I cannot be a mom if...

Occasionally, my schedule doesn't allow me to be at home all the time and sometimes requiring me to fly out of the house just as JED come home. At times like that, I  have to live on stolen moments with them. For the most part, I see them to the point that I want to dump them, take a book, head over to Starbucks and sit there, uninterrupted for an hour. 

But when it's crunch time, it's a totally different story. And I realised that no matter how busy and how much I'm in and out of the house, there are certain things that help me feel that I'm not ignoring or neglecting JED. In my mind, I know I am not. It's just that occasionally, my heart takes a bit more convincing. And if I can do the following, I'm good to go and last a day without seeing them. 

For Jordan, I can't be a mom if I can't tie up her hair. I don't know what it is, but with her, it's her hair. I have to find time to do it. And the more intricate I can do up her hair, the happier I am. I suspect that's a remnant of those by gone Barbie playing days. 

For Evan, I can't be a mom if I can't hang out with him and help him do things he otherwise worries he cannot do. Hang on the monkey bars, wheelbarrow walk around the house or handstands against the wall.

For Muffin, I can't be a mom if I can't take him out on my own at least once a week and just see the world through his eyes. It doesn't have to be a long outing. Half an hour at the park where he tosses bread at the fish, chases the birds or picks up leaves and seeds suffice.

And I can't be a mom if I have to go without seeing their ridiculously loopy grins or hear their chuckly ticklish laughter. It has gotten to the point that if I need to go out and I haven't had enough time with them, I descend upon them to tickle them. That always does the trick and I can always leave after that with a heart that feels slightly lighter.

Hooking up with...