You’d think I’d welcome the odd break from being a mom. I’m not knocking either my husband or my two sons, but they do tend to leave me with lots of mom stuff to do. I tend not to mind ? my own mom brought up six of us, so I can’t grumble at only having to look after two.
Yeah, I get mom breaks. My husband earns enough for me to be a stay-at-home mom, which I adore. The trouble is ? hubby usually gets to work late at least once a week, and there’s the times he spends entire weekends away in Cedar Rapids or St Louis. My boys are of an age where they’re much more out of the house than in, so some evenings can get kind of lonesome. My friends are usually with their families, so occasionally I’m left to experience life as a singleton.
Here are my three favorite ways of passing the time. I hope they might give you ideas whenever you find yourself sailing in the lonesome boat.
Scrap-booking
One of my best friends got me into scrap-booking. I’d kept stuff over the years for my boys ? school reports, holiday snaps, scribbled pictures, that sort of thing ? but they were just shoved here, there and everywhere. I’ve been taking a much more methodical approach and organizing everything in dedicated scrapbooks for them. I like adding little notes as well of what I remember of my boys as they’ve been growing up. They’re not interested at all at the moment, being teenagers, but I hope when they’re my age they’ll really appreciate my efforts.
Online Play
This is going to shock you but I’m an online gambling addict. Well, not really ? I like playing online but I only play for pennies or for play money. It helps to pass the time, and can get quite exciting. The only games I touch are bingo (yes ? no kidding!) and roulette, which is kind of like bingo but I guess is more like the lottery. If you pick the right number or numbers, then you’re a winner. I like playing with Full Tilt online. There are some great games and I’ve made a handful of online buddies.
Zumba
I think I get enough exercise naturally as a mom without having to worry about extra-curricular activities. I’m also very shy when I get sweaty ? you’d simply never catch me at the gym or jogging in the park or taking fitness classes. That’s why my collection of Zumba DVDs is such a godsend. Once I am sure I’m not going to be disturbed I close all the curtains, stick on a DVD and get motivated. There are plenty of routines so I like to keep it varied. I love to work up a great sweat then dive into the shower then straight into bed with a large glass of red wine ? luxury!