Balance

There are ladies I know who seem to have it all together.  You know them too.  They make it look effortless.  They ALWAYS look beautiful and their kids are dressed well.  Their houses are clean.  Their beds are made.  They keep on top of things.  They cook gourmet(ish) meals every night and their laundry is done.  They find the time to read and make the time to stay in shape.

I am not one of those ladies.

I feel that I’m often playing catch up.  Juggling too many balls at the same time, hoping not to drop one…or two.  I don’t remember feeling this way when Jaia was 11 months old, but I have to keep reminding myself that when Jaia was 11 months I was sleeping well and I did not have another child to take care of.  I was not shuttling one back and forth while trying to maintain a consistent nap schedule for the other.

Having two kids is harder than I thought it would be.  It’s more magical, beautiful and amazing than I thought it would be, but it’s a lot more work.  Twice the mess, twice the games, twice the stories, but half the energy and about one quarter of the sleep.  Definitely not a recipe for a clean house, coifed hair and deliciously complex dinners.

So, I’m not one of those ladies, but I am one of the ones who does her absolute best.  Who loves her kids fiercely.  Who snaps pictures all day long, every day because I don’t want to risk forgetting even one second (I’m forgetful, remember?).  Who would rather let the laundry pile up in order to snuggle up with my girl and watch Tangled for the 1000th time.  Who spends half her day playing Barbies, colouring or pretending to  eat chicken-pizza-green grape soup and the other half chasing a very rambunctious 1 year old away from the stairs, the outlets or the fireplace.  (Perhaps we need to work on our baby-proofing skills).  And all this was before I started working again.

Add in work to an already packed schedule and I am OVERWHELMED.  The past few weeks have been hard.  Whatever balance I had found is out the window.  Gone.  And say goodbye to any free time that I once enjoyed.

So…I’m in the market for tips on how you make it work.  How to stay (somewhat) organized and (sort of) on top of things.  I know you have tips.  I need all the help I can get.  Ideas?  Please?