Multi-Tasking Me

Busy Boasting

"A life of constant overcommitment is not a sign of success, or something to be bragged about. It is a sign of imbalance, a sign we have put our faith in the gospel of busyness instead of in a God who dares us to trust Him and be willing to rest." -- Mason Slater

 

Okay, so I am totally guilty of this. My core sin is laziness, and it affects everything I do, including how much pride I take in being busy. You see, if I could demonstrate to others how productive my daily life is, then they have to give me credit for being a hard worker and not the lazy, read-all day-at-Starbucks, marathon-tv-show-watching person I know I am on the inside.

I almost literally just had the conversation that begins Slater's article:

“How have you been recently?”

 

“Oh, I'm not too bad. I’m taking a few classes, working two jobs, volunteering at church and on the side I’m writing a novel. I hardly sleep and practically live on coffee, but it’s great. What have you been up to?”

 

“Me? Just work I guess.”

“That must be nice." [thinks: slacker]

Of course, that wasn't me thinking the working person was a slacker; I actually was envying her the ability to relax when she got home, rather than spend every second of her non-kid-waking hours on the computer. But did I feel pride in stating all I was doing? Yes!

It's interesting, this stay-at-home-working-mom thing. When I worked full time, all I wanted was to be able to stay at home with my children to raise them myself. But I don't do that. I am home with them way more than if I had a full-time job, but I still do work that much, just whenever I can fit it in. This way, I can explain to other stay-at-home moms that although I do work, I work mostly from home and can raise my children the way they need to be raised. But for those who look down on stay-at-home moms, I can point to my work and accomplishments with a childish, "See?! You're not better than me, either."

And all of this to defend the core of the problem:  "Even though I would much rather be that stay-at-home mom who watches soap operas all day, I'm not because I know that would be totally bad for society. And my kids. And others who see me wearing skinny jeans. So don't look down on me!"

Often, when I feel overcommitted- usually on the weekends- I worry about when I can fit everything in. And instead of waiting on God, of giving him the firstfruits of my time and productivity, I try to carve out time to just do my job. But guess what? I end up distracted (usually by Facebook) and inefficient. On the other hand, every single time I choose to sacrifice the urgent in favor of sitting down with God, I make the right decision and somehow find time to still complete everything else I need to.

So why do I still overcommit and put pressure on myself to do this and do that BEFORE I meet with God? Because I long to be productive, to see results. And the results of worship are intangible, making it impossible to point to them and say for others to hear, "See?! See what I've accomplished?"

Motherlife

  Having babies has changed my life. That kind of seems like a “duh” thing to say, and it is in a lot of ways. But though my life is different in the way you’d expect—diapers, high chairs, middle-of-the-night wakings, and people living in my house who are now scared of thunder—it is different in ways I did not expect. 

First, you have to understand that both of my kids “happened” to us. I had wanted to wait several more years before having them, and I did not yearn or long for them like so many of my friends have. But each child was another transition in my life. I remember holding Aubri just after she was born and thinking, “Well, I guess this is the next step in life.” I didn’t marvel that everything seemed natural and amazing, nor did I have (or expect to have) a motherhood climactic moment of love and bonding when I first looked into Aubri’s eyes. It was more of an, “Okay, this is it. Let’s go.”

Outside of the physical recovery from pregnancy and childbirth (I struggled to sit on hard surfaces for more than three months!), the biggest adjustment I had to make was in the time it took to leave the house. I rarely wear makeup or do my hair, so I was used to getting ready in 15 minutes, and it was a big inconvenience that I now had to add several more steps to my formerly minimal routine. Now, I had to time an outing around naps and feedings, get dressed and wash my face and deodorize, change the baby, dress the baby, feed the baby, pump, make sure the baby has diapers and I have my pump, grab an extra set of clothes for the baby and a water for myself. It definitely shifted my wake up time a good forty-five minutes earlier. You can imagine how horrified I was when having two actually doubled the time.

In the course of time I started laughing more. Aubri is a real challenge, but her precocity makes us smile an awful lot. Asher was such an easy baby it was simple to stay relaxed so I could enjoy Aubri—as long as I had my Starbucks. More laughter in our home has brought Johnathan and I closer together, and I know it has helped us create a loving environment for everyone. I was never really great with kids, and I worried I would not enjoy my own. But I do. I laugh more now than I did growing up. I had expected children to be stressful and burdensome, and instead, they make life seem newer and more interesting.

That’s not to say they don’t also make life hard. I have found, especially lately, that as my interests have diversified, I truly struggle to prioritize and get everything done. And though I am mightily adverse to awakening before seven, I have lately considered doing so just so I can fit everything in and still meet my goals. I value productivity so much that when I need a break and take it, I experience a sense of depression over not having completed my work. It is difficult to stay at home with children while also working several part-time jobs and going back to school. There just isn’t a lot of space to fit work into, especially as the kids age and their naps shrink.

Tonight, I put the kids to bed after a long Sunday (Sundays are never relaxing) and edited some writing before submitting it for publication. Then I cleaned up after them, berating myself for not being better at making them clean up after themselves. Next, I answered a few emails. Surfed Facebook. Wrote this blog. I am headed to bed now, and I miss the cuddling enough already that I plan to lay down with my little girl for a minute and tuck my son in again. A different life. A motherlife.

Ball

My mommy and auntie were playing with the volleyball in the gym the other day. They are pretty talented, actually.

 

Well, as I watched, I realized that mommy could use some pointers. See, her belly is getting bigger and she wasn't quite low enough. I rushed over to help!

Here are a few pictures of me demonstrating proper technique. Mommy is a very fast learner!

Auntie was getting ready to toss the ball to me, so I could show Mommy what a good pass looks like.

Okay, so I admit that sticking your arms out there to get hit by the ball is mildly confusing. I thought the technique could use some tweaking. It makes more sense to protect your chest and stomach by giving yourself a big hug. I'm sure you understand!

   
 
 

Running Word Count

As I've been learning to say words here and there, my mommy has had a difficult time keeping track of all that I can say. In an effort to help her out, I thought it would be a good idea to post a list of my current words. The following are words I say on my own without imitating or prompting. Other words, like the color Green (Geeeeen), I do not yet initiate or understand its label.

1. Mommy
2. Daddy
3. Puppy
4. Beby (Baby)
5. Kitty
6. Gux (Lux)
7. Hi
8. Bye
9. Gake (Jake)
10. Ghess (Jess)
11. Shessee (Chelsea)
12. Geshew (Bless you)
13. No
14. Go (as in, I'm ready to go now)
15. Baw (Ball)
16. Buk (Book)
17. Baock (Back, as in, "Put this back.")
18. Backet (Basket, as in "toy basket")
19. Tash (Trash)
20. Dhuice (Juice)
21. Wawer (Water)
22. Bite (asking for a bite to eat)
23. Eaaa (asking to eat)
24. Aw Dun (All Done)
25. Aw Gone (All Gone)
26. Awtie (Auntie)
27. Bowwle (Bottle)
28. Chassie (pacifier)
29. What
30. Teeth (as in Brushing Teeth)
31. Goo (Good, as in answering "How are you?")
32. Tain (Train)
33. Tain (Tree)
34. Nigh Nigh (Night Night)
35. Choo (shoe)
36. Gox (socks)
37. Sigh (side, as in outside or inside: it's interchangeable)
38. Watch (watch)
39. Go Giego (Go Diego Go)
40. Tashy (trash can)
41. Otchew (Got you)
42. Shusie (Excuse me)
43. Down
44. Walk
45. Hung (Hug)
46. Keyns (Kiss)
47. Keys (Keys)

I can also count 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, and 10.

Growing Up

Okay, I know you might think that my life has been pretty boring, and that's why I haven't updated my blog in awhile. The truth is, though, that I have been very busy! Besides being all cute and everything, I am working hard and getting older.

I am now 13 1/2 months old. I have been walking for 2 1/2 months, and running for 1. I now enjoy sitting with mommy while she reads a book, and I have taken to letting her turn the pages whenever she's ready (I'll be honest, we have very different timing with our page-turning urges). My favorite word is "Hi," although "puppy" runs a close second, as I use it to refer to anything that looks remotely like an animal. And also my books.  

I like to boogie to any kind of music (this usually involves some sort of hop and a tic-like shoulder shrug), but especially television theme songs. I don't actually watch television. I can play catch, although I take after my mom with having a fairly unpredictable throw: is it going over your head? directly at your face? up? behind me? 

I know where my head is and where your nose is. When my mommy tries to get me to point to "eyes," I get confused and start whispering, "hi". This is a learning curve. I give very enthusiastic, wide open-mouthed kisses (please pardon my french), and am into hugging. I cry when daddy looks like he's getting ready to leave and I throw excellent fits when no one will share their food with me. 

I know that you are supposed to run combs through your hair, although mommy never lets me practice on mine. She told me once (as she patiently untangled the comb tooth from one of my curls), that combs are for big girls, and I'm still a baby. After throwing myself to the ground and bawling for a minute, I realized I didn't mind that so much. I still drink bottles, after all. 

Morning Nap

10 AM = naptime

Practicing

I began to crawl 3 days before my 6 month birthday. 

I'm not seven months yet, but I'm pretty close to standing up on my own (with help!)

It's important to have a prop. For example, my favorite prop is my diaper basket. It is low enough to the ground that I can reach it from my hands and knees, but it gives enough lift that I get the chance to stretch my legs a bit. And, um, get to other things.

Now You See Me.......

Now You Don't!

Yeah, that's how good I am.

First Food

On Thanksgiving, Mommy and Daddy finally let me try out real food. (All that jealous gazing while they put non-liquid stuff in their mouths finally paid off.) Since then, I have mastered rice cereal and green beans. This growing up stuff is easy!

Sitting Up

Hello, my name is Aubri. I want to welcome you to my blog and let you know how good I am at sitting up. 

I can wink while sitting. My daddy has been teaching me about multi-tasking.

 

Up close and personal!

Hi!