Looking Back at Life Before Kids

I lived in France in college but after two kids, two dogs, Medical School and Residency, sometimes it feels so long ago that I can barely remember it.  However, my three year old found my old journal from France in a box in the basement and has been carrying it around ever since. 


I opened it up and was amazed at how much I'd forgotten and how easy life was back then.  You would think it would've been hard.  I lived with a family that didn't speak a word of English, my bathroom at my host parents house was OUTSIDE so I had to trudge through gravel in the middle of the night if I wanted to pee, and I didn't know a soul when I moved there.  Yet, it was so fun and so incredibly easy.  For example, look at my financial worries. 




This particuluar weekend in February of 2001, I did nothing on Saturday except spent a large amount of monthly budget (Francs back then) at the Irish Pub, then I didn't spend a single penny on Sunday...I'm pretty sure that was the day I stayed in bed all day reading Thornbirds. 

This is another one of my favorite pages:


In case you can't read this, my host parents served fish one night then left it in the fridge.  I found it the next morning and it's spiky teeth really freaked me out!  It's fun to look back on the days when I had zero responsibility.  I floated through life looking for fun things to do and interesting people to meet.  Now, I'm responsible for this:



On the other hand, I guess life was pretty bland without kids, a husband, and a house to take care of.  The days I spent in France laying in bed reading a book while it rained seem pretty boring compared to my rainy days now:



Wrestling is a fun way to pass our rainy days now.  Munchkin Girl won that round, but Little Buddy is starting to be able to figure out how to beat his Big Sister.  And that's when the fun will really begin.

Secret Grooming Habits of a Busy Mom

1.  Eyebrow plucking
Today I had a few extra minutes before Little Buddy's doctor's appointment.  I glanced in the mirror and noticed that my eyebrows were out of control.  True werewolf style.  I looked around my car for tweezers and couldn't find any, so I started pulling out my eyebrows with my fingers.  I was afraid I would forget to do it if I didn't take care of it right away.  The sad thing is, this seemed totally normal at the time.

2.  Ironing
I haven't even bothered to unpack my iron since we moved 6 months ago because I choose to ignore wrinkles.  If I'm being honest thing, I didn't iron much even before kids.

3.  Time to get ready for a big event
We had a wedding a few weeks ago and I had a full 15 minutes to get ready all by myself.  It seemed like absolute luxury.