The Perpetual Tuesday…

Isn’t it funny how each day of the week seems to have a reputation of sorts? We say that, although Monday can be a drag, we are often still on the “high” of the weekend. Wednesday is hump day. Hump day is great! If we’ve made it to Wednesday we are half way to the weekend and if we’re half way there we can make it the rest of the way, right? Now Thursday can sometimes be a little tough to swallow, but it puts us on the precipice of the weekend, so we can’t really complain. Then there’s Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Who doesn’t love that little trio? Even though we have to do our jobs on Friday, it’s Friday! Come on, who can complain about that? We can let the kids watch a little more t.v. “because it’s Friday.” We can order in for dinner “because it’s Friday.” I think we’ve all used the “because it’s Friday” excuse before.

And then… there’s Tuesday. And let’s be honest… Tuesday sucks! The smidgen of “high” from Monday is long gone; it isn’t even the middle of the week yet; there is no view of the upcoming weekend; and everyone knows it’s no Friday, that’s for sure.

I often feel that motherhood is a Perpetual Tuesday. If I really think about it, LIFE can be a Perpetual Tuesday. Let’s look at the typical day of a stay at home mom. (Working Moms I can’t even begin to fathom your typical day. You amaze me with your multi-tasky-ness and unending stamina. I don’t know how you do it so I won’t insult you by even trying to discuss it.)But for us stay at home moms our days often look like this:
wake up, get dressed, get kids dressed, make breakfast, dishes, some/all kids to school, household duties such as grocery store, laundry, clean house, bills, etc., morning activity for any remaining kids such as park or playdate (which is a fancy term for “please give me contact with another adult while my kid runs wild”) snack, dishes, more playing/house stuff, lunch, dishes, playing/house stuff, naps/quiet time, snack, dishes, afternoon activities, making dinner (Satan’s evil plot to ruin us), dishes, bath, bedtime, have a small bit of a life before falling into bed.

I’m sure we all have certain variations of these activities, but this is a typical day in my house. Now, when it’s Monday I can do these things with a bit of a spring in my step because I am usually rejuvenated from the weekend of having my husband home. Wednesdays I can do this because “it’s the middle of the week and I’m half way there.” Thursdays I can do this because “Hey, tomorrow’s Friday, right?” And Friday I can do just about anything “because it’s Friday!”

But Tuesday? Yeeeeaaaahhhh… I got no words of inspiration for Tuesday. In fact, it is fairly common on Tuesday mornings for me to roll over, look at my husband and say with a deep sigh, “If Jesus ain’t waiting for me in the kitchen, preferably with a cup of coffee in hand, I don’t know if I”m going to be able to get out of this bed.” Tuesdays suck! I think that’s why most churches have Women’s Study on Tuesdays. It gives us something to do for half the day and people to watch our children for a few hours. I think Tuesday Women Studies are actually the hand of God laid gently on the shoulders of mothers to slowly push them through the worst day of the week.

To be honest, lately I have felt that my life is a Perpetual Tuesday. Now I know I sound ungrateful. I have a wonderful husband, two beautiful, healthy children, the privilege of not having to work, clothes on our backs, a roof over our heads, bills we can afford to pay, friends, family and God. By anyone’s standards I AM RICH! That has not gone unnoticed or unappreciated. However, this does not mean that my life is not, on occasion or more often than not, a Perpetual Tuesday. So does that mean I’m ungrateful? Does that mean I’m selfish? Does that mean I deserve to suffer some sort of tragedy or hardship so I really see how hard life can be? No… I don’t think it means those things at all.

Sometimes, I believe, there are just seasons of boredom and Perpetual Tuesdays. That’s life! Not everyday as an at home mom is a scrapbook moment. They’re not all trips to the zoo, romps in the park, play dough making parties, or cookies made for the local firemen. (Those are my favorite because who doesn’t love a good fireman? Shhh… that’s our little secret.) Sometimes, life is dishes and laundry and carpool and fixing meals. As Steve Martin said so beautifully in the movie “Parenthood”: “My whole life is have to’s”. I couldn’t have said it better myself, Steve.

Sometimes life is just “have to’s” and “should’s” and “it’s my job’s”… and The Perpetual Tuesday.

…that’s just my normal