Time Out For Mommy

I had a particularly rough evening tonight.  The kids were both in terrible moods, and were making it difficult for me to get anything done.  The entire time I was cooking dinner, they whined, yelled, and fought, and I got closer and closer to loosing it.  Nick called me on his way home from guiding a fly fishing client, and as I answered the phone, Tessie bumped her head on the dining table.  I could see that she wasn't hurt, and so gave her a quick hug, then walked away so I could hear Nick, and find out when my reinforcements would be arriving.  Tessie followed me, howling like a banshee.

I turned around and said, in a kind but firm voice, that I was talking to Daddy and I couldn't hear him if she was yelling.  Nick was in a low service area, and I knew I would lose him at any moment.  Tessie continued to wail, and so I tried walking into the next room.  My weeping offspring was close on my heels.  As I wandered from room to room, and her screaming followed me, I strained to hear my husband, and grew more furious by the minute.  At the exact moment I hung up, Tessie was silent.  I reined in my rage, and served the kids dinner.  Then I made a quick escape.

I poured myself a glass of wine, and headed for the garden.  The heat of the day had cooled into a pleasant warmth, and the sounds of the forest surrounded me.  I took about five minutes to water my plants, watch the evening sky turn pink, and calm down.  By the time I went back inside, I felt I had regained enough sanity to not kill my children.  They were happily eating and watching a movie, and I soon forgot I had ever been mad.  Sometimes, all a mom needs is a beautiful time out.