Swirling Thoughts #88 - I may have to return to the hospital – just to unspoil myself

Since I came home with the baby I’ve been pampered and doted on in a way that made me forget all about the Cheder Ochel. Delicious meals have been prepared and delivered to me daily by a tireless and amazing group of friends and neighbors. My mother-in-law has been here by my side, helping with the diverse and sometimes ridiculous needs of my four other kids – baths, homework, laundry, sickness, mediation /arbitration, and, of course, snacks, cuddles and loving. Bob has mastered more household tasks than most men I know (read: sponga, laundry, putting tights on a 3 year old) and has been on hand day and night.

This Shabbat the step-down begins with our last meal to be delivered. Note to self: stock up on eggs and salami. Tuesday, mom-in-law leaves. No amount of eggs and salami can compensate for this one. I need to read up on cloning myself. And then, Bob returns to the States.

But there is some sort of inverse (or is it reflexive?) nesting property at work. A few days ago I woke up from a mid-day-post-nursing-armchair-snooze with an overwhelmingly urgent need to put out a crudité for my kids. It occurred to me that despite of all the nutritious meals coming in, more candy and junk was passing their lips in the absence of my vigilant oversight than fruits and vegetables. And so began the process of cleaning out 3 weeks worth of aging tomatoes, cucumbers and lemons from the depths of my refrigerator. I was lucky to find some peppers and carrots, thus making the crudité a reality in spite of my rotting veggie drawer. The next morning I woke up and snuck away from my sleeping baby to prepare crepes for my kids’ lunch. And then I was seized by a need to polish my silver. Yesterday when Rosie returned from school I heard a voice asking her how her day was followed by “Does anyone in gan have lice today?” It was my own voice. And then, “Let’s comb through your hair just to be sure you are clean.” And so my refrigerator, my silver and my children’s hair are in pristine condition. Perhaps some of this excess energy CAN be channeled into cooking, homework, laundry, mediation/arbitration, snacks, cuddles, loving, please Gd no sickness, and getting my 3 year old dressed in the morning.

The sponga will have to wait.