Running on empty

Ah, lovely Planetarians, all 261 of you (and a warm welcome on this rainy Hobart day to the newbies), can you relate to this photo? See how the fuel gauge is even showing at less than empty? It is symbolic of where I’m at in life at the moment. I’m overstretched on all fronts. I’ve posted before (here and here) about my wish to ‘keep it real’ here on Planet Baby. I don’t want to ‘airbrush’ out life’s little *inconveniences*. So, in that spirit, I just wanted to let you know how I’m feeling now. Maybe some of you can relate to a bit of this. Maybe I’m *not* the only one feeling like this. Hmmm.

The home front

• a fridge which is almost completely empty of food;

• lots of washing to dry but Hobart’s fickle autumnal weather is making havoc of my efforts (we even have snow on Mount Wellington today – on only the 4th day of autumn!);

• no tumble-drier as a back-up plan so I may have to cart a load of washing up to my parents’ house to use theirs;

• the chariot’s fuel gauge showing at only *marginally* above the level of the photo above;

• hair which hasn’t seen a hairdresser for months (see financial below) and which is driving me batty as it keeps getting in my eyes;

• a to-do list which seems to get longer instead of shorter; and

• a to-do list in my head which hasn’t even made it onto paper because I keep forgetting to write things down.

The financial front

I have:

• to wait until next Wednesday for Mr PB’s monthly pay to arrive; and

• a fridge to fill, nappies and formula to buy and a petrol tank to fill before then.

The blogging front

I have:

• e-mails to reply to;

• 240 posts waiting for me to peruse in Google Reader which I’m longing to read – I need my daily fix of you all!;

• been the lucky recipient of some blog love and fabulous giveaways which I’ll post about soon;

• a few days’ worth of lessons and homework to catch up on for my Blogging Your Way e-course (BYW) which is frustrating me no end as it’s so utterly compelling, inspirational and thought-provoking; and

• so many plans and ideas bubbling away sparked by the course so far which are delighting me but I’m frustrated as I don’t have the time to even write them down yet.

The health front

I have:

•  just seen one of my doctors;

• to see another one next week; and

• growing impatience at how long it is taking me to recover from my PND.

The school front

I have:

• to drop off at, and collect Joshua from, school 5 days a week;

• to get used to that after my father-in-law used to take Joshua to school last year;

• two other pixies who need to accompany me on those trips;

• said pixies to have fed, watered and dressed appropriately before such trips (see said fickle autumnal weather above);

• to buy Joshua some long trousers as he’s currently freezing in his shorts (see said weather above);

• to remember that the school clothing pool is only open on Mondays and Wednesdays;

• to remember to actually go to the school clothing pool next week to buy him said trousers;

• lots of names to learn as Joshua starts to make friends;

• lots of mothers’ names to remember which instantly leave my head the moment I see them at school and return as soon as I drive home;

• lots of complex levels of interconnection between said mothers to discover (the joys of living in a small city – you need to know this stuff); and

• lived in Sydney for 11 of the past 12 years whilst many said mothers have stayed here and formed said interconnections.

The daycare front

I have:

• to hope that India will stop being so clingy when I drop her off at daycare twice a week – she’s just moved up to the next group so she has lots of new rules to follow and children to get to know; and

• to hope that Sam will stop screaming his head off when I leave him at his new daycare on Mondays – leaving him like that, with tears streaming down his face is *unpleasant* (they assure me it only lasts a few minutes and then he’s fine for the rest of the day but hmm, are they just ‘saying’ that to calm me down?).

The extended family front

I have:

• a gorgeous newborn nephew in Adelaide for whom I haven’t bought a present yet (see financial above); and

• worrying concerns about my Dad’s health.

Conclusion

Hmm, that all sounds a tad bleak, I know. It’s just been ‘one of those days’. Or weeks. Most of the ‘home front’ and ‘financial front’ issues will be rectified once we use my parents’ tumble-drier and Wednesday arrives. If Mr PB can look after the pixies a bit on the weekend and we manage to *actually* get them to sleep earlier for once (a story for another day), I’ll catch up on the ‘blogging front’. Everything else is just ongoing work-in-progress. Just normal old life on Planet Baby, I guess. So tell me, are any of you Planetarians running on empty like me? Tell me I’m not alone!

Postscript at 10.20 pm: 

I borrowed one of Miss India's many hairclips so said hair is now restrained, the washing actually dried (somewhat miraculously after having been rained on intermittently throughout the day), the pixies didn't muck around with bedtime (for once), I have caught up on all your posts (and stopped following about 60 blogs - not yours - hmm, maybe it's time for a bloggy rehab update!) and now I'm going to have a peek at BYW before having an early night. The day is ending on a much brighter note. Thankfully ☺.