Day Three

So far, so good. My mood has been much better over the past couple of days.

Yesterday I woke up bright and early -- very tired, but I had to take the dog out. Instead of sneaking back into bed to try to squeeze in a few more minutes of sleep, I stayed up, ate breakfast, washed dishes, showered, got dressed, etc. I had done all of that by 8:30. I helped my oldest get ready for school and walked her to the bus stop with the pup. It felt good to be productive. The baby kept me busy for much of the rest of the day, but I just did what I could when I could. Some dishes here, a bit of laundry there. And when she woke up and started fussing around lunch time, before she was due to eat again, I put her in her mei tai, which is a wrap styled after those worn in China. She nodded off and was happy to be worn around for a little while:

Vitor was shopping for a new van after work, so I was on my own with all four kids until close to 8 last night. It was hectic -- Julian peed on the floor en route to the shower, Thalia had several worksheets to do and spelling words to study, Norah wanted to be held, I had dinner to make -- but I got it done and didn't let it stress me out. And dinner was delicious. I made baked chicken nuggets, which were healthier and actually much tastier than the fried kind.

Once the kids were in bed, I took Stella out for a walk. She loved it. She's great so far...we're really loving having her around.

I didn't accomplish anything great yesterday, but I did the things that needed to be done, and I did it in a decent mood. Whether or not my mood will continue to stay positive remains to be seen, but so far I can say this about the changes I've been making: I feel that my fuse has been longer with the kids and that I've been attending to them as I should be. I have lost a pound. My house is a bit cleaner.

Like I said, so far, so good.