Yesterday was crazy. My post about mom friends went viral on Facebook and I had the most views on the page ever, then the post got picked by the Huffington Post somehow. Plus, I was invited to blog on HuffPost! I was pinching myself and dancing around the house. My head was in the clouds. The complete icing on the cake is that Nici Holt Cline, of dig this chick, one of my favorite blogs that I have written about here before, actually read my post here and commented. I am in blogger heaven right now! I have been writing this blog for several reasons, the most important to me has been the reflection, personal growth, and sense of empowerment that I am not alone in my struggles. I do also have some great book ideas that I would love to bring into the world, which is what motivated me to start The Joy of Caitlin in the first place. Having a moment of recognition and success felt amazing. I was excited and happy and so very thankful for the positive response!
The only downside was that all of my personal excitement led to me being entirely distracted with my kids and on the computer and phone all day. I generally try to keep myself in check when it comes to this, and it is usually when I am tired and stressed that I find myself surfing on my phone a lot, to distract myself from my feelings. It works just as well as chocolate or any other distraction, but leaves me with just as much of a crash. Something like getting together with a mom friend or going for a walk in the fresh air is a much better distraction from my stress, which actually leaves me satisfied. However, yesterday I was not looking to escape, I was genuinely busy doing something important on the phone and computer, so I felt it was justified to ignore the kids a bit. The tough thing was that Ella had a fever all day so we cancelled our morning plans and stayed in, then I had to take them with me to sign Ben up for homeschooling enrichment classes in Miami Beach. It was a hectic experience, with a lot of driving and waiting. After all that I took them for guilty parenting/celebratory ice cream. Then we picked Mo up from school and came home to a package from my mom. Ben loves packages and he was thrilled to open a new easel for his homeschooling art projects. (Thanks Mom!) The easel was in many parts and had to be put together, and I made the mistake of telling Ben that Abba would do it for him last night.
We had a tough night with Ella (don’t worry we’re taking her back to the doctor tomorrow to figure out what is going on) so when Ben woke up this morning and the easel was still in pieces, he was disappointed. He does not handle disappointment well and he started the day in a difficult mood. Ella still had a fever so we cancelled our plans again and I took them to the nearby playground so Ben could get his ya-ya’s out and I could hold Ella in the carrier. Somehow, especially after yesterday, today seemed so difficult! It is hard to come down after excitement. I really wanted to get together with my friends as we had originally planned. I really wanted Ben to stop giving me a hard time about everything. I really wanted my baby not to be sick. I really wanted to have the head space to still feel excited about moving forward in my blogging adventure. I had moments of total frustration, and moments of watching myself be frustrated. I knew that I was creating my own stress by arguing with reality, but I was having a hard time reeling myself back in. It was a difficult day!
All in all, in terms of homeschooling, I think the day went fine. We wrote a thank you note to my mom, and Ben put together the easel almost entirely on his own! I was just there to lend a little anxiety over my difficulty understanding spatial relationships, and offer a few incorrect directions, which Ben kindly but gleefully informed me were wrong. He said, “Don’t worry, I am a Master Builder.” I saw the way he carried himself change, as he expertly put the parts together and tightened the screws with the allen key. Apparently this is something that he likes and has a natural inclination for, and I was so proud of him! If anyone has any suggestions for building toys or projects, please let me know. Or maybe I’ll just get those Ikea bookshelves and let him at them…
We also met up with family for dinner to celebrate our sixth wedding anniversary (August 23rd)! It was my brother and sister in law’s third anniversary last week so it was a joint celebration. We ate at a nearby Israeli restaurant, and after we had all met in Jerusalem, it felt like such a throwback to sit around the table with everyone. Here we all are in Miami, our families growing and changing.
Thanks for reading and for your support! Here’s to the future, one moment at a time.
love,
c
The Joy of Caitlin 