Mommy Duty

Last week I was in the middle of things (and a lot of them) when my husband made a comment that sent me flying off the handle. Now, before I launch into this story, let me tell you that he is a wonderful man and very helpful, but apparently this was a day when he'd 1) had a temporary lapse in judgement or 2) meant this more in a jokingly way and failed miserably in the delivery. I am going to believe that the delivery was lacking that day.

The rug rats last Monday

I am a mother of three children, ages 7 months to 7 years. There is never a quiet, peaceful uneventful time in our house during normal waking hours. I also work full time which is not nearly as important as my Mommy job. Those of you that are mommies know that you are required to plan the play dates, check the homework, feed the crew, do the shopping, clean the house, do the laundry, pack the lunches, kiss the boo boos, wipe the noses (and tears), play dress up, be able to handle a light saber with the appropriate level of "umph" to get the battle done, be a walking encyclopedia/dictionary/thesaurus, a million other things. (For those of you who are soon-to-be mommies, please note that you are required to perform any of these skills at the drop of a hat and often multiple skills at one time.)

That night, I was attempting to finish up homework with two of the kids, unload/reload the dishwasher, cook dinner, feed the baby, get at least one load of laundry completed, and I had to make a unscheduled trip into the attic to look for an article of clothing. Things were rolling at a decent pace and I thought that I was doing good to have most of the activities centered in two adjacent rooms and not spread all over the house (as the y usually tend to be). In walks my dear hubby and out flies, "Dinner isn't ready yet?". I, because of work and the time I lose commuting, usually cook dinner in the crock pot (my saving grace). Tonight was a little different because a portion of dinner could not be cooked in the crock pot and I had to finish it once I got home. The look I gave him apparently wasn't scary enough because it was brought to my attention that of all the tasks I had going on, none were completed (though they were really close to being completed) and on top of that, time was ticking away and basketball practice was quickly approaching. Then I heard the words, "And I thought you were good at multitasking.... (chuckle)" SERIOUSLY?!?! 

At this point do I:

   A) Look for the nearest light saber to attack him with?

   B) Burst into tears?

   C) Grab my keys and head to Chick-fil-a for a great dinner - alone?

   D) None of the above but not without serious consideration

D. I managed to keep my calm (and hold back the tears) when I told him that he was dang lucky that any of this was going on because I had been battling a monster of a headache the entire day and I wanted nothing more than to curl up in a dark room and attempt to sleep. 

So, if you haven't heard it recently or heard it often enough, kudos to all of the moms for making multitasking a true art form. Sure, we do tend to get distracted from time to time, but in the end, it all gets done and everyone gets what they need and when they need it. Sure, we may function on minimal hours of sleep,  sometimes appear a little jittery from the volumes of caffeine flowing through our veins, and long for a magic wand/fairy to come and relieve us of a few of the more daunting tasks (like the laundry), but we do it all because we love our families (and fear the chaos that might ensue if we relinquish all of our duties). 

On a side note: I do love that the 5 and 7 year old are beginning to get old enough to help with some of the smaller tasks. Layne will graciously help me and oftentimes without me asking. Blair is a bit more of a challenge, she is under the misconception that when you turn 13 you don't have to do any chores (I guess you get a magic cleaning fairy?). She was hugely disappointed when I told her that unless she inherited a small fortune and could afford to hire her own maid, her workload was just going to increase the older she became.