It's been busy...Update Part 1

The last two months have been completely insane.  The kids are back in school and I have been working crazy, ridiculous hours.  Since the middle of September I have worked close to 225 hours-that's about 5.5 weeks worth and I've only paid for 4 of them-my employer is getting a ridiculously good deal!  Last Thursday I walked in my door at 10 p.m. and for at least three days a week, the only time I've seen my kids is while we are getting ready in the mornings, which is generally rushed and chaotic.  Oh, and I got my first cold in three years a week and a half ago and it is hanging on for dear life!  Add this all up, and it makes for a stressed out, unhappy Mama.  And a stressed out, crazy busy Daddy.  Thank heavens for Cori!  He has completely  held everything together by himself.  I have had to call him at the last second multiple times in the last few weeks to handle things with the kids that I was supposed to take care of, but just could not do.  He's fed them, bathed them, done homework with them, gone to appointments with them, and just generally made sure they are okay.  Also, he has completely taken care of getting our house re-painted, repaired some fascia that had been rotting since we bought this moneytrap house, tore down and put up new gutters, only to take them down and hire someone else to do it for less money (yay!) and completely replant the flower beds in front of the house-oh and completely replace our garage door by himself.  Someone needs to get that man a drink!

Even though the kids have been in school for nearly two months, it still seems like we have not yet fallen into any sort of routine.  The kids go to bed anywhere between 7:15 and 9:00 p.m., though it's usually between 8:00-8:15 p.m.  This is a problem because these kids need their sleep and they need their routines!  Both kids, but especially Little Miss, just fall apart if they are not regularly sleeping 11.5-12 hours a night.  They are not the type of kids to sleep in if they are up late the night before or take a nap to catch up-we either hit their window or it's a lost cause.

I told one of my co-workers that I have just lost my mojo.  I can't keep up at work, despite working ridiculous hours, and it seems like the multi-tasking that my job demands just completely escapes me.  I can't keep up at home, I haven't gotten to spend any time at all (much less quality time) with the kids during the week, and forget keeping the house up to even my modified standard!!  It's really crazy-making.  I have no idea how working moms keep things together, and clearly I missed the memo!!  So working moms, how do you do it?  Any tips or tricks?  I'm dying on the vine here and I would LOVE any direction I can get!

In the midst of all this, we have attempted to keep on living life!  The kids are growing and learning, they are absolutely hysterical at this age and we love it!  They definitely keep us on our toes and we are busy busy busy.  They have lived with us for nearly 10 months, and it is hard to believe so much time has flown by, and yet it seems they have always been here.  I sat down and watched tv for the first time in months the other day, and it felt so weird!  Cori had taken the kids to the park and I was sick, so I felt justified in doing nothing but sitting there and zoning out.  It was nice, but felt so strange and the house was way too quiet!