Momma Guilt

Cop Mama is hosting a Mama Guilt Monday and for some reason, it really resonated with me today.

Being a non-traditional family has it's benefits, right? (And I mean "non-traditional" in the most traditional sense, ha!) Yes, we're a mom and a dad; yes, we're married; yes, we live with our three kids. But Dad has an interesting and CRAZY scheduled job. The crazy schedule right there kills the traditional thing immediately. I am forever attending every function imaginable by myself ~ with three kids in tow ~ while explaining away that my husband just got home (at 9 in the morning) or is sleeping because he wants full use of his functions a few hours later for work on the off chance he'll have to pull his weapon or do something drastic. (This is the dramatic retort I always come to when I just can't take "The Comments" any longer.)

But I digress! The point is, my husband's schedule is so weird that we are often trying to do things that really should NOT be done at certain times. We've driven 45 minutes in rush hour traffic to arrive for the last opening hour (yes, ONE hour) at a big fancy museum. We've tossed the kids in the car for dinner at a restaurant an hour before bedtime. Generally this is about the only time everyone is awake, and even then it's hit or miss.

So, in the interest of "family bonding" we drag the kids to places we shouldn't go at times we shouldn't be there; forgoing naps or bedtime or mealtime all so that we can be grumpy and together as a family. There's something just so wrong about that!!