Our power finally came on Sunday afternoon!!! Yeah!!!
First I want to say Thank you to everyone that stopped by and
left comments on my post. It really meant a lot to me and my family to know
that we were being kept in prayers and best wishes were being sent our way
during this time!
This past week really tested me both on a relationship level and
mother level. It is one thing when there is a planned vacation. You planned to
work late, to make sure that all your work is caught up & take care of
certain household things (cleaning, laundry, etc). You are able to go into the vacation
relaxed. Activities are planned during the day and money has been budgeted
accordingly. When there is an act of God and the events that unfold are surreal
it really is a different ballgame all together.
Staying in a hotel room for a week trying to work remote on a
terrible wi-fi connection at the hotel while simultaneously entertaining and
managing a 4 year old was quite a challenge in and of itself. My daughter thought it was vacation (simply
because we were in hotel that had a pool). I had
to keep telling myself that she is 4 and she really doesn’t understand so I had
to be patient.
The constant “mommy when can we go to the pool” was driving me
crazy, because it didn’t matter how many times I told her that “mommy had to
work”, all she cared about was the pool. Finally at one point I told her that “in
the mornings the pool was closed for maintenance and wouldn’t be open up until
evening .” I know that we shouldn’t lie to our kids or lie in general, but I
had to come up with something to stop the endless repetitive question. I was
losing patience fast and I didn’t want to take it out on her.
Then there was the guilt from my daughter. I knew that all she
wanted to do was spend time with me. She asked me several times a day “mommy,
why do have to work?” or “mommy why can’t you spend time with me?” That was
painful to hear as a mother and the look on her face broke my heart. All I
could do was just try my best to explain that I had to work and if I could I
would spend all day with her. I knew
that no matter what I said her little eyes showed the hurt and confusion
because she just wanted to spend time with her mother and that was all that
matter to her.
Next, was the relationship with my boyfriend that came into
play. He too was stressed about the whole entire situation. Worrying about me
(he knew I was stressed about work and the house), worrying about my daughter
(she got sick in the beginning of the week) and both of us worrying about the
money that was being spent that was not budgeted for (we have to rent a car in
a week to travel for Thanksgiving, my daughter’s birthday is coming up and
Christmas is right around corner).
Communication and understanding was the key for the both of us
during this time. We agreed and acknowledged that it was stressful and that we
needed to be honest with each other when either one of us “needed a time out
from the other.”
We agreed that it was not
a moment to be taken personal by the other. If something flared up, we would
take a deep breath before we spoke. This worked out very well and I am pleased
to say that we didn’t fight once and it secured our commitment to each other
and proved that communication we have is excellent!
Overall, this situation was a blessing in disguise. Sure there
was the extra money that was spent, but it was done because as a mother I was
not about to keep my daughter in a cold house during this week. It forced me to truly dig deep and balance work
and my family.
Yes, work is important
but not as important as my daughter –making sure that she was safe and
comfortable was the only thought on my mind. The consequences of not physically
traveling into the office and finally putting my foot down (telling my boss
that either would either work remote or take the week off – her choice) , was
scary but rewarding.
Secondly, it proved that I am with a very wonderful and caring
man, that I can communicate with and be honest with. It proved that we are team
and no matter what comes are way; we can make it through together. It gave a
chance to really open up to each other. The doubts or questions that I may have had
were washed away, as a reflect back on this week.
The stories I heard at work about couples fighting (they stayed
home in cold houses for days), just broke my heart. There were even news
articles that questioned if there was
going to be a spike in divorce rates during this time due to stress both
emotional and physical during such an event.
Although, I have power back on in my home, I am completely drained after all that
has happened. I am truly blessed that my family is okay, there was no damage to
my house and that all is relatively back to normal (except for all the laundry
and yard work that has to be done).
Please continue to keep those residents in the towns of Avon,
Simsbury and Granby in your prayers as there many people that are still without
power after 10 days!!!
