Slow down, mama

We've attempted to take our young, 17-month-old son, to a few "fun" summer events. 

We went, no problems getting there, so I say attempted because we've left before the events have started, each time.  

Our son is a very much a boy. Running, climbing, exploring, curious. He wants to see, touch, smell, climb.. everything. It makes some of these "fun" summer events, not so fun.

I know that one day, he will sit still. He will "enjoy" these things in the ways I'm wanting & expecting him to. But for now, these events are more about chasing & containing him.

After getting home from these events, getting him bathed & ready for bed, I'm more than tired, frustrated even.

Last night, I was pretty frustrated for the way things turned out... then I thought about it a little more & reminded myself to "Slow Down, Mama". This is a season. A very short season I'm sure. There will be plenty of time to sit down.. but for now.. this boy is on the move!

It's taken months

It's taken months for me to "figure" this working mother thing out. I'm not a master or a know-it-all for sure; I've just taken what I've learned (usually the hard way) and tried to find another way, one that suits me us better.

I'm a full-time working mother of a 9.5 month old boy. My husband is a firefighter and by the flexibility of his wonderful job and my awesome boss, we don't put our son in childcare outside of the home. This does mean, we rarely have a clean home, have our food or coffee warm, and there is always a pile of dirty laundry to be washed or a clean load in the dryer to fold (all of these things exist for me right now!) I'm sure the SAHMs and Dads feel me on this one!

When I'm home during the day with our little one, I use the wee hours of the morning to start working, then get things done during nap times, then finish things up after he goes to bed. It makes for a long day for sure, but I really enjoy the time I get to spend at home during the day with the little man.

It's taken awhile (8 months!) for me to figure out I should get up early and get work done before he got up (duh!). This means I have to go to bed early though! Which means not as much Pretty Little Liars, Parenthood (RIP), Chasing Life, Extreme Weightloss, The Biggest Loser, 2 Broke Girls, Baby Daddy, or scrolling through Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook (sad day!) I will however be a more productive version of myself and I guess that one wins today.

This is my first blog post here at Valerie Quinn. Where I'll talk my "thoughts on motherhood, life, fitness and the in between." I'm excited to take this time to write about these thoughts, get things down on "paper" and take time to reflect on life, before it passes me by.

Cheers,

Valerie Quinn