1. It's Always My Turn - No matter the time, it's always my turn. Be it day or night, sick or health, if Linds cries, stubs her toe, gets stuck, or wants a drink, only Mommy is there to provide. It's hard sometimes to not have that other person to rely on when you need a break - or just a five minute time-out in the closet - and being an already impatient person, you can imagine how many hairs I've pulled out. On the PLUS side, it's always my turn :) I get to cherish those moments with my daughter - alone. She knows Mommy's always there, she knows Mommy makes it better and sometimes Mommy is the only one she wants :)

2. Costco Is a Thing of the Past - Days of buying bulk are gone! One can of Chef Boyardee yields leftovers at our house. There are a lot of leftovers, reheated lunches, and spoiled remains because it is SO HARD to cook for 1 1/2. I grocery shopped yesterday for the first time in going on a month - and I probably won't have to shop again for another two! Less trips to the store, but more double-checking expiration dates!

3. Hide and Seek is Less Than Exciting - Linds loves hide and seek; however, she always wants me to hide with her. Since we're a two-person household, that leaves no one else to find us. So a lot of the time we end up sitting together in the dark the hall closet saying, "Ssshh" and waiting........ :)

4. Chore-Tricking is Key - Since I'm the sole provider, that leaves a lot of housework to be done. Carrying in 8 bags of groceries up a flight of stairs can be rather frustrating especially when Linds would rather look at rocks, touch "Blech" stuff, or run after "baby puppies", so making chores into games are an essential part of my day :) "I Bet You Can't Carry This" is a favorite, as it "I Bet You Can't Put This in the Trash", and "Hey, It's Fun to Put the Dishes Away".

5. Picking My Battles is Important - By the end of the day my patience is nearly non-existent, so if Linds wants to dip her Frosted Mini-Wheats in her water, so be it. If she'd rather run around in two different shoes, good on her. And if she'd like to stick her colored pencils between her toes and try to walk around the living room (currently happening), I'll look the other way. If I want my patient to extend into the evening hours, I better make sure I'm prepared to let the little things go. The Time-Out Chair works occasionally - but mostly because I put myself in it :)

6. Kids Learn Fast, but Not Necessarily From Their Parents - Today Linds asked for "More Cereal!" And I said, "When have you known the word cereal?" I was tickling her the other day and she yelled, "Help!" - never heard that one either! It's hard to leave your child in the care of someone else for most of the day and know that it's not you who gets to teach your child everything. Although, luckily, my day care provider is great and I'm lucky that Linds has learned so much there! So far, the only bad word she's learned is "Shut up!" We're still working on that.....

7. Love Grows Exponentially - No matter how frustrated I get when I'm totally exhausted and can't rest, or struggling to make ends meet, I take a second and realize that it's ME who gets to raise and love this little precious gift - and although I'm making my fair share of mistakes, I'm loving the fact that she's here to make mistakes with - and that she loves me unconditionally.....