Defining Super Mom

Another rough morning.  Cabin Girl spent 10 minutes in the shower doing who-knows-what and then threw a fit when I told her it was time to get out for the 3rd time because she hadn't even washed yet!  Cabin Boy #1 is still sick, teething, and cranky and Cabin Boy #2 wouldn't let me put him down at all.  So it was a hectic and tense morning trying to get ready to get out the door.  I could have saved myself a bit of time and grief by just driving the 6 blocks to CG's school, but that just seems so wasteful, not to mention lazy.  Plus, the boys love riding in the stroller.  We made it out of the house on time looking like a colorblind clothes rack had vomited on us all and were almost to school when a woman headed in the other direction said, 'Wow, you're Super Mom!'

...let's recap.  CG required constant nagging to get ready for school.  'Dry off and get dressed, please; Get dressed; Honey, eat your breakfast; leave your brother alone and eat your breakfast; EAT YOUR BREAKFAST!; Where are you shoes and socks?;  Why don't you have your shoes and socks on yet?'  You get the idea.  Meanwhile CB1 is insisting that he's still hungry after his banana but refuses to eat his cereal, says no to pears, applesauce, and anything else I suggest. Finally, CG starts telling me what she wants in her lunch.  We get to granola (fruit and grain) bar and CB1 loses his shit.  He won't stop screaming until I give him one.  Through all this, I'm trying to nurse the baby who is gassy and fussy and all I want to do is find a circus to run away with.   I think it goes without saying that I'm getting progressively crankier.  I eventually just put the baby down and let him fuss while I wrangled the big kids into their shoes and coats, not very nicely, I must admit.

So, I was definitely caught off guard when this woman called me Super Mom.  How could she be serious?  I let my infant son scream while I let my older son have snack foods for breakfast and yelled at my daughter to get ready for school.  My house is an absolute disaster.  I have 6 overdue library books.  We've had leftovers and grilled cheese sandwiches the last 2 nights in a row, the Halloween decorations are sitting in the middle of the dining room table waiting to be set out, dirty dishes abound, and my husband and I have no clean, public worthy clothes.  BUT.

I chose to walk my kids to school this morning.  And, even though I felt drained already, I did my second day of the Couch to 5K program's second week interval training.  When I got home I switched out the laundry with one hand (and the occasional foot) while holding a squalling baby in the other.  Then with CB1 happily sitting down with another snack I set the baby down to let him cry while I put more apples on the stove for a small batch of applesauce with pears (still waiting to be mashed and canned...).  So, in light of everything, does that make me a Super Mom?

I'm left thinking that today, for me, yes.  Instead of driving to school I walked.  CG loved riding her scooter as usual and riding in the stroller was an instant pacifier for both boys.  Rather than giving in to my emotional exhaustion I pushed myself to do something for me and I walked/jogged for 20 minutes.  I didn't lock myself away in my bedroom as soon as we got home but actually managed to get part of a chore done.  And I let the baby have a few minutes to get a bit of energy out so I could make a nutritious snack for my bottomless pit children.

Now, the boys and I are sitting on the couch after a quick trip to McDonalds (I'm totally addicted to the Monopoly game) and library and a nice visit with the neighbor, snuggling in blankets, watching 101 Dalmations.  I'm looking at the dirty floor, I can feel the dishes on the counter staring at me through the wall, and I'm thinking about the other half a million little things that need to be done and I'm okay with it.  

Because maybe being a Super Mom isn't defined by your life as a whole but the little triumphs you manage to achieve on a daily basis when every iota of your being is screaming at you to go back to bed.