A Picture Perfect Weekend

You know those times when you imagine what your life will look like in 2, 5 or 10 years?  It’s the picture you saw before you were married and before you had kids.  As the pieces start to fall into place and you come up on those milestones of your wedding day, or seeing the two pink lines on the pregnancy test, the picture starts to get a little clearer.  You hear the voices of the people who tell you that your life is about to change and you see this picture in your head and you sigh, start to smile and think, “yes, yes it is going to change.” 

Because this picture?  It is good.  There is sunshine and happiness, hugs and slobbery kisses.  There is a weekend that ends as quickly as it started because it’s full of laughter and time with family and friends.  This was my weekend.  And it came not a moment too soon. 

Before I had a baby I knew that being a working mom would be tough Monday through Friday.  I understood that my quality time with my child would be limited on work days and that she would spend more time with her grandmother than with me.  I expected that my weekends would be all about my baby and my family.  Instead I’ve found myself frustrated over napping and schedules and being cooped up in the house.  I’ve spent hours trying to get her to sleep, then the half hour that she sleeps analyzing spreadsheets, proofreading and catching up on email. 

Pre-baby I pictured my weekends as a time to relax and get ready for another week.  Maybe I would even cook something or clean my house.  Instead, Saturdays and Sundays fly by with no meals for the week being prepared and my house still a mess. 

But not this weekend.  This weekend I shut off the laptop and ignored email.  (Not that I was getting any, it was a holiday weekend.)  For two days, 48 hours, I stepped away.  I didn’t worry about naps – good thing, since they were boycotted on Saturday.  My daughter and I went for a walk, met a friend for brunch and shopped.  Our families threw parties to celebrate birthdays and an anniversary and, of course, Easter dinner.  It was exactly what I imagined a weekend with my family would look like. 

On Monday, I went back to work with a messy house, nothing cooked and slightly exhausted.  But with the memories of a little girl in her pink dress dancing to the music in church, reaching for Easter eggs and squealing with her daddy.