the 31 days of October challenge. For the past two years I have blogged, as a collective challenge with The Nester, every day of October about a specific topic. I chatted about “Preparing for my first craft show” and last year was “Sprinklings of my reality” .  This year, I am learning to say “I can not add one more thing to my plate” Okay I am really trying to say it. But it’s so hard. The guilt of not doing “things” for others is getting to me. But I have to say no for me otherwise… hello straight jacket!!

Most of us have way to much going on everyday. Why is that? Why do we like to overload ourselves with things to do? I have no idea. Like I said I am trying not to have to much on my plate everyday so I can just enjoy the day with out the “we need to go here,” “I need to do this,” and the “we need to speed it up or we will be late!” I really just want to be “okay, what shall we do today?” But let’s be real, that is not going to happen every day. It just won’t.  No matter how much we say “no I can’t do that,” it just won’t happen. At least I can not see it happening.

You know what I do see happening, those stay at home mama’s with 5 kids all perfectly dressed and clean, following mom like a little row of ducklings. They go to the market, to swimming, to soccer, to baseball and out to dinner with out a single “we are going to be late” moment. How the heck do those mama’s do it? How do they have the perfectly clean home (and kids) with dinner on the table at 6pm with out any one child screaming in the process? How can they look completely pulled together all day long?  Robots? Maybe…

In my world, we are usually not late. We are never perfectly clean. We are never ever a little row of ducklings (it would be a very small row with only two kiddos). We are not at swimming, soccer or baseball everyday, and I still struggle with keeping the house picked-up. Notice I did not say clean. It is clean around here but not that “perfect all the time clean” but more of a “i will not roll over in my grave of embarrassment if you happen to stop by clean.”  I struggle with finishing a project the day I started it (or the same week) because other things have to be done.

I know. I know. We have young kiddos and I should not be adding any pressure to myself for these silly “things” but guess what. I do. I do want to come home from doing errands all day into a clean, picked up home. I do want to have time to finish a simple project when I start it. I do want to have clean kiddos- okay well let’s be realistic here- Kiddo draws on herself daily, loves mud and climbing trees and SneakyB is one. So the reality here is they will not be pressed and proper in their clothing- probably ever. They are “clean” as in bathed – usually- okay twice a week maybe three times.  Does running through a sprinkler count as a bath?

What is all this rambling on about. I don’t know. I guess it’s just my moment to share that I feel overwhelmed, sometimes, as a stay at home mama and wonder how others get it all done. The reality is this. My kids are happy. They are fun to be with (most days). They make my world awesome (usually). I am thankful to be a stay at home mama. I do miss my design career sometimes, especially when the girls are screaming and whining in the produce section of the market. But I would not trade it for anything at all.

This October instead of the 31 days to something, so I don’t feel guilt-ridden for not blogging, I am going to commit to four times this month of just checking in with you all and rambling about something. Fingers crossed I finish a project and can share that with you. That would just be amazing!