BALANCE

So our XC season officially ended the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  Now, instead of heading off to work at 2:30 every day, I get to go grab my kids from school and hang with them for the afternoon.  Sure, it'a lot of carpooling, picking up, dropping off, rushing, coordinating, and sometimes stressing.  But, it's also a lot of chilling, laughing, watching, and just being together.  And after 4 months of dividing my time between my high school team and my family, being a full time mom for a little while is a welcome change.  I love coaching.  But, I tend to miss quite a few goings on at home during the season.  From soccer games, to a first ever round off backhandspring, to impromptu neighborhood dance parties...something is always happening and once in a while my girls are sad that I am not there for it, particularly Grace, who is younger and more attached to mom.  So, for the next three months, until the outdoor track season starts up again, I get to focus on them, which they are very happy about, especially Grace.  As I was thinking about this post yesterday, the girls were doing their homework at the kitchen table.  It doesn't sound like a big deal, but for me, it was really nice to just be there, sitting with them and helping them out when they needed it.  Fortunately, their homework was manageable last night.  I might have been singing a different tune if this wasn't the case.  But, I digress.  After homework, Grace asked me to help her make an owl with the rainbow loom.  (oh Lordy).  Then, we headed off to indoor soccer, which they both play and I was really pumped to watch.  When we got home, we'll pulled out the Christmas decorations and went to town decorating the house.  Two weeks ago, I might have caught the tail end of this day if I was lucky.  Now, I get to be a part of all of it.  Would I want to do all of these things with them every day, all year round?  If I'm being totally honest here, probably not.  I love my girls more than anything in the world.  But, I truly believe that I am a better mom thanks to my job.  Shortly after Grace was born, I realized that I wanted, even needed something that was my own, an outlet, something beyond my family that I could sink my teeth into.  With coaching, I have exactly that.  I've found that being a coach to 70 high school girls helps me appreciate the simplicity of being a mom to just 2.  That said, if I'm having a tough parenting moment or, um, week, I tend to come home with a fresh perspective after chatting with my high school girls about it; either coming up with a creative way to deal with it or, more often than not, realizing that I was overreacting and needed to just relax.  Motherhood is so beautifully awesome.  It's rewarding, challenging, frustrating, stressful and really, really fun....most of the time.  In many ways, coaching is the same.  With both, every day is an adventure and I am always learning.  Not a day goes by where I don't think about how lucky I am to get to do what I do.  When March rolls around, and I've made it through the holidays, 2 winter breaks, multiple gymnastics meets, several class projects and two birthdays, I will undoubtedly be ready to coach again.  My kids might even be ready for me to get back to work by then, too.  In the meantime,  I'll settle into my mom role, embrace it for all that it is and hang in the balance.

Listen to this:
On the Fence - Milo Greene*  

* Note: Milo Greene's new album, 'Control', is set to be released in January.  Oh boy!