The Blame Game

How I wished I looked when at home

Okay, I'm gonna give you a glimpse into my personal life and sell out my husband at the same time (sorry hon!) But what else would you expect from me by now?

About how old I feel when handling poop.

Here's a day in the life of this (part-time) stay-at-home-parent: After a busy weekend, our house is in chaos.  My attempts to cook lunch or dinner are thwarted by the semi-full dishwasher and overflowing sink. My toddler's poop-splosion (yes, it's a word!) in his "big boy pants"  means that I rush with a dripping bomb of clothing to the utility sink (full of other stuff) and then to the washing machine (full of musty-smelling damp clothes). My attempts to throw away the clutter are met with frustration when I find out that there is no garbage can liner... again....

Now, these little irritations are not a big deal by themselves. But when you're exhausted, overwhelmed and alone with a toddler on a messy Monday... and *ahem* some of these events *may or may not* be the fault of an absent member of your household who is now at a beautiful sparkling office which is quiet and poop-splosion free? Well, let's just say my attitude and I had to have a little talk. You pickin' up what I'm puttin' down?

Dramatization of "the text"

I could turn into that wife who greets her hubby with steam coming out of her ears (yup, I've been her before). I could turn into that wife who does the clean up but plays dramatic violin music in her head as she imagines the closeup video shot of her martyrdom (maybe I've known her too). Or.... I could *gulp* skip the blame and ask for help.

Because the truth is, I hadn't been on top of my game all weekend either (its been known to happen!) And I'm perfectly capable of lending a hand with any of those issues above. And somehow, when I have a bad day and I'm not very productive... I look for compassion from my husband; yet when he's off his game- he needs to pay.  And that's not a very happy way to go through a marriage.

My valiant hubby...

So I skipped the blaming text (oh, you know the one!) and went straight for the SOS text- "I need helllllllp!"

And guess what I got? We skipped the fight and got straight to the fixing. Within a short time of my darling hubby's return home- I got a sympathetic hug and all the help I needed.

 Which made me think: I could have pitched a fit (and would have felt oh so justified) but then my overwhelmed and stressed-out self would have also had a fight to fix too. Or, I could make the revolutionary choice to skip the blame and ask for help. Which meant I got what I really needed.

Wow, I learned something new yesterday. :) Just thought I'd share!

pssst- Sorry it's been a while. I've been doing some writing for others, including MacaroniKid