Mama’s Sick Day Revelation
I have had one of the best sick days this year while caring for my three under-three children. I know that sounds weird, but I promise you that, being down the way I was, undergoing a stomach bug of some sort that eventually led to me being rushed to the hospital, was still one of the best experiences that I had in Mama mode. I mean, it surpassed raising toddlers while being pregnant in the first trimester.
From running back and forth from the bathroom to the couch and nursing, I learned that not everything is a big deal in thinking I was not going to survive. Yes, I know I sound drastic in saying that, but it’s true. Everything that was compacted on my everyday schedule was tossed out the window that day, and I honestly can say that without me being in my typical character by following the schedule, I saw a considerable change in the environment with my family. My children were so mellow and did not ask me for anything. Instead, they all naturally wanted alone time for the day and even managed to care for me when I needed assistance. To be honest, the moment before I passed out, I remembered that I asked my oldest if he could help me make dinner, which was going to be cereal until my husband got home, and I kid you not, my three-year-old got the cereal, milk, spoons, and bowels out for him and his brothers and made them cereal for dinner without making a mess.
Honestly, at some point, I don’t know how I did it, but I managed to call my husband’s co-worker’s wife to help me, and she and her husband came to the house with my husband shortly arriving right after them, and they all worked as a team to get me and my children to the hospital. I am truly grateful for them staying and helping out while I was mentally and physically out of it, but they were undoubtedly God sent because in the moments of me being placed in a room with the wife keeping me company, it was not long after that all of my babies begun to throw-up then and there which allowed my husband to take care of them while her husband managed to go to the store and pick up the items we needed to recover. IT WAS A LOT GOING ON!
While coming back to myself with IVs hooked up to me, I learned that the reason why I was passing out was that I could not keep anything down all day and was nursing my youngest throughout the day, which led to mild dehydration and no resources for my body to run off of. Yes, no matter what Mama went through, Mama still knew how to take care of her babies, yet at the same time, it drastically depleted me and my efforts to take care of them in the end.
When you hear the fullness of what I had endured, it may seem too chaotic and disturbing, and you might question how I could have possibly had the best day. Still, honestly, having no choice but to relax for the sake of my body, allowing silence to fill the room, and seeing all of my children calm and minding their business led me not to be everywhere doing everything, which made it the best day. I did not have to punish anyone, raise my voice, make huge fancy meals, or answer the MANY questions my toddlers usually ask. I just got to relax.
Not that I don’t enjoy parenting, since I am the one who creates the schedules and plans for my family, but that day, I realized that the house functions better when I am not entirely in control of every detail of the day, including my kids’ activities. (And I only mean how I can invade their personal space and try to micromanage their simple alone time playing with their toys by using their imagination. And I may not be excessive with it, but still.) The house is better when I am not stressing over time frames with pick a thing, such as (chores, Hygienic routines, meals, learning time, fitness time, managing the animals, running errands, scheduled community events, nap time, and more). My need to be on time or to maintain neatness in the home created a stressful environment that led to my kids acting out, and I never noticed it until that day. I found that trying to be the best at everything is unnecessary when, in the end, it creates a Mama who has zero peace in her home.
So, yes, I am grateful for my sick day because it truly taught me what matters most for my overall family, and showed me the changes I needed to make within myself to create a peaceful, functioning, and healthy environment without stress. It allowed me to sit back and observe my children, watching their faces change as they thought and developed new interests.
Huh, I just had a good day.
And I can only give thanks to our great father for taking care of my family and me through it all!
