So we’re back, :-) This past week we visited Siesta Key Island in Florida, a tiny place that is sort of like home away from home. I took so many pictures (thank you honey, thank you Annabelle, thank you Levi, thank you Nikon), caught up on sleep, rolled around in the sand with my kids and my hubby, wore lots of sunscreen, walked among flamingos and petted sting rays (so soft), and sipped wine while watching the sun set each night. Let’s just say that it was a very much needed vacation.
And now . . . we’re home. Which I really am happy about. As much as I love the adventure and restoration that is vacation, I thrive on ritual, routine, my real day to day life. Though coming back to reality after a break is a whirlwind (a much welcome one); I am currently trying to sort out:
a) how to manage a fully mobile Levi; little man is crawling and climbing at 8 months old; he’s even pulling up to standing . . . I know this guy is going to really make me work, really keep me on my toes . . . my little boy is a bruiser. With Annabelle, she always wanted to be with her mom, always nursing, never to pulling open cabinets and banging things around. Levi is definitely his own person, that’s for sure.
b) how to manage a 3 year old who is going on 13. Phew! I really didn’t think I would have to deal with hormones, mood swings, and attitude until my kids reached their teen years, but suddenly, my baby, my toddler, my preschooler, knows far more than her dear old mom. And she’s so smart, she really is . . . so I find myself picking up parenting book after parenting book trying to find the answers, the formula, the instructions that were supposed to come with my kid but didn’t. I find myself praying that I don’t screw up, that I don’t screw her up, that she turns out okay even though her mom doesn’t know what the heck she is doing.
c) keeping up with myself. I have a wide range of interests: if you follow my blog, you know this . . . I kind of wander around from subject to subject (which I’ve read is not very good for a blog’s traffic, ah, oh well), delving head first into whatever is fascinating . . . which means that my interests sort of pile up, and even though they all add to my life and make me more interesting (at least I think so), it can be sort of overwhelming. Yes, I am actually complaining that I have too many good things in my life. Currently I’m trying to figure out how to organize my time so that I can pursue photography, keep up with my blog (it is so good for my soul to write it out), practice daily yoga, learn how to cook healthy veggie/omnivore meals for my family, make one on one time for each of my loved ones, keep Toby healthy (he just returned from his yearly physical and we learned that Toby is obese and at risk for things like heart disease and diabetes . . . I am putting him on a prescription cat food and then we’re going to have his teeth cleaned (poor kitty also has gingivitus)), stay on top of my leadership duties for Attachment Parenting as well as starting up a postpartum support group, and then on top of it all, stay connected with family and friends (near and far).
Meanwhile, Levi is teething. Ouch (for all 3 of us . . . Matt and I are up all night long).
But life is good . . . I list all the parts of my life that both enrich who I am and tire me out; isn’t it that way for most of us?
