Holidays, any holiday

So today I had an epiphany. When you were a kid all holidays were fabulous, not a moment of stress or strife. All that was required of you, as a child, was to just show up and have fun and maybe show a semblance of gratitude.

I never realized how stressed out my parents were. I discovered that today when you are a parent holidays take on a completely new meaning and can even be a chore. You have to make sure the kids are clean, cute and well-behaved and you have to do all of this with a smile on your face. You also have to clean and feed yourself.

Then, even if you aren't religious, you have to convey a message of deeper meaning than just sweets, presents and the priveledge of skipping a nap. In between the sweets, you have to make sure they eat something nutritous and festive to commemorate the holiday. You also need to be nice to your spouse and both of you have to somehow get them peacefully into bed after a day of shattered routines and lots of sugar. Then the two of you need to celebrate in a meaningful way without passing out on the couch first or snapping at each other.


The first night of Rosh Hashanah, Erik ended up doing bath by himself, voluntarily, because I was not able to maintain the smile on my face any longer. I had taken the 3 monkeys to Temple earlier in the day and I am just worn out.

I had Sarah hear to help me fluff them up and then we had to wake Jake from a nap that he fought in the first place. I felt so weird doing that because honestly he is 18 months old, exactly how much is he going to get out of this experience except sleep deprivation? Couldn't leave him home alone though. Sarah went home and I took them to children's services by myself. I was a little panicky but thankfully Erik's Uncle Jamie sat next to me and basically commandeered my extremely wiggly Michael. An absolute G-dsend. I am soooo grateful and couldn't have done it without him. Mericfully children's services are short and sweet.

By the time we got home and through dinner I was cranky and tired and so was everyone else. If you mess with their routines, children will punish you. That's why my awesome husband volunteered to do bathtime by himself because nobody wanted to be around me anymore including him. I felt better after going downstairs and sending Uncle Jamie a thank you note. I was able to read few stories and kiss my monkeys good night.

L' Shana Tovah