Cuttting Myself Some Slack.

So, I just posted the last 4 or so posts that have been sitting on my computer for 9 months!  I never posted them because I had intended to fill in the gaps between them with other posts.  Unfortunately, life happened and I had to put the blog aside to focus on my family.  The perfectionist side of me wants to go back and post pictures and talk about what we have been up to, but I am so behind at this point that the thought of that is too overwhelming.  So, I plan on cutting myself some slack and at some point posting one post full of pictures of some of the highlights of the last 9 months and calling it a day.  Hopefully, I never get that behind again.
My mom has said if she was having kids in todays day, she never would have had 5 kids.  The truth is lives today are busy.  Football is 5 days a week at 9 years old!  Baseball is multiple days a week, then there is Religious Education and tons of homework.   We are officially in survival mode. We are just trying to get through the day without forgetting anything major, making sure our kids are dressed and fed and in bed at a decent hour.  I know that we have offended some people by not calling enough, but besides the fact that Dennis and I hate talking on the phone (we rarely talk even to each other), we have been so stressed out and busy.  All our energy and time at this point has to go to our kids, because at the end of the day they are our priority and we want to be sure that we are spending enough time with them.  Dennis doesn't usually get home until almost 7, then he is eating dinner and meeting us at whatever sport we have, then we are rushing home to get the kids to bed.  By 8 or 8:30 we are exhausted and the last thing we want to do is pick up the phone.
This last year has been especially stressful.  Moving and finding a new job are on the top of lists of stressful life events and Dennis had to experience both, while still raising 4 kids.  He didn't know if he was going to be getting a new job or not for a few months.  Our lives were in limbo not knowing if we were still going to be in Indiana or not and if we were moving, then when that would happen.  Then he moved back to VA, and I was left with all 4 kids trying to juggle homework and packing and activities on my own.  Meanwhile, he was juggling the stress of a brand new job and trying to find a house. His job, while he enjoys it so much more is stressful, and his career is demanding. Then we moved and we have been busy with unpacking and decorating and getting kids into sports and schools and looking for preschools.  We are both exhausted and still have a mile long to do list.
So, if the dishes don't get done every night, if my wood floors still haven't been cleaned (yes I really need a maid, but can't rationalize the cost), if we haven't talked to friends or family in months, if the front of our house still needs landscaping, oh well.  We are cutting ourselves some slack and we hope others will too.  Our kids are happy and that is what is most important.
And we fully realize that our lives are only going to get busier so we are trying to embrace the crazy.  Hopefully, we will also get a few moments as a couple to actually talk to each other each day.  And hopefully if anyone is feeling like we aren't calling enough, they will understand how much we have going on and won't be offended.   Pick up the phone and call us instead or better yet, invite yourselves over!
And in case I sound very negative, I don't mean to be.  I am enjoying every moment of being a parent.  It is crazy but I love going to all their practices and I don't want to miss a single thing.  It is the busiest, but the best days of our lives.