It seems that I always get way behind on household duties over the weekend. I get so caught up in enjoying time with my family that the laundry doesn’t get done and things can quickly get cluttered.
I’m sure many of you can relate to this.
I started out yesterday morning feeling quite stressed about the state of our home. It felt as if I had SO MUCH to do that it would never get done if I didn’t work, work, work all day long.
I started the morning by taking about five loads of laundry to the basement laundry room of our stairwell and began a load in the small washer in our apartment. While clothes were washing, I quickly began running around the house straightening and decluttering.
I worked all morning long and was feeling pretty good about my progress.
When Keith came home for lunch, I ran out to our Arts and Crafts center to run some important errands.
By naptime all of the clothes in the basement laundry room except for one load were dry and ready to be folded. I spent naptime folding clothes and baking two batches of Smore brownies. Don’t worry….one was to give away.
I was so proud of how productive my day was going and feeling pretty good about myself….until nap time ended.
After Will and the girls got up and had snacks we got ready and walked over to the playground nearby. They played for approximately ten minutes before it started to rain and we had to walk back home.
Because we had to cut our playground time short, I promised the girls that I would play a game with them. We played Old Maid for the first time.
That took us up to time for dinner to be prepared. Before we ate, I delivered a pan of brownies. Dinner and bedtime followed.
After the kids were all tucked into bed. I looked around and surveyed the house. Things were a little less cluttered than they were at the beginning of the day, some clothes were folded and put away, but there were still two baskets of clothes waiting to be folded, one load still in the downstairs laundry room, and one in our washer and dryer.
My initial reaction was to be extremely disappointed in myself with a feeling of utter frustration. I told my husband, “I was doing so well today and then something happened. I don’t know what….”
His response was, “You took the kids to the park and played with them. You stopped what you were doing to play Old Maid with the girls and they appreciated that.”
And he is completely right.
I may not have tackled every single thing on my to-do list for the day.
I may not have completely decluttered the entire house.
I may not have tackled our enormous pile of laundry….washing, drying, folding, and putting every last piece away.
What I did was more important than any of that.
I tackled the task of spending time with my children.
I played with them.
I talked with them.
I taught them a new game.
And at the end of the day, that’s what matters.
The housework is important but never more important than my children.
I wasn’t going to post anything for Tackle It Tuesday this week, but I have decided that this was the most important tackle that I could have done.
I’ll just begin a new day today, tackling the housework and laundry all over again. It will get done. And if it doesn’t because I have chosen to play with EA, MC, and Will then, okay, I can life with that.
My prayer, though, is that I can find balance and prioritize my time between the housework and time with my children.
You can visit Tackle It Tuesday at 5 Minutes for Mom to see what other moms have tackled this week.
jess says
Thanks Mon This was a huge comfort to how I feel about 85% of the time with Makayla vs. the House. I was really blessed by what you had to share. Love you
Ann Marie says
I love how you are able to share things about your life that are so easy to relate to. By finding your own peace about daily tasks/parenting/marriage you are also able to inspire and reassure me – Thank you! 🙂
Uma says
Here, here! I can completely relate as I always feel exactly the same comes Monday morning when our house looks like a frat party wreck, but there are three pairs of eyes begging for my attention. I love how our husbands are always there to interject a dose of appreciative observations when we are most critical of ourselves.
homegrownstrawberries says
Yay! Though I confess I frequently spend time with the kids and not with the house, so for me the balance need to go the other way because I am totally content the the nonperishable groceries never making it all the way to the pantry and the laundry being used before its put away… and My husband is not and its not a good example for care for my kids.
Linda@cookingtipoftheday says
Time with your family is the most important thing …. you’re right.. balance is important… children grow up and you can’t go back and fill in time missed with them… you did the right thing.
Thanks for sharing… you are not alone… I for one have felt that way and still do at times even though my son is grown…
You had a very busy day and very productive…. and you did most of your “To Do” list…. even today I do “To Do” lists…. but mine are running “To Do” lists…. things I know I have to do… but realistically… they all can’t be done in a day…. they’re on the list so I can remember everything and prioritize…. and checking them off reminds me of how much I really did and gives me a sense of accomplishment…. look at what you did not at what you didn’t get to.