The End of a Snowy Tunnel

How in the world did the women of centuries, even decades past, stay at home without being in constant contact with the outside world through television, computers, blackberries and iphones?

Even with all the modern conveniences of electronics, the past three weeks being stuck at home snowed in has tested my mettle. How did these women not go insane? What did they do to preserve their sanity? I longed to go to the mall; take my child to a playground or on a playdate; go for a mom's night out--I was even anxious to go grocery shopping--anything to have human contact again. Seems that Facebook, over 500 satelite tv channels, and the telephone just can't replace the real thing.

Part of the frustration of my snowy isolation was not being able to keep the house. Trash couldn't be lugged 100 yards in 2 feet of snow; recycling couldn't be driven to the center; groceries couldn't be bought. If things had gone wrong--as they did in various areas all over town--how would we cope? Several friends were without electricity for days. To be stuck at home AND suddenly transported back two centuries would have been too much.

I'm so thankful that finally my car was freed from its snowy prison this past Saturday. I got some well deserved time to myself to visit some friends at baby shower; to shop a little at a favorite store, and still have time for a quick errand before heading home. Its amazing what just a couple hours of free time can do for a stay at home mom's sanity.

Even better though, is that it's time for Maisey to return to preschool after a four month absence. Maisey will love seeing her friends again, going out and about, and learning. I will thoroughly enjoy some one-on-one time with Evie and getting into a routine. Now if I can fit in the yoga class, regular time with the horse, and maybe a date night or two, life would be ideal!

Adjustments

We're baffled by the ups and downs. Evie slept on oxygen all night, then she had a three hour nap today at 98-100. Even during her second "snooze" she was snoring in her bouncy chair at a respectable 97-98. So why when it's bedtime does she drop to 90-93? It's just deflating to go all day with such a feeling of accomplishment for her, thinking that maybe this is the day she'll go off the oxygen again, and then watch my hopes fall with her numbers. I guess I'm learning again about the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. But I still hope and pray that she improves.

Meanwhile, Maisey and I are about to go crazy in the house. She's gone about three months now without wearing clothes all day. I guess I'm getting lazy, knowing that we're not going anywhere. Why bother, I think, but I'm sure I'll regret not trying later. Now when she's cold, instead of putting her clothes on, she reaches for a blanket. How do I convince her to get dressed?

We really are learning how to cope being at home, and in rebuilding our bond that seemed to fall apart when Evie was born. I'm trying to set aside as much play time with her as possible--whenever Evie is content or sleeping, so that Maisey gets her fair share too. In part it's possible because a routine is finally emerging; Evie's sleeping and eating more regularly, and I'm figuring out how and when to snatch time to do dishes, cook, clean, and relax. I have decided that the house will be a disaster area most days, because it's more important to spend that time with the girls. And I can see the improvement already. But we're not there yet. I feel like we have a few steps to get back to where we were before Evie was born. It was such a hard time, no one could have prepared us for it, and I just wish I could have done better. Maisey still causes mischief--more from being cooped up or bored than anything, but we're both adjusting. She's been asking to go somewhere a lot lately--a sign I think that being at home all the time is starting to get old. But with Evie's condition improving much more slowly, and the nearly two feet of snow outside, we're not planning on going anywhere anytime soon.