WHACK-A-MOLE...A METAPHOR FOR A MOTHER'S LIFE

I know you other parents out there can identify with me…there are times when it just feels like you can't gain any traction with the whole child-wrangling/cleaning/shopping/cooking/personal improvement/family activity-calendar deal.  But as I am hanging on, making it through the end of a 10 day solo-parenting stint (with a three day holiday weekend as the icing on the cake) I am feeling like I am on the losing end of a never ending whack-a-mole game.  Seriously…I can't believe I ever thought a third baby would just "slip in the cracks".  Ha!  (Don't worry, Levi…I  have come to grips with the fact that those metaphorical moles have bested me…you are worth it all).  Where's the European tie-in you ask?  Well, one of the adjustments that I've had a hard time getting used to over here is the super small washing machines that have super long wash cycles.  (At least we have a machine in our apartment which is rare here.  The majority of apartments here have one room in the basement that-you guessed it-has rules governing it's use: every family gets a scheduled time slot or laundry day of the week. Yikes-we would  suffocate under our own little Alp d'laundry in that situation--there are NO laundromats in Switzerland!!!)  Keeping up with the laundry of three boys-and a husband who has two sets of workout clothes a day-has become a real trick. (like I'm now playing whack-a-mole with my dominant eye shut!).  Anyway, I've instated some new laundry rules…jammies and jeans WILL be worn more than once!  Feels kinda Euro, if you know what I mean.  While I do feel good about saving water, energy, and decreasing the soap in the water system, the bigger personal lesson is that I am coming to grips with the fact that I never will win the life version of whack-a-mole (there will always be laundry, crumbs, fingerprints, crumbs, star wars action figures, crumbs…), but I WILL have fun playing.