Welcome Back

Well, guys. It's been awhile. I pretty much gave up blogging this past year. Not that I didn't enjoy it, I was just way too busy trying to make Heartstring Annie a success. There are only so many quiet hours a night to get something done and sewing always won out. And overall, I think it was mostly worth it. Until I began feeling incredibly burnt out, too tired for anything, and basically just very unhappy. These last four months especially, since school started, have been really rough for me. Anyway, I've been thinking about my long lost blog for a few weeks now and decided it was worth giving it another shot. Mostly just for my own cathartic purposes, not really for the entertainment of others. Unless you're interested of course, then have at it. :) 

My relationship with Caden hasn't changed much. I went through some major sadness over him starting kindergarten. Not so much because I was going to miss him. But because I felt like my time to truly mother him was over and I failed. Completely. I tried to cheer myself up with the fact that at least since we're not with each other every minute of the day anymore, maybe the time we do spend together will be worth more. We'll connect better. And...it's not happening. He's so crabby after school. The only thing he wants from me is a snack and to leave him alone to watch tv or play (fight) with Shepard. He doesn't want to answer any of my questions, he has no interest in actually doing anything with me. And once Greg gets home I may as well be invisible. So things are rough. I can't decide if it's just because he's overly tired or what, but he's so upset about everything all the time. It worries me so much that he's six years old and his overruling emotion seems to be anger. It scares me how much I look at him and see myself. But myself NOW. Just like me he feels everything so deeply, expresses himself out of anger without thinking, and seems to deeply regret it, but not know how to deal with that other than self loathing. Which only turns into more anger directed at everyone else. I feel like I ruined him not only because I failed at being a good mom, I also managed to pass on all my bad mental attitudes. I love him, but he makes it so hard some days.

And Shepard. My ray of sunshine - most of the time. He's developed quite a bit of his own attitude these past few months. He is about the most stubborn child on earth when he sets his mind against doing something. Of course it's always at the worst possible moments too. For example this morning, while we were running late for school, he decided that he absolutely was not going to get his winter clothes on by himself. He always manages to find the worst times to throw these stubborn fits. But the rest of the time he's still a pretty happy little guy. Whereas Caden has so much of my personality, Shepard has so much of Greg's. Both such comedians. Usually very easygoing and happy. My favorite thing about Shepard, which I'm trying so hard to always see as a good thing, is how helpful he wants to be. Especially in the kitchen. He wants to help me with EVERYTHING. Literally, everything. And even though it takes a lot longer, it's always a whole lot messier, I let him help. His desire to be by my side will probably not last long and I'm going to enjoy it while I can.

Things with me personally have not been that great. Like I said before, I started getting very burnt out this fall. I pretty much gave up on sewing and trying to keep up with Heartstring Annie in the way I wanted. My biggest problem has been total exhaustion. I am so tired every day that I cannot function through the afternoon without a nap. It sounds ridiculous, but I've had a nap every afternoon for a year and a half now. And I'm still dead tired, no motivation to do anything, pretty much ever. I finally decided to do something about it in October and went to see a doctor. She did a huge number of blood tests and everything came back looking normal. Which lead to me a sleep study - one of the worst nights of my life. The sleep study revealed that I have very mild sleep apnea, but I didn't qualify for a cpap machine so I better just get used to feeling this way. Which was pretty devastating news since I was already at my rope's end. But a few weeks later my doctor pulled through and managed to convince the insurance company to give me a three month trial with a cpap machine. I was so excited - until I tried it. It's been a week and a half now and though it's getting easier, it's definitely not easy. The first few days I felt like it was trying to kill me. Forcing air into me with no way to let the air out, essentially drowning me. At least that's how it's felt. Finally in the last couple of days I've been able to keep it in most of the night, but I wake up so often. I feel more tired than ever and have little hope it'll ever actually make me feel better.

I feel like the lack of energy is making all my other problems feel so much worse than they are. But...it's been a very trying couple of months. I'm usually okay most days. But I have other days that feel like such a battle just to get through them in one piece. This is such a lonely season of life. I'm alone almost all the time. I mean, I have Shepard with me all but the four hours a week he's in preschool. But he's three. Greg gets home at night and spends every minute with the boys until they go to bed and then just wants a break by himself. Which is totally understandable. He's an amazing dad, but every night I end up feeling like such an outsider. The three of them are all so obsessed with video games and legos and there just doesn't seem to be a place for me, other than the provider of meals. This school year has also opened up a lot of new friendships for me and while I totally appreciate that I have them, I also feel like it's almost worse because these people have been placed in my life but I can never really see them. I'm struggling to figure out how friendship truly works without more than a two minute conversation a day. Maybe it's all in my head, but I just can't figure out how to hang out and connect with people because everyone is so busy with their own families. And while I obviously have a family too, I'm NOT busy. I'm never busy! I spend pretty much every night in my room reading or watching tv wishing I could at least occasionally go out to dinner with somebody the way life used to be before everyone had kids. I'm available almost every weekend wishing I could invite somebody to something - anything! - but sure that everyone else is surely too busy for me, for the kind of friendship I miss so much. So in the end I try to make do by getting out on my own. It helps me preserve my sanity, but obviously doesn't fill the gap of friendship.

Anyway, that's where I am in life right now. It sounds really depressing! But I'm trying to make things better. Getting that cpap machine was my first step. With better quality sleep I will hopefully have a foundation for everything else. I have a lot of other minor steps I'm starting to take to get control of my life again too. I'm sewing again and actually enjoying it. I'm hoping to get the business going at a pretty good speed, but without pushing myself too far. I've also been pouring over new cookbooks and blogs trying to find different foods and recipes that make me actually excited to get in the kitchen three times a day. I want the meals I prepare to be fun and a blessing instead of stressful and burdensome. And finally I'm trying to just be aware of what I need and when I need it. Taking more time and effort to actually connect with the people in my life instead of always hiding inside myself. Not sewing at all for a day if I don't honestly feel the desire to do so. At any rate...it's a start. I'm hoping 2015 will be a whole lot better than the last year.