Last week was a mixture of feelings. One of them was feeling like I was over juggling. As a parent, we are expected to juggle all things in our life. From the kids, work life, to housework and making sure we get the required alone time to recharge our batteries. My husband Matt was on late shifts all week, which meant I had to tackle the after school witching hours alone including bedtime (sob!) Several times during the week I felt hopeless at parenting, and there was several moments where I felt like I had really come to the end of my tether with ‘the juggle’.
I hate and I mean REALLY hate the feeling of being overwhelmed. But that is exactly how I felt. I criticised myself all week, thinking I was being a S**t Mama. The pile of washing is still at the end of our bed. I attempted to clean the bathrooms twice…and didn’t mange to finish them. I know I need to dust the blinds upstairs. The fridge needs cleaning. I need to make time for the kids more. The emails in my inbox need responding to. I need to meet about 50 blog post deadlines. Yet I have school runs to do, swimming lessons, homework to complete, bedtime stories to read, games to play. And I haven’t even got onto working. And what about ‘me’ time? Is having a quick 5 minute shower, awkwardly shaving my legs classed as me time?
Read Mum Contract
One night last week I let it all out. And sobbed. I sat down and poured out all my feelings to my husband Matt about how I felt. I was struggling with the juggle….And afterwards? I felt so much better. Yes I ranted. Yes I properly sounded like a loon. And yes I am so grateful for all he does to make my juggle even less of a manic one.
We talked about ways in which we could reduce the overload. We talked about accepting that this is life. And really, it’s about how you respond to the juggle, not necessary the things that are causing it. And that more often than not, these times are just a phase. I do not feel the juggle all day every day. It will pass. It will get easier. And more often than not, it is so important to talk about it. Share your feelings with friends and family. Your partner. A school mum. Your best friend. Your own Mum. Maybe they can offer help or advice or even just let you know you are not alone! It almost feels easier to manage then right?!
What I know I need to ensure is at the forefront of my mind is that I am a good Mama and I am doing the best I can – juggle or no juggle! So to all you Mama’s and Papa’s out there who may feel like they are having a bad week or struggling with the juggle. Have hope. Keep going. Your doing just great.
Hi and welcome to The Willow Tree. I’m Michelle, also known as Shel and I am a mama to three beautiful crazy kids – I have two handsome boys and a wild and wonderful girl.
I really wanted a concrete place to share my love for travel, in particular Disney and offer my readers a chance to gain some knowledge around what we love to do as a family of 5.
I share our family adventures which include days out, travel advice and tips, holiday reviews, restaurant visits and of course, our love for Disney, including Disneyland Paris and Walt Disney World.
Life is about creating memories, and here we are sharing them with you
xoxo
Life can become a bit much some days can’t it! I know exactly how you feel and as a mum it’s like you never get any down time as there’s always things to do- work, kids, washing, cleaning, cooking and then usually sorting out arguments and washing pooey pants- that’s pretty much my life at the moment. I’m glad you talked about it and hopefully now you’ve got it off your chest you can ave a bit more help and at least your other half understands your stresses now! x
I get so overwhelmed at times, I find the best way out of it is to write a list and break the things down to small bits then tick off a load quickly so I feel I’m getting somewhere. I also find it funny the different level of expectation we put on ourselves. For instance my fridge gets cleaned about twice a year so it isn’t something which worries me. Most people will think I live in chaos but it works for us.
It can be so overwhelming at times!
There is never not something to do is there? There is always something- even when we are trying to have some focus on ourselves, there will always be something else we could be doing! I’m glad you let all of your feelings out rather than bottling it up:)