Being a Homemaker is HARD

I had this vision that once I quit my job to stay home full time I would magically have all the time in the world to do all the wifely, motherly, homemaker stuff that I felt was neglected when I worked. One word, WRONG. Staying home is mega hard work, maybe if my kids, or one on them was in school, it would be easier. The first three weeks I barely stayed afloat. My only accomplishments were getting the laundry done (not always put away wrinkle free) and keeping the dishwasher running enough that you could sometimes see the sink and counters. I spent a lot of time worrying that I wasn't stimulating Gumba enough, what do you do with a two year old? And how do you balance the needs of one needy child with the other needy child? The weeks were also spent sleep training Gumba-ba. After three weeks of hair pulling, crying (me and baby), and frustration, I found a saint who has given me sound advice (at least I think) and the support to get him sleeping. I'll say that it worked fairly quickly. Within a week he had gone from waking every hour with an hour and a half wake period in the middle of night, to waking up twice to nurse and putting himself to sleep quickly if he woke. Hurray! Well, there are set backs always. Both boys have ear infections, so, now I'm back to listening to Gumba-ba cry several times a night while I re-train him to sleep. The hope is of course that it won't take as long this time. I myself am getting over a cold that knocked me on my butt. I've officially been home for a month now and finally feel like I'm gaining ground. A friend gave me a great website for daycare people/stay at home mom's so I feel better about the "educating" part.

Husband has been gone more then any of us really like. He is working three jobs: Lieutenant at the fire department, preceptor with the paramedic program at the hospital, and he just recently started working for a military medivac company. I'm making sure he's enjoying himself, and have on more then one occasion let him know that my sanity is worth more then the extra shift he can pick up. He is averaging seven days off a month. I know that's pretty typical, but of the 25 days or so that he is working, 15 of those days are 24 hour shifts. Plus, he works at the hospital at nights. It has been typical for us not to see him for four days at a time. Let's just say I'm here a lot by myself with the kids, and getting Gumba-ba to sleep better has been a necessity.

So, my hats off to those women (and men) out there that have choosen the more difficult path to be fully involved in your kids all day lives. Keep up the good work. And, if I've learned anything, it's rest when you can, and make sure you get out of the house when you can for a little "me" time.