My Un-Pregnancy: Week 13 and 14

Do you ever feel like you are spinning your wheels and not going anywhere?

Yeah, me too.

I spent most of last week trying to nap between 9 PM and midnight so I could get up, fix a pot of coffee and write until Ada's 7 AM feeding because the first draft of Sacred Places of Kentucky was due on Friday. That is usually my best time to write because the party of three (hubby, baby and dog) are all sleeping. That didn't work out for me last week though. Ada woke up and stayed up most of the night. Travis did too because he got some new video game. And Scout, well, she sat at my feet barking so I'd throw her toy. I was hopeful that Ada's sleeping routine would go back to normal but it hasn't and like clock work, she has woken me up every night (or morning, I should say) at 4 AM to nurse and play. So with our out-of-whack nighttime schedule, our morning is out-of-whack too which throws the whole day into a frenzy. I feed her at 4 AM then again at 7 AM, at which point we crash until 9 AM then wake up in a hurry to get writing, Mary Kay and household tasks finished (or at least started) by her 10 AM feeding. I swear, you don't realize how short 3 hours are until you are feeding a baby.

Even on days when I manage to get us started on the right foot, I have this feeling that I'm carrying everything in brown paper bags that are ripping at the seams. And I am my worst enemy right now. "Yes, Amanda," I find myself saying, "You managed to write a book last week but you still haven't sent thank you cards out for Ada's last shower." Or "Congrats on having a record-setting day with your Mary Kay business. Now if only you could find time to do a craft for your craft blog (it has been months since you've touched a hot glue gun) I would let you off the hook!" And don't get me started on unanswered emails, Facebook wall posts and phone calls I have failed to return. I feel like I am playing Frogger and trying not to be run over by the day.


 Luckily, I'm not alone in this feeling. I ran into a good friend at the Dollar Tree who looked as frazzled as I know I did. She said that she was there to buy some Comet so she could clean her sink. "I've been reading the Fly Lady's tips on getting your life together," she said. "It all starts with the kitchen sink."

So I went home and logged on to the Fly Lady's website to see if I could find peace in the bottom of a shiny kitchen sink. And while Ada was napping, I scrubbed and scrubbed my kitchen sink. You know what? It did make me feel better. It forced me to stay in one place and focus on one thing, something I really struggle with. It gave me a little control in the midst of a lot of chaos. It gave me results. And it gave me motivation to slowly conquer other things. Life still feels pretty nuts but every evening, I've tried to return to my kitchen sink to give her a good shine. I know it sounds small and trivial but when everything else is a wreck, it feels good to have one place that is under control.

If you're feeling frazzled, I do recommend hopping over to the Fly Lady's site. It's pretty amazing!