Summertime, a time for spontaneity, adventures and discovery. So why am I experiencing Mama’s summertime blues? Because as a full time parent, I miss out on the opportunities to do these things in the summer. My kids know that mommy and daddy have to go to work, but it lays heavy in my soul, some times more than others, that we don’t get to make as many special memories because of the lack of time. Yes I am aware, to make the moments we do have together special, and I’m aware of being grateful and looking at the bright side, but right now I just want to gripe okay? At times I want more than evenings and weekends. My mom made a good point the other day and it had me in a pensive state. As I grew up, my mom had to work all the time, sometimes crazy hours and we had to make due somehow. First I went to summer camp at the Ywca and had a wonderful time, and then as I got older, I stayed home and watched my little sister and cousin. I don’t remember spending that much time with my mom. Now as a grandparent, she gets to spend so much time with my kids, more than I do at times. So as a grandmother, she gets to enjoy her grand-kids more than she did her own kids. Deep! And so is life, the cycle of motherhood.
While I yearn to be with my babies when I know they are off from school I accept that such is life. I have to make due with the time I have and make those summertime memories in the evenings and weekends. To working parents out there, how do you handle these mixed emotions of being a being pulled in two different directions? How do you find a work/life balance that satisfies your soul?
