Our Five Ring Circus: Motherhood Confessions

Thursday, June 30, 2016

Motherhood Confessions

Motherhood. It's chaotic, messy, rewarding, frustrating and incredible all at once. There's nothing quite like it!

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I wouldn't trade this life for anything, but I'm not afraid to keep it real! Sometimes you just need to confess all those mom life secrets. (Husband, hit that red x now!) So here goes...

On the rare instance when I'm out alone, I drive home veeeerrrrry slowly.

I often turn the music up really loud in the SUV because it drowns out voices. It's like a brief mental escape from the insanity.

Every time I feel nauseous, I immediately think I'm pregnant. After a grand total of 3 years worth of horrible morning sickness, I can't help but panic. And in that moment of panic, I have two thoughts that run through my head: "OMG, FIVE kids!!!" and "Awwww! A baby!"

I'm one of those naturally happy people. I don't drink, I don't smoke and I don't take any medications.

Speaking of alcohol, I had my first drink in over 2 years a few weeks ago, at the Pittsburgh Moms Blog outing. I drank about 3 oz of a margarita and felt like I was going to fall off my chair. I immediately stopped because I hate the feeling of not being in complete control of my body. Plus, I just don't like the taste of alcohol, so why bother?

Caffeine on the other hand? It's necessary. I'm a hot tea/iced tea kind of gal. And I have a bit of a mug obsession.

I stay up until 3 or 4 AM. It's the only time of the day that I have to myself and there are no distractions.  During the week, I only sleep 3-5 hours each night, but I make up for it on the weekends. I figure that one day I will have plenty of time to sleep!

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 motherhood confessions

My mind never turns off. I have such a difficult time sitting still while watching TV and I can't take naps. I always come up with a list of things that I should be doing instead!

I have a candy jar stashed in my dresser. I have to hide it or else the vultures my kids will eat it all. No shame!

I have a ridiculous sweet tooth. I've contemplated a sugar detox, but nah. Life is too short to stop enjoying the little things in life!

Parenting a tween is HARD. This is definitely the hardest stage in my parenting journey. Give me 20 newborns instead. I'm not even kidding!

I get road rage in the form of swearing loudly. I'm typically such a calm and sweet person, but I can't handle incompetent drivers on the road!

If Lily and Liam fall asleep in the car, I will happily sit in the car with a cup of hot tea and indulge myself with a little Netflix-watching on the iPad until they wake up!

Remember that tween? He likes to sneak up on us and take pictures for blackmail. He thinks he's stealthy, but forgets that I review his iPod each night. I like to remove the proof of my Secret Mom Life or Grant nodding off during Family Movie Night. It is kind of funny!

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Why, yes, I DO have a pink choo-choo train iPad case. Mainly because I'm too lazy to remove it before I use it, but also because I would probably break the iPad if I took it off.

I usually have 1-3 extra kids in my home each day. People like to tell me that I'm clearly insane, but I secretly enjoy it.  It really does make my job easier. Friends are a great distraction and the sibling bickering decreases!

I hate having the TV on all day. The continuous background noise drives me crazy!

You know what else drives me crazy? A messy house. I should get used to it while living with 4 kids, but I just can't stop cleaning!

I have, on occasion, put the iPad into a Ziploc bag and watched Netflix while taking a bath. I claim I have a bad headache and ask my husband to keep an eye on the kids, but really, it's just a way for me to escape life for a bit. I like to turn to Gilmore Girls or Buffy the Vampire Slayer in my time of need.

I like to chase my kids through the house and pop out of doorways to scare them. I need to get a little thrill out of my day! Really, though, I believe it's important to have fun with my kids!

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I hate driving in the city. Or in the snow. It's the only two things that give me anxiety.

My favorite shows are the ones I can't watch with kids around. Orange is the New Black (OMG, season 4!!!), The Walking Dead, House of Cards, Criminal Minds... During the school year, my husband and I can have our Netflix date nights at 9:00, when all the kids are in bed. Summer, however, is a problem with kids staying up later. SO. We put Liam into his crib at 9, let Lily have her iPad time for an hour and we escape into our bedroom to watch our not-so-kid-friendly favorites! Lexie has the important role of keeping an eye on the house for an hour. We get very little time away from our kids, so Grant and I need to get inventive if we want to spend any time together!

I hate asking for favors. This includes asking people to watch my kids.  I don't want people to feel like it's a burden, so I just try to do it all myself.

Date night hasn't happened since my birthday in April. And I'm only away from my kids once or twice a month.

I have a bit of a shopping addiction. I just might have gone to Target for a few things tonight and returned with 5 extras. Oops.

It's now 3:41 AM and I have to be up at 7.  Even though it feels good to get stuff done, I'm going to seriously regret this when my alarm goes off. But it's all worth it in the end!

This motherhood gig is an awesome one. Time is fleeting, so I aim to live in the moment and enjoy the now! Every single crazy, chaotic, perfectly imperfect moment!

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What are your motherhood confessions?

LET'S CONNECT!


Linking up for Confessional Thursday!

DISCLOSURE:  I must disclose that I am a member of the StreamTeam. As a member of the Netflix #StreamTeam I am provided with a subscription to Netflix and I also receive other products and exclusive information. All opinions are my own.

18 comments:

  1. This was a fun read! Just reading about your lack of sleep makes me tired!

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  2. My friend this was a great post! And as ALWAYS I LOVE the pictures! I love seeing you in these pictures! You are a fantastic mom and you are so right about time being fleeting. We SHOULD all be popping out of doorways to get a giggle out of our little ones, run around with them in the house and simply ENJOY each and every moment with them. You are right that being a mom is not easy and lots of work, but it is the best work of all. I just love my time with my daughter and like yourself had wanted many more children. But I know God had a plan for me to have the one and I cherish every second of it. Time does go by fast and like you, I intend to fill the moments with fun, laughter and silly happy memories. Have a great 4th of July my friend! I look forward to the pictures. :-) Mama Hen

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  3. So much to say! I may or may not have cranked the music during backseat tantrums a couple times. In my college days and the few years following, I drank a lot. But I rarely drink anymore. I do like the taste of alcohol, but I have such a low tolerance. It’s bad. I have half a margarita and the room is spinning. So I definitely have to drink in moderation! I can’t believe you only sleep 3-5 hours a night and can still function! I am amazed! I need my sleep. I milk every second I can get. Haha, you and me both with the road rage. I have a serious potty mouth when I’m driving. I also hate having the TV on all day. Tim, on the other hand, loves having background noise. Whenever he’s away, I bask in the glory of silence (aside from Mila of course).

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  4. GIRL - I don't know how you function on 3-5 hours of sleep! OMG. I get about 7 and I'm always dying when my final alarm goes off at 7. I wish so badly that I could get away with that! I often tell B that I wish I was a vampire so I didn't have to sleep! Imagine the things I could get done with 7 extra hours/day! And I'm like you, I'm always doing something... my brain never shuts off, and I'd much rather be productive than take a nap ANY day.

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  5. Oh wow I wish I could only sleep 3-5 hours a night! I also sit in my driveway if my daughter falls asleep and just browse Pinterest as long as possible haha

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  6. I love these confessions. I can't believe you survive on 3 to 5 hours of sleep. I need way more than that and now that my girls are older I do get them. I turn up the music in the car too because I dont want to hear the screams from a paci dropped. I love my Netflix addiction. I watch it at the gym during lunch time and after the girls go to sleep. Being a mom is hard and I know I have done so many of the things you have said. Except I like my wine. Ha. But coffee is a must and I love to shop. Thanks for linking up!

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  7. This post was so much fun too read. I just kept nodding my head. I also turn the music up, messes make my eyes twitch, long live the sweet tooth and our TV is hardly ever on. Thanks for making me laugh and smile.

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  8. Oh my gosh I don't know how you stay up so late! By 9pm I'm dead tired. I feel the same way about alcohol. No one else ever understands it. These confessions were great! I can relate to so many.

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  9. Asking for favors is HARD.

    We don't even have a TV. I can't really skip sleep thought. Maybe because caffeine and I don't get along?

    My friend who successfully survived two tween girls while going through a divorce gave me the best tween parenting advice ever: If they melt down on you, make them eat protein (cheese sticks are easy) and drink a glass of ice water. At least half the time, that resolves the meltdown with my tween. Maybe it will help?

    Looking forward to "meeting" baby #5!!!

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  10. What a fun read! We're alike in so many ways - staying up really late is my jam, I too also drive home r-e-a-l-l-y slowly (or sometimes I'll just drive a few extra streets in the neighborhood - you know, to clear my head!), I have a huge sweet tooth, and messes, well, they drive me bonkers!

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  11. We are very much alike - except I need a little more sleep. =) I don't drive slow home, but I might take the long way around the block just for a few extra minutes to myself.

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  12. I just can't get past the 3-5 hours of sleep! I'm shocked!

    I never have the tv on in the house either, it drives me crazy if it is. We went on a date night last weekend and it was our first since my birthday LAST SEPTEMBER. Shameful!

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  13. Girl, I absolutely love you! You are seriously my soul mate. Ha ha! Well, minus the whole only getting a few hours of sleep thing. I'd be a crabby momma if I did that. I love everything about this post. I have total road rage and have been known to swear too. Then, Cam asks me what those words were I just said. Ooops! You are one heck of a momma!

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  14. OMG, I love this! I seriously laughed hard at the "five kids...aww baby" comment. And I too love a good car nap session. I could stay in my car all day if my kids would sleep. And while I can't hang until 3-4 am, I do stay up 'til midnight even though I know I will be waking every 2 hours with my youngest. But the mom life is a good life.

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  15. I love that you are keeping it real! I agree 100% with you on the drinking and road rage! You continue to impress me with your lack of sleep... I wish I could do that too!
    Hope you all have a great Holiday weekend!

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  16. I feel like we would be great friends in real life as this pretty much sums up my mom confessions! Sweets for the win!

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  17. Love this post! I learned so much about you! But girl, 3 or 4AM?!?!?!!? You. are. crazy, my friend!

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