dancing queen

It snowed all day yesterday. The snowfall, in its own way, had a kind of dignity (I was out, briefly, after dark and couldn't help but enjoy the deep, deep quiet of evening snow). Today, in the cold, gray aftermath, things just feel tired.

I thought, since I'm trying to put off work and the kids are asleep, that I might as well update my blog. Yesterday, despite the snow (actually, possibly because of the snow) was a long day. We'd received notice a week ago that the power might be turned off between 8 am and 2 pm, so I tried to plan activities that would take us out of our theoretically heatless home. Our original plan was to go south; however, as you may have noticed, it snowed all day, so that was out. Instead, we went to Walmart to look at the toys and then to the local library. When we got home a couple of hours later, it was clear that the power wasn't yet out--nor, in the event, did it go off at all during the specified time period. I'm guessing the weather botched the power company's plans as well. All that stress for nothing.

On Monday, we experienced for the first time the local wonder that is Funtime Inflatables--a local company that rents out inflatable playhouses and slides during the summer months, but in between times keeps them inflated in an indoor playground. Monday mornings they offer discounted rates for kids and the parents get in free. Andrew was in heaven the entire time (well, aside for the two minutes he spent crying with a split lip after conking heads with another little boy), but Evelyn eventually wore out and we went home. But I'm sure we'll be back.

And finally, for your viewing pleasure, a peek at what happens when our kids discover my shoes. We think Evelyn might have a future in tap dancing--what do you think?








A final thought. A friend of mine introduced me to a relatively new website, The Mormon Women Project, that features interviews with Mormon women from a variety of backgrounds. (Side note: I've actually met the woman who edits the site and conducts most of the interviews--she interviewed for the presidential scholarship at BYU when I did but ended up going somewhere Ivy League instead. Though I doubt she'd remember me!) The interviews that I read were paradoxically both inspiring and depressing--inspiring because they showcased women doing so many interesting things with their lives and their families; depressing once I realized that these women were MY AGE and I was doing nothing nearly as interesting. (I keep thinking, "I'm still young--I have lots of time later to do X or Y." Maybe I'm not as young any more as I'd like to think.) At any rate, after reading some of the interviews, I started thinking about my role as a mother. I feel like I have made a conscious choice to put a career (such as it may be) on the backburner for right now for the sake of my children, but I had to think, what do I do for my children that a professional child care person couldn't do? Granted, for the kind of quality we could afford, I'm probably doing much better. But if money were no issue and we could afford someone who was well trained, attentive, provided the children nutritious meals as well as mental stimulation? (Someone who wouldn't spend time occasionally online or reading a book when she could be playing with her children). Someone with a background in childhood education could probably do a much better job at mothering than I do. Luckily, just as I was about to get truly depressed, I had a moment of epiphany. Someone else might be able to do the physical tasks better, but no one (except perhaps Dan) is better qualified than I am to love my children. And love, I believe, makes up for a lot of other shortcomings.