This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. If you need to flag this entry as abusive, send us an email.
Last night, I caught up on the laundry.
The overflowing baskets had been in my family room, staring at me, for several days.
All seven of them.
While I sorted and folded, I started thinking about that elusive thing we call balance.
Motherhood requires an incredible amount of juggling. Whether you are working outside the home, staying at home, homeschooling, whatever ... we all have multiple balls in the air.
No one is immune to feeling off-kilter.
Last night, as I tackled the laundry, I wondered whether balance is even possible.
This week? This week I was terrible at laundry. There are times when I'm a laundry rock star. Other times, I'm better at meal planning. And then there are the times when it feels like I'm failing across the board.
Advertisement
I never feel like I'm rocking all the things at the same time.
Do you know what I think?
I think balance is for the birds.
I think this concept of balance is a nice idea. It's wonderful to think about, but it is an impossibility. You can try to balance all the things, but it is inevitable that you end up listing to one side, off-kilter.
This week I failed laundry. Meals weren't all that impressive either. My house is messy. But, I was really good at focusing on my family.
That's always my first priority as a wife and mom: to love on and take care of my family. Some weeks, for whatever reason, this takes more time and energy and heart and love.
Sometimes, friends get sick, or their children get sick, or their loved ones get sick.
And sometimes, families suffer incredibly heartbreaking losses.
When everything feels harder, all you want to do is to love your family and be grateful for this moment, right now, because you know it could change in a blink. These moments are wake-up calls; they force us to focus on what is important while the laundry mounts.
So, no I don't think there's such a thing as balance. You can try to get close, but you'll never fully achieve it.
Furthermore, I believe there are times when it might even be healthy to let yourself dip to one side and feel wildly off kilter, especially if it allows you to be more present as a parent.
The truth is, years from now, no one is going to remember that week of fantastically planned dinners, sparkling clean bathrooms, or perfectly folded laundry. Instead, they are going to remember the beautiful moments in between all of those things... even if those moments were spent in a messy house, in jammies, with laundry baskets staring at you.
Advertisement
A version of this article was originally published on My Little Poppies.
Cait is a school psychologist, mom to three amazing children, and an unexpected homeschooler. She loves nature, good books, board games, strong coffee, and dancing in her kitchen. She blogs about the journey at My Little Poppies. Cait co-hosts The Homeschool Sisters Podcast. Cait is also a contributing writer at Simple Homeschool and GeekMom. Her work has been featured on The Mighty and Scary Mommy. You can find her on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter and G+.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.