Super Mom I'm Not

I love my mom to death, but man she makes me feel so incompetent. She comes over to baby sit, and in the 2 hours she has Nathaniel, she has time to play with him, do the dishes, and clean off my kitchen counter.

I am with him every afternoon, and all we ever get to do it play and make a bigger mess. I never feel like I get a chance to clean up the house. I don't regret the time spent playing with Nathaniel, but I get so backed up with everything else. By the time he goes to bed, I am purely exhausted. I end up falling asleep myself, usually around 8:30. What kind of life is that?

I also have a facebook friend who makes me feel like super sloth. She has a 2 year old daughter, just a few weeks younger than Nathaniel, but she gets some much done during the day. I am just in awe of her, too. She's a stay at home mom, but I know how crazy that can be, so it's not like she's got tons of time to get everything done herself, but always manages to do it. Mom too.

I know I can't keep comparing myself to everyone else. (Especially since the FB friend is in her early 20's, as was my mom when she had all her kids, and I am in my -gulp- mid to late 30's.)

I did manage to get some stuff done today. I took the two leaves out of the table and turned it back into a table for 4. I vacuumed the living room and dining room, did a load of dishes, baked a pie, went grocery shopping for all of next week, got some Christmas shopping done, took out the garbage, sorted the recycling and cleaned the kitchen counter.

I guess when I look back on this time of my life, I will say that I spent it the right way... with Nathaniel, developing our relationship and fostering his love for reading and education. (OK, it's my hope.) I know that I'll never regret spending the time with him instead of cleaning, I just wish I could be a super mom like so many others seem to be.

A Busy Day Ahead

There is so much that I need to get done today, and I have no motivation to do any of it! I have to finish cleaning up the house for Nathaniel's party tomorrow. And, um, ok, that's all I really have to do.

We're going to go to my Mom's this morning, to see how her new place looks with all the furniture in it (and to help her learn how to use the remote for the cable. She is capaable of doing this herself, but the installer just told her that "it's in the book" every time she asked a question. Since Pat works for a cable company, (not the one she has) we thought it would just be easier to teach her.

But seriously, the cleaning has to get done. I know that if people were to come over right now, my house would be clean enough for surprise company. I just want it cleaner.

Of course, cleaning really does no good when you have a 2 year old. I had just finished vacuuming and put all the toys back in the toy box (in the living room) when Nathaniel and my mom got back from their walk. Needless to say, I have to put all the toys back in again.

And you know what toddlers are like... if they haven't played with it for months but siddenly it's put away, it's the only thing they want to play with. There's about 6 of those on my living room floor right now. But it's so worth it.