Rest For The Weary

My relaxing dream of napping on the back of a cruise ship is annoyingly interrupted by the blaring sound of my alarm clock. "It's morning already? It feels like I just went to sleep." Turning over I come face to face with my snoring 7 year old who crept into my bed in the middle of the night. Of course she is sleeping soundly and has no intentions of waking up. After all it's only a weekday and we do not have anywhere to go. That could not be farther from the truth. I pull myself together, take my morning medication, which I sometimes forget, and give my sleeping girl a kiss on the cheek. I am quickly met with resistance. She whispers, "Five more minutes Mommy." For the sake of a few more minutes of peace I give in.

Once Sienna is awake she looks at the activities for the day at summer camp. This determines her attitude for the morning and it can be hit or miss. Getting dressed can be a daunting task, nothing fits, and she can't find her socks. Our mornings can be filled with so much drama. Did you know she won an Oscar for her leading role in "Mom I Just Don't Want To Go To Camp Today"?  Don't get me wrong every morning isn't like this. In fact the majority of them go off without a hitch. Nor is this a post to bash my little one. I am merely offering a transparent look into the day of a mother. A mother who does not have a spouse or anyone else to pinch hit for her.

As we drive to camp Sienna is operating on all eight cylinders and wants to play 21 questions as well as have a math bee. After the morning melee I can't want to drop her off so I can work out. Working out is not only for my health and physique, but it's my alone time with God. I know you are probably thinking, at least I get to work out and I should not be complaining. This has not always been the case. With prompting from the Lord I took two months off to focus on myself and my daughter and the pay off has been tremendous.

After my workout I do not have the luxury of going to hang out at home. There's always something to be done. Grocery shopping, washing clothes, paying bills, cleaning the house, and cooking dinner. The list goes on and on. I may make it half way through my tasks when I realize it's almost time to pick Sienna up from camp. I take a breather and prepare myself to switch into mommy mode as I drive. Back in the car Sienna is full of energy and telling me about her day. After dinner, she takes her bath, and we play board games or watch t.v. until bedtime. Going to bed is as much trouble as waking up sometimes. It requires a story, much coaxing, and more protesting than a Civil Rights sit in. Once Sienna is asleep I'm exhausted and soon it will be time to do it all again.

I've been a single mom since day one with very little help from anyone. I've maintained a successful career as well as my household. People often ask how do I get it done. I simply tell them that I don't. God does it. When I stop to think about all that I do on a daily basis I know it is not me. Everything I do is because God gives me strength (Philippians 4:13)