How I Measure my Success
The carbon monoxide detector wouldn't stop beeping no matter how many new batteries I put in. The dishwasher flooded all over the kitchen floor. I made pancakes for Aiden - burned them and had to start all over. I burned them because while I waited for them to cook I tried to clean up the kitchen floor. As I leaned the Swiffer against the fridge, it slid along the side and knocked all of the drawings onto the floor, between the fridge and the counter. Through all of this I had a pounding headache. The grass really needs to be mowed, I realized as I delivered the second batch of pancakes to my son. I don't know if there is gas in the lawn mower. I just acquired a new writing client, and she wants a really quick turn around, so my workload just increased by 200 fold. At the same time, I'm still not making enough money to support this household on my own, so I'm trying to look at job boards during the day too, sending out resumes, and fielding phone calls from people who want to pay me entirely too little to do their shit jobs for them.
So I had pretty bad day, you could say. By the end of the day, I was exhausted. I felt like I had surely been obviously grumpy, so at bedtime, I leaned in to Aiden and said:
Me: I was having a bad day today, and I'm sorry if I was grouchy.
Aiden: Oh really? I didn't notice you being grouchy at all!
Me: Well, I was just really tired, and I wanted to make sure you know how much I love you.
Aiden: I know how much you love me, mom. And I love you so, SO much.