My village
This parenting gig, it gets tough sometimes. On most days, it's the most rewarding thing I've ever done. However, I'm lucky enough to be able to share the parenting burden with a significant other. I have my expertise on the parenting front, and he has his.
So what happens when the hubby is gone? Well, my two boys and I have done things solo for a few days before, but never two weeks. And we just did that - I'd like to say, pretty successfully.
But the thing is, I can't chalk up my success to my incredible patience (ha!) or amazing ability to keep the house in order (yeah right). I really have to thank my village for making it possible for me to keep it together while I was on my own.
We moved to Northern Ontario with the goal in mind to raise our kids within the reaches of family and friends, so that the journey we would take as parents would be alongside people close to us. Nothing has proven that to be a great, great plan like the last two weeks without daddy.
Let me say first that in addition to my boys, I have a best friend in the form of my dog who needs tonnes of exercise. Luckily for me, he got walked every day by his grandpa. So while I was rushing around from daycare to work to grocery shopping and more, my canine companion was exercised!
The incredible help from grandpa was appreciated every day, he showed up with impeccable timing whenever I needed him (and sometimes when I didn't realize I needed a hand!) Taking either of the kids for a walk, taking each of them for an overnight, and just generally being around to lend a hand. Thanks grandpa, big time.
My parents showed up for two nights and BOOM - my kids were gone. My mom is an insanely awesome grandma. Within minutes of a visit she usually has both kids occupied with ACTUAL activities (not left alone to their own devices or in front of the TV). So great, and my dad is really loving teaching the boys new things.
A big thank you to my awesome friends too. On two separate weeknights, my fellow Bad Mom and super-mama Michelle took my eldest for a couple hours to join in her kids' sports activities, and handle him while I went to a last minute meeting. Thanks also to my mama friends who showed up with vino and time to gab.
The point is, if I didn't have my village, it probably would have been ok. My kids would have survived, and we all would have gotten through. But my mental health? I have a feeling a lot more wine would have been consumed had I not had the helping hands I had.
So a big thank you to my peeps, family and friends - it takes a village to raise kids, and in my case, it also takes a village to keep mama sane. Love to you all. Thank yous are simply not enough.
xo Sara
