Friday..

It's Friday.  The end of the work week (for some) and the beginning of the weekend.  I haven't felt the excitement of a Friday for a really long time.  Mostly because I've worked just about every single Saturday for the past 2 years.  I've finally found a Monday-Friday job and have officially survived my first full week (more on that later).  I was just starting to feel that wave of weekend relief roll over me when I suddenly came to the disappointing realization that Saturday will never mean the same thing to me again. 

It's not that I don't enjoy the weekends, because believe me I definitely do!  It's just that a weekend of not working doesn't mean that I actually have the weekend "off".  I'm a mom.  I will never have a weekend off for the rest of my life.  I will always be caring for and worrying about my little man.  I don't get to call in sick and I can't exactly find someone to fill in for me. 

Having a kid means accepting a lot of responsibility.  It is up to you to mold them and teach them right from wrong.  You're the one who has to decide how to discipline them and how to reward them for their good behaviors, all without going over board on either end of the spectrum.  It's a damn hard job trying to get it just right.  I'm just going to throw this out there and say that I have by no means "figured it out" 100%. 

My son likes to test his boundaries and push my buttons all of the time.  He learns and listens for a little while, but then finds it absolutely hilarious watching me get more and more frustrated.  It takes everything in me not to blow up on him some days.  He really does know better, but how do I get him to realize that that's not only the right way, but the only way to act at all times.  If anyone has the secret please feel free to share it with the rest of the class lol! ;)

I hope you all have a great weekend and enjoy your Friday night :).

Keep calm and be strong

As some of you may know I grew up with an older sister and a younger brother, this put me in the middle.  I'll admit, yes, I definitely experienced the proverbial "middle child" syndrome from time to time.  It did manage to have its perks some days so I couldn't complain too much. 

One of those perks was that I didn't have to be the strong one in our family.  Physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually(and anything else you can think of), I was never the one that others looked to for support or guidance.  While it helped me in the past, it has become a hindrance in the present.  Life has thrown me some pretty wonky cards in the past 4 years.  Each of which has forced me to rely more so on myself and become a stronger person. 

Normally I'd be all for personal growth but I'm going to let you in on a little secret.........I'm terrified.  It's not that I don't want to be a strong person.   However, instead of having to grow and be strong for just me, I now have to have double the amount of strength for Logan as well.  He is very perceptive and understands more and more every single day.  I never want him to think that I'm not a strong mom.  Given our current settings I feel like I'm already pulling double duty on a lot of things.  The last thing I need is to fail in any capacity. 

They say that everything takes practice, commitment, and time in order to become successful.  That same principle can be applied in order to make something become a part of your daily life.  Well if that's the case then it looks like I've got some serious homework to do.  Looks like I'll need to take a page out of my little brother's handbook to just "Keep calm and be strong". 

This won't be one of my easier challenges in life, but like all things, it'll be worth it in the end.  I hope that everyone else is able to find their own strength during tough times.  Until next time. :)

Not what I had in mind..

Last week I think I probably wished everyone a Happy Halloween about 10 times because I was so excited for it myself.  I had Logan's costume all set to go and couldn't wait to get started with our little kitty, Ava.  Unfortunately, my wisdom tooth decided it had other plans.  It was pretty sore all afternoon, but as the end of the day drew closer I could barely stand the pain.  Needless to say, I wasn't able to do much damage control on Logan's candy bag (even though most of it was pretty healthy stuff).  That night I woke up twice because of the pain.  I'd never had any kind of mouth pain like that ever before in my life, and I was completely miserable!  Friday morning I called around to see if anyone could get me in.  The soonest appointment available was for Monday at 11:30.  Are you freaking kidding me?!  How in the heck was I supposed to survive another 3 and a half days like that?!  Luckily, I didn't have to wait that long.  My awesome boss made some calls and found someone who would come in that evening and take care of it for me.  He shot me up with 3 or 4 pens worth of Novocain and a little bit of laughing gas.  After about 30 seconds they both kicked in and I could have sworn that I was inside a kaleidoscope listening to a rocket blast into space! Hahaha!  Needless to say they worked wonderfully and he got the tooth out before I even realized it.  Now I just had to deal with the little bit of after pain and the fear of dry socket.

The remainder of that day and the rest of the weekend I did everything possible to avoid getting dry socket.  I stayed away from using any kind of straw, I didn't drink carbonated or caffeinated beverages, and I stuck to the softest foods I could find.  This again bit me in the butt when I went to my cousin Jeremy and Heather's Halloween party.  One other tip for not agitating the hole in my mouth was to stay away from beer.  Really?! I couldn't even have one beer?!  It was frustrating but I made it work by sticking to my Vodka Gummy Bears.  They were pretty potent and became Marissa's new weapon of choice!  I don't think I'll be able to look at a gummy bear the same way again after that night.  It was so great getting to see Jer, Heather, Jesse, Charity, and even auntie Pam stopped by!  Of course, the night wouldn't have been complete without a few heart-to-hearts with them.  I'm constantly reminded and shown what amazing family I have, and just how lucky I am to have them in my life.  I guess you're bound to get close when you spend your summers together at grandma's.  Oh the memories, lol! ;)

To end my weekend, I discovered it wasn't only my mouth that was having issues, Logan was cutting the gums on one of his 2 year molars.  I thought we'd already been through the teething crap for this tooth, but I guess the fun just keeps on coming.  He was having fevers off and on, sweating like crazy, wouldn't eat or drink much, and the poor baby couldn't sleep longer than an hour or two before waking up and wanting more orajel.  It's been draining on both of us, but I just hope that it's over soon.  Thank goodness for Gatorade.  That seems to be the only thing he wants to drink and it keeps him mostly hydrated.  He is currently taking a nap that has now lasted for 3 hours!  On the bright side, I'm able to get a few more things done, including taking a short nap myself.

Hopefully the rest of this week brings happy, encouraging, and positive things for my family and yours!  Take care :)