Where exactly do you think you’ve been lately, young lady?

So, in my blogging absence, a lovely commenter said in response to my note that it’s been very busy – I can’t wait to hear what you’ve been up to. I have to admit… This is a lot of pressure! Cause, crap… I’m not sure I did much of anything. I know it wasn’t all that exciting. Oh man… Here goes nothing.

Well, let’s see – there was the snow. And the ensuing digging out that seemed to take a full week in northern Virginia. My office was actually closed for 3 days – the days a week that I work. Though one of my colleagues told me she assumed a closed office meant we had the day off, I didn’t assume the same thing – as it was pretty clear to me that that was not my boss’s assumption (37 emails and phones calls later…). Now normally I like the opportunity to work from home on occasion. In the pre-baby days, I could move laundry between emails, have lunch with my husband and take calls in my sweats (or jammies)! Then, in the early post baby days, working from home was pretty difficult when I was home alone with the baby. She actually didn’t require much from me those days and would lay happily on the couch next to me (surrounded by pillows, so there was no chance of falling!) while I worked on my laptop. But I always felt like a total shit about that. The poor kid must have been bored out of her mind. Nothing to stimulate her (she was really too young for much of any sort of toy) and Mommy barely paying attention. Then I’d stop to focus on her for awhile and feel like I was being completely irresponsible in my job. (Yes, the baby is more important, but I’ve made a commitment to the job too.)

Anyway, we’ve moved out of those days – the monkey isn’t about to sit quietly while Mommy is on the computer. The cords are so pretty! As are the outlets over there (thank goodness we finally gotten the cheap outlet covers that stay in!) and the fireplace and… You know the drill. But my husband was home those days as well, so we were covered. The problem was – they wound up being incredibly busy work days! There was no “let’s ease up a bit to go for a walk in the snow or check out that sledding hill” (OK, she’s too young for sledding, but man it looked like so much fun when we saw the neighborhood kids there!). I was tethered to the laptop – with everything running slower as I queried the server. Sadly, it actually would have been better to be in the office. (I shudder to say it!) In fact, we got to my days “off” and my phone kept ringing again as deadlines had been pushed up and all was in a frenzy.

Yeah, I know, this is the way of the world and such a complaint is no different than what anyone else has about their job (and I am particularly lucky to even have the luxury of part time), but whatever! Being a grown up stinks!

The Friday of our snowmanji week was the monkey’s birthday. So my Mom was flying up Thursday and we had company coming on Saturday afternoon. It occurred to us that maybe it was time to finish putting our moving boxes away… Oh dear. When Mom arrived, I said – look, we’re sadly sort of at that point in cleaning where we’ve pulled everything out… but have not yet put it back away. Could you just avert your eyes? Happily, though, she watched her favorite (only) grandbaby while we finished up and now we are FINALLY feeling settled! Yes, the horribly ugly kitchen wallpaper still stares at me. But we actually have some pictures hung as well! (None are hung in the kitchen over that wallpaper as it is so busy that it gives me a headache all on its own. I can’t add design to that wall!)

The munchkin’s birthday was good (but I’ll update that one separately as this is getting pretty long already!). Sadly, given our changed deadlines, I had to go into work on Monday though I was supposed to be off. Ah well, it was a busy and productive day. I missed getting to spend the morning with my Mom before she flew out, but on the bright side she could watch the baby for me so I could work – and we all know who she REALLY came to see anyway! (Luckily, my sister in law had the day off and babysat for us in the afternoon.)

Then the last part of my absence… the end of last week. OK, I have no good explanation whatsoever for this. I was just plain exhausted. I don’t know what it was but I was totally worn out. I saw some friends on Thursday afternoon and as I left their house I thought – when this baby naps this afternoon, I’m napping! Sadly, she napped the whole car ride home and it was all I could do to stay awake for it! I had to push to stay awake till her bedtime (it’s ok – she head butted me anytime I was completely falling over. Nice of her…) and went to bed right after she did. S adly, I still felt the need to nap every time she did on Friday and struggled through my day till I could go to sleep right after her again on Friday. Saturday we had some friends over for dinner – something I’d considered cancelling as it meant I couldn’t go to bed at 8:30… And Sunday I worked on my 'nap when she naps' schedule again.

Yeah, so really about half my absence was explained by sleeping. I’m so cool – living the dream, baby!

Alright, so I haven’t really written anything that opens up questions, but you’ve been so kind as to listen to me ramble, so I do want to hear about you too! So… how do you deal with illness / exhaustion while being a mommy (I somehow forgot to negotiate in sick days to my package) – esp if your husband is working / not available? What gets you “snowed under” (yes, bad pun intended) that you disappear for a week or two? Or, how long does it take you clear up moving boxes (by the way, I don’t mean to imply two months later that we’re DONE or anything! Just closer) and/or make a place start to feel like home?