Back to the grind...

Sorry I've been a little absent from my blog lately.  Things have been a bit... hectic.  Tomorrow I return to work after a loooooong and so desperately needed sabbatical.  The past four months have been pure bliss.  And while the first two-and-a-half were spent with me passed out on the couch or staring at the ceiling late into the night with insomnia, the past several weeks have been simply wonderful.  My stress level has been greatly reduced, my anxiety is more under control, and I've learned a variety of ways to help get myself out of the funk and junk of the depression I've been fighting for far too long.

I've been busying myself with all the odds and ends that need to be tied up before I go back to work.  Taking care of my garden, deep cleaning my house, organizing and stocking my cabinets with food to make shopping while working easier, cleaning the garage, organizing Goodwill piles, and generally just trying to make the transition to work much easier.

All that, of course, in addition to the lounging, baking, reading, journaling, coffee drinking, and playing I have been doing... trying to enjoy my last few days in the beauty that has been this time as a stay-at-home-mama.

I have generally tried to avoid the subject of my returning to work.  I knew it was coming, but chose to instead focus on the more joyful things in my day-to-day life instead.  Junior Miss practices... sewing dates with friends... planting flowers with my mom.  It breaks my heart to think of all the things I'm going to be missing out on when I return to work.  But I know that right now, it is where I am meant to be.

There are so many little things that I am going to miss about being at home...

mornings with Swee'Pea, having our milk and coffee as we watch a morning cartoon

warm days in the garden, weeding and planting and tending to my plants as Swee'Pea plays beside me

doing my quiet time in the sunshine of my patio as the breeze blows through the citrus trees in my yard

riding my bike to the store in the mornings to pick up fresh bread, berries, and yogurt

spending time with my mom, shopping and planting and going to Disneyland for the day

having energy in the evening to pick up the house, cook a good dinner, and stay up past my usual 8:30 bedtime... even on a week night

chatting on Gchat every day with Toni about ridiculously hilarious things like Gingers, reusable lady pads, and deep fried gerbils

emailing Jill every five seconds because she can no longer access Gchat and I must "talk" with her regularly or I feel deprived

getting my hardcore deep cleaning and 12-13 loads of weekly laundry done on Mondays leaving the rest of the week free for easy pick-ups and clean clothes

reading books above the 4th grade level... on subjects other than talking dogs, tiny mice, and children who live in boxcars

shopping at Target, Costco, Home Depot, Vons, and WinCo when nobody else is in the store and all the staff is so eager to help me

enjoying my evenings with my husband as we relax on the couch or cuddle in bed, rather than feeling stressed or anxious or busy with grading papers and essays

knowing that anything is possible every new day that I wake up, and feeling positive that each day will be more incredible than the last

As tough as it is to know I'm no longer going to be staying at home, I am trying to remain positive about my return to the work force.  Some of the things I'm looking forward to about going back to work are... 

unlimited supplies of freshly sharpened pencils and fresh packs of paper

the giddy children who greet me each day on my ramp

the recess chats I have with my colleagues and friends about everything from the ridiculousness of some of our students to our plans for the weekend

the pride I feel when a struggling student aces an area he or she has worked so hard to learn

going out to eat on Fridays at yummy Quiznos, Chipotle, or Cesar's Deli

having a schedule that gets me up and motivated each day

regular showers... without a small child invading my privacy

knowing that at the end of the day, my sweet Swee'pea and my sweet Popeye will light up when they see me walk through the door

and if we are totally being honest, I'm really, REALLY looking forward to June, July, and August...

Forgive me if I'm absent for the next few weeks as I get back into the swing of things.  But I promise that I'll have a double dose of Savory Saturday up for you this weekend, as well as a already-in-draft post about our beautiful garden and my already blossoming plants.

Off to prepare dinner I go!  Only 13 1/2 more hours until the alarm goes off and I'm back to the daily grind!