Recipe for a Long Night

Part of #R365.

The premise of R365 is “A Recipe a Day and Life Along the Way.”  Tonight it’s going to be blatantly obvious that this recipe is the life part of the equation.

I’m a husband and a father of three young children.  By young, I mean three under the age of three.  The youngest is only 6 weeks old.  He’s the cause of much of the chaos these days.  He’s been colicky, so my wife isn’t sleeping at night.  Consequently, during the day, she’s exhausted, but left to tend to two hyper toddlers.  Those two are even more agitated lately because they’re competing for attention.  It’s a vicious cycle, and one of us has been sleeping on the couch for over a month.

I also run my own business, which usually requires me to be out of the house by 7 each morning.  The girls wake up around that time, so if things don’t work out perfectly, it’s a maelstrom of chaos and crying around then.  When I come home in the evenings, I try to take Little Man off her hands so she can have some sort of downtime to do what she needs.  Then it’s time to cook dinner, take the girls outside to play, and finally walk the dogs (if they’re lucky and one of us has the energy).

It’s usually around this time at night ~9:30pm~ that I have my first chance to sit down and write a post.  Around the same time my wife is either finishing her own posts, responding to book publishers about some of her projects, or preparing whatever packages were purchased from her Etsy store that day. Right now, there is almost exactly ZERO “us” time.

“I made a nap this afternoon. I made it out of two pillows, a bed, a sheet, a blanket, and exhaustion.”
-Jared Kintz, This Book is Not For Sale

I knew this R365 challenge would be tough, but it’s really becoming extra difficult on nights like tonight.  So consider this a peek inside this life of mine, and please accept my apologies for schmucking this post up.

Perfectly Blended Chaos

2 toddlers, preferably under 4 years of age
1 newborn or young infant, preferably aged less than 6 months
2 demanding jobs, one of which must be motherhood
24 hours

Combine the first three ingredients and stir together.  Wait 24 hours.  Repeat.  If possible, continue repeating until saltiness emerges and temperatures heat up.  Allow to cool for a few hours.  Repeat.

Repeat.

Repeat.

Repeat.

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