Slow DOWN, Before You Crash!

This week has been one of those weeks-- chock full of headaches, mistakes, stress, chaos, and opportunities for growth.  My biggest problem?  I've been running faster than I have strength.

Things I should have learned from this week (though I probably haven't and I'll make the same mistakes again):

• Scheduling a day chock full of stuff for me to do and figuring my kids will get their homework done on their own doesn't work.  It just leads to a very late night and lots of tears.  (Or undone homework.)

• I really should check my schedule before I volunteer to make something for the kids' classes.  Or perhaps I should make those salt dough ornaments several days ahead of time so I don't have a very late night and lots of tears.  (Do you know how many of those things break just trying to bake them?)

• When I have a day that requires me to drive from place to place to place, I need to plan some time for potty breaks.  The kids and I will both need them, and some places are easier for this than others....

• Triple the amount of time that I think I'll need to mail packages at the post office during the Christmas season.

• Get enough sleep so that I don't completely lose my cool with the kids in the van when they are hyper and yelling back and forth across the car.  (Not enough sleep = need to talk to Terence on the phone while I drive so I don't doze off + six kids' worth of pandemonium + a caffeine/lack of water induced headache = a REALLY bad drive.)  

• Meditate and practice deep breathing and pray desperately before getting five kids dressed up and dragged off to a baptismal service.  I will need the peace beforehand if I have any prayer of keeping my stress down while almost all of my kids struggle to behave.  (And it is a super challenge to try and sight read music while your three year old crawls on top of you and runs his cars across the piano keys.  Calm nerves are a must!!!)

• Avoid Walmart on a Saturday night during Christmas season on your own with five kids like the plague.  Even if your daughter's dress shoes just broke.   She can wear her tennis shoes to church the next day.  Such a trip only leads to hair tearing, a very late night, and lots of tears.  

• Oh, and on said Saturday night that included a blood pressure spiking Walmart trip, don't try to make three dozen treat plates when you get home.  Seriously, Heidi, what were you thinking????

• Most importantly, I need to always, ALWAYS visually check that I have all my kids in the car by turning fully around and counting heads (not just by glancing in the rearview mirror).  Yes, I left K behind when I went to pick up the kids from school this week.  The neighbors found him barefoot and screaming outside.  (In my defense, I had put both K and S in the car and I assumed they were both still in there.  I didn't realize that when I ran back in the house to get K's shoes he had climbed back out of the van and gone to play in the front yard.)

Yes, a week guaranteed to make me feel like a candidate of worst mother of the year award.  Still, I am choosing to see it as a week full of learning experiences.   Right??  (That's the only way I won't get depressed just thinking of how poorly I did this week.)