Just Way too Busy!

Summer colds? Those don’t exist, right? Oh but wait. What is this? Runny nose, sore throat, weakness, achiness and… fever. Right here, smack in the middle o’ August. Maybe it’s that elusive sparkly fairy glitter, a.k.a. the summer cold, or worse, the summer flu? Even though I must admit that yesterday and today I’ve been feeling like, totally under the nasty weather, I still don’t believe it. Surely, denying the whole thing will make it go away. Not! I’m fairly certain I’ve NEVER been sick in the summer, in my entire life! (Well, besides now).

Why am I sick, then? Obviously, I’ve been exposed to a virus. However, that doesn’t always lead to illness. Colds & flu usually strike when I’ve been overdoing things a bit and my immune system ends up on the fritz. And perhaps I have been overdoing it. I’ve been struggling to help Greg with his/our framing business, which basically means I have to be working all the time, Monday through Friday, even on weekends when I’m not at my “other” job.

There’s one more little thing that calls for my attention: the duty of being a parent. Certainly this in and of itself is a full-time job. I will say, I have noticed it is getting easier as my kids grow. The oldest, being 11, is pretty much on auto-pilot now. Though she still occasionally needs love and attention from Mom, she’s not “needy” anymore. Sometimes I wish she still needed me all the time.

Of course, with her teen years coming, a whole new set of complications may arise. Confidence and self-esteem issues. Snotty peer issues. We’ve already begun our discussions about teen behaviors, not growing up too fast, sexuality, drugs, curfew, etc. She’ll want to learn to drive in a motorist culture that in my opinion grows more and more hostile and impatient all the time. These are probably not going to be easy issues to deal with. Who knows, maybe she’ll have smoother sailing through this period of her youth than I did. One can hope.

Z-man, my 8-year-old, is also pretty much able to care for himself. I still have to remind him to change his outfit, eat lunch, take a bath, brush his teeth. And very soon, once school starts again, to do his homework. But once reminded, he can do those things pretty much on his own. He still likes it when I make him sandwiches, pour him a glass of milk, fry him some eggs, or whatever he’s hankering for… but since I have to eat too, I just make a few extras of whatever I’m eating, and that part’s taken care of. Daily hugs, kisses, and verbal reminders of how much I love him, along with a bit of rough-housing (piggy back rides, tickling, goofiness) and he’s a happy camper.

And here you thought I was going to go on a rant about how hard it is to be a parent!

The 3-year-old, Gryphy, namesake of my blog, well, he’s still small enough to need me. A lot. But that’s OK. Now that I’ve witnessed how quickly the dependent little babes turn into independent big kids, I actually savor the precious little time I have with my reliant bugaboo.

Still, there are 3 of them. They all still need me to be their mom on various levels. Despite the fact that I adore them and they enhance the world by being in it, sometimes I do feel pulled in many directions. Spread too thin.

We had planned on going on a family summer vacay. Guess what? We got too busy to go. Blast! Now summer’s almost over. We WILL be going in autumn.

Sickness creeps in to tell me, hey, take it easy. But does anyone do that? I think so many of us parents feel this way. How in the world do we keep up with all the demands placed upon us?

Meanwhile, I’m resting as much as possible, blowing my nose a lot, and popping zinc lozenges like they’re going out of style. At the moment, I’m wishing someone would bring me some chicken soup, fresh squeezed orange juice and a new packet of zinc lozenges (I’m about to run out). SO not going to happen. I guess it’s going to be Top Ramen, water and adult gummy vitamins instead.