Crazy life

My life has been a little crazy lately -- blizzard, dead cell phone, sick kids, health issues, car repairs (again!) and the ever-present financial challenges.  I am so ready to go back to my non-crazy life, but I can't remember where I left it.

There must have been a time when my life wasn't filled to the brim with stress and insanity.  When was that?

Was it a few years ago when two of my kids were in high school and one was in college?  No.  Then my husband and I were running around like crazy people, trying to get to practices and competitions for two sports that often conflicted. Paying for those sports was almost a budget breaker, especially on top of the cost of tuition at a private college.

Was life easier when my kids were in grade school, middle school, and high school?  Absolutely not.  Trying to keep track of three kids in three different schools was exhausting.  Different daily schedules, multiple fundraisers, band concerts, choir, theatre, parent-teacher conferences -- I'm tired just thinking about how busy my life was.  Even then our kids were involved in competitive sports at the school and club level as well as activities at church.   And to up the crazy to a new level, I was working evenings and weekends during these years.  Some days I probably saw my children for a grand total of three hours.  : /

There must have been a time when life was more laid back, but I don't think it was during the preschool and grade school years or the infant and toddler phase.  Was it the third child that pushed me over the edge or was it the second or the first?

If I'm honest, was life less stressful during the five years I worked full-time before my husband and I became parents?  Probably not.  Those first years of marriage presented numerous challenges that were comparable to the some of the demands we faced as we adjusted from life as a couple to life as parents.

I guess my life has always been at least a little crazy.  I'm trying to not look too far into the future because I'm not ready to acknowledge the changes and heartache that lay ahead as my husband and I and our parents grow older.

As I look back I realize that, for as long as I can remember, there has always been an element of craziness in my life.  But there have also been many moments of contentment, happiness, laughter, beauty, and inexpressible joy.  When my crazy life threatens to overwhelm me, it's those memories, those moments, and the hope of more to come that help to keep me sane.