…thanks to pinterest and youtube for tutorials, and the iPad for enough distraction for us both to survive unscathed.
• Tyler started a new job!  We’re grateful for many things about it…and are still adjusting to the new rhythm of life it brings.
• I’ve been scrambling to get things in order to go to Italy, TOMORROW!!!!!

That’s right, I’m the lucky one who somehow scored the husband’s blessing to sip cappuccinos thousands of miles away without him or the kids!  I’m traveling with my sister, helping usher her into the passport-wielding world.  Thinking about and planning this trip has been unbelievably exciting.  At the same time, thinking about missing my man and the kids has been…well, I just don’t want to think about it.  Yet given the past two weeks of short fuses and exhaustion I’m thinking a getaway and then a restart could benefit us all.  Motherhood is a joy and delight, no doubt, and at the same time it is the hardest thing I have ever attempted.  I’m constantly face to face with shortcomings in my character and frustrated alter egos I never knew existed have reared their ugly heads from time to time.  I’m not sure if I can convey how much it means to me that I have a chance to step away for a bit, have gobs of discretionary time, and clean up [only] my own messes for a change.  Ciao, friends.  May we all pursue some hope-giving plans in the near future.

My little readers.

…and again.

This next one, my friends, is a picture of beauty. Of sanity…hope…a moment that kept me going.
  And if you think of it, say a little prayer for Tyler as he dives deep into the chaos for a while (with my mom’s help).