Overwhelmed Wednesday
OK.... I hope this won't be a weekly thing... but today is definitely
OVERWHELMED WEDNESDAY
Crap...is it Wednesday already?
I have been working my tail off since last Thursday...lots of extra hours at the office trying to get everything done before the end of the month... throw into that kids, MESSY house... class mother stuff... AARRRRGGGGHHH!
OK, I am going to break this all down into BABY STEPS & then MAYBE, I won't be SOOO BLOODY OVERWHELMED....
On top of working 10-12 hour days... (I know in the US this is pretty normal..but here in Scandinavia, where the work week is between 35-37 hours... I am pretty sure I will be receiving a medal in the mail for all of my hard work....)
So on top of all of the long hours, messy house etc... I have my first "Class mother" meeting at Eva's "Barnehagen" (preschool)
First order of business... to start planning a
REAL old fashioned Christmas Tree Party....
The other mothers are throwing ideas out there left & right whilst I sit...like a bump.on.a log. *crickets* I don't KNOW what to do for a
Norwegian "Juletrefest" I have only been to one ever... so for me to start planning the party... I feel a little dumb. to be honest.... (People...I am a FOREIGNER!)
I can see that this is going to end up a really LONG post...if I don't start getting to the point.
In the "REAL WORLD" (the United States) I am a very outgoing"hop right in" kind of person... but in the "New World" I think I suffer from social anxiety... Socially I am "Special" I tend to be very quiet/shy.... & as this isn't my nature I am very uncomfortable..... none of the other mom's asked where I was from... so I am guessing they think I have a drippy personality instead of just being foreign....
To make a LONG story short... Not only did I get sucked into being the treasurer.... they told me I would be leading the whole "class mother" thing next year, because all of the other mothers are leaving...
(Have I mentioned I have a real issue with saying NO?) CRAPITTY.. CRAP... CRAP....
So as is tradition, I am having the Americans over for Halloween this year.... Usually, I throw a huge BASH... with homemade piñatas, full blown decorations... games & prizes ...the whole 9 yards.... This year I am having them over for PIZZA & TRICK or TREATING... I feel like a big Ol' LAME-O... to make it worse... the kids don't have costumes... (I normally order them from the states 3 months before hand....) this year.... we are going to have to dig through the box of Halloweens past & see what we come up with... no decorations... I DID find pumpkins... however they are still UN- carved....
When I started whining to Bjørn last night, he asked what the big deal was... the kids don't seem bothered about it so why should I? I think my problem is, every year my kids get less & less American... & more Norwegian... (can't they just be 50/50) ? Sigh... (we didn't celebrate 4th of July (Bj was in the Hospital)...Halloween is going to be LAME, Christmas will be typical Norwegian....)
So I am having 12 people over to my NEW HOUSE... which is still unfinished... we have unpainted trim... bare windows....crap out where the front yard SHOULD be .... I just wanted it to be finished... ya know?
We did finally get THE nightmare...BATHROOM in.... (anyone looking to buy a bathroom here in Norway, email me & I will tell you where NOT to go....(rocka.no)) did I mention that this isn't even the bathroom we special ordered? it is some crap he had sitting in the warehouse... & we accepted it because he didn't return our calls & he just wore. us. out... its not that bad...but not what I wanted either.....
So today is the day... I WILL GET EVERYTHING DONE.... (lord I hope..) be nice if I can just get the laundry off of the floor before everyone comes over.... .
Guess who was invited to a FABULOUS wedding in a CASTLE in TUSCANY??? Can you Guess who probably won't be able to go to this FABULOUS life styles of the rich & famous wedding... CRAP... The wedding is in May... & we have already booked our tickets for ROME in March... but for this trip I would be willing to fore go Christmas & Birthday presents (even for the kids...OK.. I JEST...) I would be happy to eat NOODLES for the next 6 months....
I REALLY WANT TO GO TO THIS WEDDING!
I am off now to do 2 weeks worth of House Work...Halloween decorating.. good mommy doing, all in one day... wish me luck! Hope you all have a super HUMP DAY!
OVERWHELMED WEDNESDAY
Crap...is it Wednesday already?
I have been working my tail off since last Thursday...lots of extra hours at the office trying to get everything done before the end of the month... throw into that kids, MESSY house... class mother stuff... AARRRRGGGGHHH!
OK, I am going to break this all down into BABY STEPS & then MAYBE, I won't be SOOO BLOODY OVERWHELMED....
On top of working 10-12 hour days... (I know in the US this is pretty normal..but here in Scandinavia, where the work week is between 35-37 hours... I am pretty sure I will be receiving a medal in the mail for all of my hard work....)
So on top of all of the long hours, messy house etc... I have my first "Class mother" meeting at Eva's "Barnehagen" (preschool)
First order of business... to start planning a
REAL old fashioned Christmas Tree Party....
The other mothers are throwing ideas out there left & right whilst I sit...like a bump.on.a log. *crickets* I don't KNOW what to do for a
Norwegian "Juletrefest" I have only been to one ever... so for me to start planning the party... I feel a little dumb. to be honest.... (People...I am a FOREIGNER!)
I can see that this is going to end up a really LONG post...if I don't start getting to the point.
In the "REAL WORLD" (the United States) I am a very outgoing"hop right in" kind of person... but in the "New World" I think I suffer from social anxiety... Socially I am "Special" I tend to be very quiet/shy.... & as this isn't my nature I am very uncomfortable..... none of the other mom's asked where I was from... so I am guessing they think I have a drippy personality instead of just being foreign....
To make a LONG story short... Not only did I get sucked into being the treasurer.... they told me I would be leading the whole "class mother" thing next year, because all of the other mothers are leaving...
(Have I mentioned I have a real issue with saying NO?) CRAPITTY.. CRAP... CRAP....
So as is tradition, I am having the Americans over for Halloween this year.... Usually, I throw a huge BASH... with homemade piñatas, full blown decorations... games & prizes ...the whole 9 yards.... This year I am having them over for PIZZA & TRICK or TREATING... I feel like a big Ol' LAME-O... to make it worse... the kids don't have costumes... (I normally order them from the states 3 months before hand....) this year.... we are going to have to dig through the box of Halloweens past & see what we come up with... no decorations... I DID find pumpkins... however they are still UN- carved....
When I started whining to Bjørn last night, he asked what the big deal was... the kids don't seem bothered about it so why should I? I think my problem is, every year my kids get less & less American... & more Norwegian... (can't they just be 50/50) ? Sigh... (we didn't celebrate 4th of July (Bj was in the Hospital)...Halloween is going to be LAME, Christmas will be typical Norwegian....)
So I am having 12 people over to my NEW HOUSE... which is still unfinished... we have unpainted trim... bare windows....crap out where the front yard SHOULD be .... I just wanted it to be finished... ya know?
We did finally get THE nightmare...BATHROOM in.... (anyone looking to buy a bathroom here in Norway, email me & I will tell you where NOT to go....(rocka.no)) did I mention that this isn't even the bathroom we special ordered? it is some crap he had sitting in the warehouse... & we accepted it because he didn't return our calls & he just wore. us. out... its not that bad...but not what I wanted either.....
So today is the day... I WILL GET EVERYTHING DONE.... (lord I hope..) be nice if I can just get the laundry off of the floor before everyone comes over.... .
Guess who was invited to a FABULOUS wedding in a CASTLE in TUSCANY??? Can you Guess who probably won't be able to go to this FABULOUS life styles of the rich & famous wedding... CRAP... The wedding is in May... & we have already booked our tickets for ROME in March... but for this trip I would be willing to fore go Christmas & Birthday presents (even for the kids...OK.. I JEST...) I would be happy to eat NOODLES for the next 6 months....
I REALLY WANT TO GO TO THIS WEDDING!
I am off now to do 2 weeks worth of House Work...Halloween decorating.. good mommy doing, all in one day... wish me luck! Hope you all have a super HUMP DAY!
Comments
You weren't the only one who has been suckered into positions in the PTA. No one volunteered to be class contact for my 8th grader's class so guess who raised her hand in protest of all the parents who said they wanted to be active in their kids school days but never volunteered to help out as class contact...yep...I hate taking on extra jobs when I have so much to do as is...yeah yeah...shouldn't complain I do it to myself.
How long have you been here???
Good luck! :)
We rush ordered a costume from amazon.de for the school day party. So 26€ for something he'll wear for about two hours at most. Lovely.
At least you have pumpkins, that's a start, I can't find anywhere to buy some.
I find that even though our entire family is American, we don't even do the holidays anymore. 4th of July? Just another day. Hubby will likely be in the US for most of November so no Thanksgiving either.
Being foreign stinks.
As for the Halloween party - make them carve out their own bloody pumpkins - you have enough to do. Just make sure there's enough food and drink!
And a wedding in Italy -hold me back baby. Make a plan - use the credit cards, sell the family pet. Hell, sell hubby if you have to!
I have taken the day off so now I'm off to buy pumpkins and sweets and find myself a nice pair of boots!
I agree with the others that the wedding is a must - a mental health vacation.
Maybe you'll need to work some tricks into the trick or treating this year :)
And you must go to Tuscany. Really. There are things that you must sacrifice for sanity. Or for blog fodder...
And you must go to Tuscany. Really. There are things that you must sacrifice for sanity. Or for blog fodder...
This is an opportunity for you to educate them on another culture, or the American way to celebrate Christmas. You certainly can't bake Christmas cookies at school but perhaps the kids could decorate them and take them home in a sack decorated with stickers or rubber stamps. Need some rubber stamps? I've got tons of Christmas stamps that I will never use. Let me know.
Learn to say NO, it's the best advice I can give you. Not saying no and stressing myself to some insane level got me hospitalized and in therapy.... long enough to learn to say no.
Tuscany? Cancel the trip to Rome. There might be a fee but the trade off would be fabulous. You seriously need to go to this wedding and report back to us.
- Suzanne, the Farmer's Wife
if it makes you feel better my kids are wearing last years halloween costumes because our minds are on the big move and they still fit in them.
Good luck with the Halloween party..
It has tons of things to select from. Who knows, maybe you'll teach them a thing or two.
I hope this week is over with fast for you.
Good luck with everything...I feel your pain!
My husband has the same issues with our daughter not being Brasilian enough- I totally understand your need to make our traditions special to them. So far I think you're doing a great job of that. And a happy, stress free mom with a few carved pumpkins and some candy is much better than a blow out party where you're about to lose it. They'll get it either way, so don't feel bad at all for the easy party!
Even if the house isn't perfect and the kids aren't decorated hope you have a great time with your get-together. It isn't so much the surroundings and decor as it is the company you keep. Hope you just shovel everything into the closet and have a great time!
You deserve a medal ~ 12 hour days and mommying are a difficult mix!
And May is a whole 2 months after March...you can find a way to swing the Tuscany trip...Doesn't Bjorn have frequent flier miles? Don't you love the American wife solution to dump most of it on hubby?! ;)
Feel better! Love you!
Ok it'll all work out.
If it makes you feel better, your blog rocks! :-)
Thanks for stopping by my blog and the birthday wishes! (on top of everything! :))
Happy Halloween anyway...
I did catch something about a wedding at a castle in Tuscany! Very cool. Can't miss that. You can see Rome any old time...
Oh, guess I am not helping your spirit. Make sure you post up some pictures, I am sure it will be fun!
As for a WEDDING IN A CASTLE IN TUSCANY? You must find a way to make that work. WOW. Once in a lifetime experience!!!!