Juggling!
Every busy parent knows that life is a continuous juggling act in the midst of a three-ring-circus. Trust me, I have three little boys, each of whom manages to demand, perform, and behave in excess of a Barnum and Bailey show!
Every day you pack enough sandwiches and cook sufficient food to feed small third-world-country. When you take time off from the office, two people are hired to replace you. You do homework, go to soccer practice, and participate in class trips to the zoo. You call your mother and mother-in-law regularly and stay in contact with the kids’ teachers and carpool drivers.
You are the tooth fairy, nurse, waitress, chef, secretary, housekeeper, chauffer, therapist, personal shopper, guidance counselor, coach, and entertainer all wrapped into one extraordinarily busy person.
How do you juggle the wide variety of tasks that must be accomplished? What is the secret to staying sane while keeping all the balls up in the air?
The answer is to simply shoot your image of superwoman, and realize that she is nothing but a fantasy. Nobody, that’s right, nobody can have it all. If you want to enroll your children in a lot of activities, you will not cook healthy gourmet dinners each evening. If you want to treat yourself to a well-deserved good book and bar of chocolate each evening, you will not have all the laundry sorted by the end of each day.
Most of the balls we are constantly attempting to juggle are made of rubber. There is no harm done in a rubber ball bouncing on occasion. However, one ball is made of glass- the family ball. The housekeeping and shopping can be put on hold. The myriad of chores on your list will patiently wait for you to attend to them. However, the people within your family need you now. Your children will never be the exact same age they are today ever again. You will never have another opportunity to enhance your relationship with those closest to you for this present day.
So, go ahead, and let some balls bounce. We all have scattered rubber balls bouncing within our busy lives. Relax; you can scoop them up later. Now is the time to focus on your glass ball, the people in your home who need you most. Don’t let the glass ball down, because it can shatter. Keep on juggling… you can do it!
Good article….but once again, sadly gender specific. I am a stay-at-home Dad. I work 30 hours a week at a church. I cook, do laundry, clean house, and still find time to wrestle with my 3 year old twins, go hiking with them, play and picnic at parks, and walk down streams with our collective pants rolled up.
I liked the article, I really did. I liked the analogy of the juggling balls. I just find it sad that when men who are the primary caretakers look for support and encouragement, we have to wade through all the gender specific language as if we don’t exist.
Yeah Don! I’ve also waded through all the good advise of Mom’s but did not hear anyone mention Dad’s/husbands helping to keep all the balls in the air. There does need to be more support groups for men or less gender specific groups as my husband also finds the same thing. My husband and I are a team in our family. We each pitch in so we can spend time with our 2 little ones. The key is for the family to be a team and to help each other keep the balls juggling in the air.
Hi Don - You are right. It’s an issue that came up with my ezine. I was suprised to find out how many male readers I had. Most of my writing at the site is not gender specific - except maybe for make-up tips
Tammy, I think you are in the minority, and very fortunate. We all wish!
Hey Don- why don’t you start a network for single dads? You can set up a free one at ning.com.
Thanks Carole. I hear you.
It is so important to put some of the ‘house’ stuff aside because my little guys are almost 6 and I feel like I’ve wished time away.
They do tend to fight these days and not use their words to express themselves but we are working on that.
They do go to bed by 8 at the latest and me too, thats my time to catch my breath but I fuss around the kitchen etc. I now have my own homework of trying to step back and enjoy my little angels. Thanks again.
Thanks. That was a well needed article for me to read. A single mom with two little ones who are at daycare and school for the day while I work fulltime.