When
I decided to start an online magazine with my partner, Val Curtis, I
knew it was going to affect my children and my husband. My time was
already stretched. How was I going to do all I had to do,
plus put together a completely new magazine?
Day
by day, we're learning to handle my new schedule. My husband has
been very supportive of my dream. Dishes in the sink? Clothes not
folded? No problem, he’s been only too happy to lend a hand. Even though
he has a long day and a longer commute himself.
I
really appreciate that he knows how important this is to me and is
showing me with his actions not just words that I have his
support.
Even
the kids have been learning to pitch in and help out. I was so proud of
them for cleaning out the sun porch the other day and keeping the
playroom clean. We're all adjusting to my new role as a work-at-home mom.
Well,
almost all of us. One member of the family is not at all
happy and making their feelings very well known.
My dishwasher.
This
silly appliance has been trouble since the day we bought it. But
oddly enough once I started to write this weekly blog, the dishwasher
and I had come to an agreement of sorts. I would write about it, and it
would behave.
It happily cleaned the dishes and never gave me another problem... until I started the magazine.
I
was only about a month into the project when Damien started pulling
its old tricks. But I really thought the last repair appointment had
solved the problem for good.
It
seems that since the dishwasher was a very new model the installers
were unfamiliar with it. Apparently there was a wire that needed to be
cut and reattached. The fact that this was not done was causing the
machine to work intermittently. We were not even the only family with
this problem, there were several possessed appliances out
there.
The
Sears repairman fixed the wires and the machine was cured. Amen. I
guess my mother was right, dishwashers can’t really be possessed.
Ha!
Imagine my surprise when Joe announced on Tuesday that Damien was up to his old tricks again.
I guess my mom was wrong, appliances really can be possessed. And this one is not just possessed, it’s demonic.
Like Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction, it won’t be ignored.
No
problem. We are the humans, no appliance can really get the better of
us. We simply called the repairman. We know the number by heart now. We
scheduled an appointment and stocked up on paper plates. No big deal.
But
Damien must be more than a little mad, because Joe and I think the
possession has spread. It might be just a coincidence but the repair
appointment had to be canceled on Friday because the repairman got sick.
Is it possible the dishwasher’s reach is bigger than we thought?
What is it trying to tell me?
Maybe
the dishwasher is just acting out what the rest of the family has been
feeling. Though we all have been getting used to my new schedule, the
truth is things are different. My attention is split now more than it’s
ever been.
My
temper has been a bit shorter now. Trying to be all things to all
people is impossible. Just ask any mom. But like most mothers what
really suffers isn’t the kids or the house. The children may feel a bit
put out, but a family soon starts to adjust. The house may look like a
bomb hit it, but even the chores get done eventually. What usually
suffers the most when mom takes on a new project, is mom.
Maybe the dishwasher is teaching me an important lesson. When the load gets too heavy, the best thing to do is stop.
Swimming with the kids or taking a walk with my husband is just as important as anything else I have on my “to-do” list.
I
also have to put myself on the top of my “things to get done” list.
Going to the doctor or dentist only when something is wrong isn’t the
best way to manage my health.
As
my family and I enter into the this new zone, I have to take the lessons
I’ve learned from my silly appliance and put it to work. I won’t be
good to my family, my partner, or myself if I don’t learn to balance the
load. To not put too much in the machine at once. And when I’m really
feeling completely overwhelmed, stop.
To think I’ve learned all this from one very possessed dishwasher.
Only
one week left until the launch of Bonbon Break. My partner, Val Curtis
and I can’t wait to share something we are very proud
of. If you have been having problems subscribing to our newsletter, no
worries, you can easily subscribe to it from our Facebook Fan page http://facebook.com/bonbonbreak You
can also follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/bonbonbreak. Thank you so much for all the support. I can’t wait until we can all take a Bonbon Break together.
