http://forums.vogue.com.au/member.php?u=88823 airplane tickets

http://forums.vogue.com.au/member.php?u=89044 cartoon porn

Pravitelstvo Rossii Rulit Vovka i Dimka Maladzi

Pendosbi oleni sosite chlen

http://forums.vogue.com.au/member.php?u=88599 youporn

if it isn't one thing, it's another.
how true this line is!

long ago my friend told me how mad it made her when her husband went to sleep on the couch- and he PULLED OUT the SOFABED! i thought i was the only "normal" person who sometimes didn't sleep in the same bed as her husband. she shared her life and i felt like a normal woman again... and that was pre-kids.

another friend's mama group has this motto: We're doing the best we can.

sage words.

i hope more laughter comes your way.

kim

qaNCxB sdlfRnd6M2HvO4

qaNCxB sdlfRnd6M2HvO4

qaNCxB sdlfRnd6M2HvO4

what a sweet photo; you are an amazing photographer. I am always a second or two too late in my photos with my jittering hands!

ah ha. yes, healing does sneak up on us sometimes. i know exactly what you mean by that and have experienced it in much the same way in my life.
that shot of ben is a heart-breaker for sure. it's sooooo hard, being a mom. but worth every single sleepless night.

ah ha. yes, healing does sneak up on us sometimes. i know exactly what you mean by that and have experienced it in much the same way in my life.
that shot of ben is a heart-breaker for sure. it's sooooo hard, being a mom. but worth every single sleepless night.

this post came along at the best time. thank you.

Thank you :)

PS - My hubby & I went away for the weekend to celebrate our 5th anniversary...our first weekend away since our first little one was born almost 3 years ago and it's funny how much we talked about the kids while we were away from home...we laughed and got teary-eyed talking about them...there was a lot of emotion and gratitude for the 2 precious souls that we brought into the world... The drive home felt soooo long... We missed them so much and could not wait to get home to give Joey and David big hugs and kisses...to do silly dances...to watch "The Bee Movie" for the 30th time...to kiss David's chubby cheeks...to love them!!! I feel truly blessed...and renewed after this much needed "break"...

xo glo

zaqwjchgs wmtuybq gcjzbqou dflkzu piulnmzwo kfxuasyon wgfszir

zaqwjchgs wmtuybq gcjzbqou dflkzu piulnmzwo kfxuasyon wgfszir

zaqwjchgs wmtuybq gcjzbqou dflkzu piulnmzwo kfxuasyon wgfszir

zaqwjchgs wmtuybq gcjzbqou dflkzu piulnmzwo kfxuasyon wgfszir

oops SO sorry for the 3 times posting. my mistake.

I love how you bring me around to reality. It is still my dream to quit my full time job and be a full time creative mom but it is nice to be reminded that when that actually happens, it won't be the magic fix-all. Your words are so universal and appealing and make me feel so much better about being a frazzled mom and so appreciative of the little man in my life who at random times throughout the day says "I love you mommy" for no apparent reason at all except for the simple fact that he does, in fact, love me and felt the need to say it.

I love how you bring me around to reality. It is still my dream to quit my full time job and be a full time creative mom but it is nice to be reminded that when that actually happens, it won't be the magic fix-all. Your words are so universal and appealing and make me feel so much better about being a frazzled mom and so appreciative of the little man in my life who at random times throughout the day says "I love you mommy".

I love how you bring me around to reality. It is still my dream to quit my full time job and be a full time creative mom but it is nice to be reminded that when that actually happens, it won't be the magic fix-all. Your words are so universal and appealing and make me feel so much better about being a frazzled mom and so appreciative of the little man in my life who at random times throughout the day says "I love you mommy".

Your post made me smile and nod in total aggreement....Things are harder when your a mom ....and in tow you have a mommy brain (which does exist !! i forget everything at the mo)...i think it because when the lil bundles come into our lives its like theres just that lil bit extra of ourselves to care for and nurture. I often read these blogs and feel i'm not quite doing well enough ....everyone still seems to be up there whilst i'm still scraping it together ...almost blagging motherhood. So I thank you for your honest post x x x

How beautiful and wonderful that looking at a photo of little Ben grounded you and brought you back to your true self and true feelings. You have such a beautiful family, and little Ben is adorable. Best of luck to you and Matt getting more sleep and Ben being able to rest as well.

you're tired
and
Ben is beautiful

add me to the gang of mothers who can't get their little ones to sleep and are walking around like barefoot lunatics. i count down the hours at night until my 9 month old wakes up "for real" and is "herself" again.

thank you so much for sharing this...

Dear Andrea,

I have been there, and here I am, with a 22 month old that (more often than not) sleeps through the night.

What saved my sanity was this site:
http://www.askmoxie.org/sleep/

You might know it already...What it did for me, most importantly, is that it made me believe that this too shall pass... and it will.

You are two great parents with a great little boy-things will get better, they always do.

All the best,

Adina

Dear Andrea,

I have been there, and here I am, with a 22 month old that (more often than not) sleeps through the night.

What saved my sanity was this site:
http://www.askmoxie.org/sleep/

You might know it already...What it did for me, most importantly, is that it made me believe that this too shall pass... and it will.

You are two great parents with a great little boy-things will get better, they always do.

All the best,

Adina

And this knowledge ... that you can do it all and not have it all figured out and feel worn down and all the rest and still endure ... it is what makes you a true SUPERHERO! And my personal superhero as well.

Be well, Andrea... my best thoughts are always with you and your precious family!

so beautiful. so true. your words ring so true. thank you.

so beautiful. so true. your words ring so true. thank you.

oh! you make me wanna find my softer heart. *sigh* lovely post as always.

the nice thing about motherhood is that it's a bond that all mother's have. The exhaustion, fear of losing yourself, falling asleep in the middle of doing laundry, feeling like you have no time for friends, microwave dinners, piles of dirty dishes and then some. We all have been there, go through waves like you but something always brings us back. That little face that hugs us so tight telling us "I love you mommy" and you know it makes everything all worth it!

Hang in there, I can guarantee you are doing a great job and your little man Ben, loves you more and more each day!
-namaste,
erin

As a SAHM of 5 kids, the youngest is 10 and the oldest is 17 there are days where I wonder how I will ever get it all done. Summer time is the hardest on me with them all going every which way. I can hardly keep up with their lives let alone keep up with my own. Once school starts I cram in all I can during those hours they are gone. I push myself to get it all done so when they walk through the door I can be there for them. I wouldn't have it any other way because I know before long they will all fly the nest.

beautifully poignant and honest....

mccabe xx

Andrea- I just have to say that I love reading your posts. The pictures from your girlie getaway were so beautiful, it made me wish I had been there:)
just, thank you.

Bless you. Great post. I too always think that everyone has this secret to a fantastic life and I am the only one out here that doesn't know it! I

Hearing your own laughter again is almost (almost) as wonderful as hearing your child's for the first time. How funny it is we often find our tears before we find our smile.

Sleep is the bane of a mother's existence. Sending thoughts of blissful slumber your way....

Dear Andrea a strange girl locked out of her flat banged on the door of the place I'm staying and woke me up in the early hours of the morning. I'm already worried about how tired I will be later in the day. Much much sympathy on the sleeping thing.

Oh and i just noticed the ads and the sky didn't fall in !

you have great perspective. One day he will sleep, you will be rested and a very small part will miss soothing him at night. (but sleep is definitely better. Hang in there!

you have great perspective. One day he will sleep, you will be rested and a very small part will miss soothing him at night. (but sleep is definitely better. Hang in there!

This is exactly what I needed to hear. Right now. At near midnight. I've been searching for my laughter lately and it's so unlike me to have misplaced it. I am trying to focus on the progress I've made since accomplishments seem so few (you mean there's more dishes?)...

I was checking my email one last time before bed - glad this is (hopefully) the last thing I'll read... wonderful words to sleep on.

Thank you.

As always - beautiful, honest words. Thank you.

My son, now 2 1/2 yrs old, went through a similar thing at around 1yo - for 6 months he woke every 2hrs, so I never got to sleep for more than an hour and a half at a time. Some nights I would be up to him 6 or 7 times. I was beyond exhausted and dangerously close to losing my mind. All the advice I got was just to let him "cry it out", but that didn't work for me. After lots of reading, researching and soul searching I came up with a plan. It took 6 weeks, but he was finally sleeping through most nights, and we did it without any tears. I was (and still am) so proud of my son, myself and my husband for getting through it in a way that worked for us. I'm sure my situation was different to what you are experiencing, but if you want to talk please email me. I may just have something to share that might help.

But, as you already know, even for them putting us through such torture they are still the light of our lives. And it gets better!! My son is now so full of fun and energy (and a little too much attitude some times too!). We are constantly amazed at how much he understands, how well he is talking and just what wonderful company he is.

Sounds like you're right where I was when I wrote this post (Lia was 18 months old at the time):

http://www.manylives.ca/archives/2007_12.html#000639

Amazingly, I managed to get a big chunk of my novel revised that month. It was the only thing that kept me sane.

Andrea, you are the epitome of a superhero. God bless you, Matt, Ben, your laughter, your passion, your life. Thank you for being you.

such beauty, sweetness and truth in these words.
thank you

xoxo

Thanks for this entry.

I could really use some healing just now.

This post made me cry a bit, which then sparked tears about other things, but I realised that I've been bottling things up and this post was just what I needed for a wee healing weep.

x

this post brought tears to my eyes. It is so refreshing to hear you and your inner thoughts on the subject of making it work, and finding your laughter again, and getting perspective, and allowing yourself to be where you are at.
thank you.

m, you should write a book. I'd buy it.

I so appreciate your words. They are confirmation that indeed we are not alone in the struggle. Laughter is amazing medicine, and I miss it. Tears come easily but losing yourself in the moments of pure joy have been far and few between. I wish many more for you and everyone -- it makes everything more tolerable -- it softens the edges.

love that you are finding your laughter again :)

(((((Andrea and Ben)))))

You have given me an "aha" moment. Your site, your raw open honesty, sparks memories and emotions for me...thank you! I was just thinking this morning how many mothers and women lead "secret lives", how there is an "unspoken code" to not "tell". Other women ask me with three teenagers, a full time job and on the brink of going back to school..."how do you keep it all together"....and I tell them sometimes in a whisper and othertimes in a loud ROARING LAUGH... " I don't!" "Half the time I am a mess...and the other I am cleaning up messes!"
My children ground me...they worry me...at times they break open wounds that have long been scabbed over , and other times they can unleash joy that I thought I had lost... it is not easy, and Andrea you are beautiful in the way that you touch on just how hard it is, yet how special you feel in the midst of the "mess of it all". Thank you for being so refreshing in your mom-hood, for being true in your emotions and your experience.

I wish I had someone like you to talk with when my kids were younger. It wouldn't have made any of it better or easier, but I feel I would have been a little more sane.

I know I am repeating myself, but thank you. Your words resonnate in my own life today, with a 17, 14 and 12 year old...who believe me are still "toddlers" in so many ways!!!

xxxo Kathleen

So beautiful...
Mine, now off to college, was a handful with his ADD and Asperger's, yet laughter was the way we made it through (and still do), him and I, me and everyone else. There were/are days when I just wanted everything to stop, if just for a day, and then I saw him smile, or heard him sing, and.. yeah. What you said. Hang in there. Let the laughter in. The tiredness and frustration walk in uninvited and unannounced, so... let laughter do the same, and the healing will come.

Maybe a Superhero
gets a break,
now and then.

He is so adorable! I think he gets more handsome, and more Ben, all the time. I'm glad you had such a wonderful, recharging time in Oregon. Love ya!

yeah. you did it again. you hit that spot and i am nodding and smiling thinking of him with the colander and knowing, just knowing what you are saying. there are days and nights when i think i could not possibly have been doing this for 16 months and still be functional, that all those other twin mamas that i read have toddlers that eat/sleep/play/love better...then a moment like this catches me. that awareness of how very much it is to have them, how very very much. i have come back to a bit of something of late. happiness in myself? do not know how to describe. but reading that you have found that laughter, that laughter that smiles out of your eyes in some of the photos i have seen of you, well, that makes my day.

you speak truth. for as much as my little people drive me nuts, when I see them sleeping or laughing or whatever, I can not help but have a full heart. It is not easy balancing all that is expected of us. When we choose to live in the now we can not help but be full of life and happiness. I just don't think it is possible to not be.

love this - thank you.

xo

WOW!!! I could not have said it better myself. I went through everything you are going through for the first two years of my son's life. I lost track of myself mainly because I was exhausted. I promise things will get better. Just keep your eye's on that beautiful face.

such an insightful post! to encourage you in your parenting journey it gets easier... then it may get harder again...round and round you will go trying to figure each stage out ( mine are 16 and 20) but laughter is the constant and can be the cure for so much of the journey. Blessings to you.

so good! so sweet! so true!
loving all of it, sister. yay you.

andrea, thank you for saying this...i was just wondering how everyone did it, balancing a creative life with motherhood. i've been struggeling lately myself. i want to make my art a fulltime deal so i don't have to go back to work for someone else. sometimes i have a huge amount of self doubt and anxiety, at times it can be so overwhelming {i forget to eat too}. but today my boys turned on the music and started playing and laughing together, it was just what i needed to melt away the anxiety, it had been ages since i had listened to any music.

WOW!!! I could not have said it better myself. I went through everything you are going through for the first two years of my son's life. I lost track of myself mainly because I was exhausted. I promise things will get better. Just keep your eye's on that beautiful face.