Can you? It’s quiet! No blaring television, no blaring music, no Hovering Hubby skulking about, no Nagging Princess tugging on me… It’s nice. Peaceful. Sure, in five minutes I’ll be waking the Nagging Princess up to get her in her bath since we lost track of time and she didn’t get one last night. Can’t have her going back to school a tad bit grimey!

But for right now…at this very moment…I’m relishing the Quiet. The Peacefulness. The chance to enjoy my coffee and hear only the sound of my keyboard as I type. Heaven. Don’t get me wrong – I’ve enjoyed having the Nagging Princess off school for the past week-and-a-half, she generally doesn’t cause too much trouble other than her propensity to turn into a tornado and leave a wake of messy rooms in her path – strewn with toys and various sundries. That also meant I didn’t have to stand shivering in the cold waiting for her bus twice a day. And I do enjoy extra time with Hovering Hubby when he’s off work, but the dog does a good job following me everywhere I go and getting underfoot, so add Hovering Hubby and Nagging Princess to that mix and it can become utter chaos. Especially for my sanity.

I never fully understood my mom’s lament about when my dad had time off work – how she could never get anything done when he was around. Now I understand. Now I comprehend. Now I empathize. Now I can relate. Did I get my Christmas decorations taken down as planned yesterday? Of course not! Yes, I at least got everything taken down from the front porch, so we won’t be the ones with our decorations up until Spring. But the tree is still looming intimidatingly, my living room still looks like Christmas threw up in it, and I am ready to get my house back…now.

So off I go to get the Nagging Princess into a bath under protest, then after her bus carries her off to school for the afternoon I’ll be able to run a few errands un-prohibited, and at some point, before she gets home, haul the empty boxes back in from the shed so I can strip the living room bare of the decorations that were once so enjoyably pleasing to the eye but now have turned into an annoyance at the work ahead. 😉


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48 Comments

  5. Yes I can sure relate! Mine is full grown but he moved home from college ’til he gets on his feet’…now it seems the ‘Mom will take care of EVERYTHING’ mode is back in true form! Oh to have those few quiet moments again….

  7. Thanks for following my blog! I TOTALLY understand–I adore GourmetDad but don’t get a thing done when he’s home. I had mixed feelings about sending Big C back to school, though. I was a little sad.

    Recent blog post: Groundhog Day Cookies

  9. Thank you very much for visiting my blog.

    I can totally relate to your situation. My son has been off from pre-school for two weeks and my husband was on vacation for two weeks. Hubby went back to work today and my son will go back to school tomorrow. I’ll have three glorious (QUITE!) hours tomorrow and Thursday.

    Recent blog post: A Good Read.

  12. I did not even ponder the idea of cleaning the xmas stuff yet, so you are way ahead of me. I did move the tree from the corner to the area near the door….still decorated. (it is small) I was close….there are still some unwrapped gifts and I noticed a few were slightly unwrapped by my girls in hopes of more “toys” or “candy” or “cookies”. “sigh” I cannot wait for that little bit of peace and quiet you speak of. 😉

    Recent blog post: My Family…..Collaged

  15. It seems to be the only way to get quiet, doesn’t it – when we’re sleeping? Or when everyone else is sleeping and our brain is too tired to really appreciate it…LOL!! Thanks for stopping by! 😀

  16. Lolli: LOL! I didn’t realize how ‘noisy’ it had been with both of them home, until I had some peace and quiet all to myself for a short while this morning! 😉

  17. Oh, thank you, Jen!s I thought I would be embarrassed I hadn’t tackled the Christmas decorations yet…glad I am not the only one! 😀

  18. LOL!s I know what you mean – I’m concerned that I’ll have both Nagging Princess and Hovering Hubby home tomorrow since we might get some sleet or snow… but it’s not supposed to happen until later in the day, so at least Hovering Hubby will still be leaving for work in the morning…then I’ll have some quiet time before Nagging Princess gets up and it’s the 3-ring circus trying to get her to focus on eating before getting ready for school and getting out to wait for the bus on time…LOL! 😉

  19. LOL!s Just you wait…my Little Princess is only in school for 3 hours in afternoon Kindergarten…(I’m really looking forward to her being in school full days next year!) Since she’s a self-declared ‘non-morning person’ (and usually doesn’t get up before 9am), I get a little bit of quiet in the morning after Hovering Hubby leaves and before she wakes up, then either quiet time or hectic errand time in the afternoon when she’s in school.s Today I had hectic errand time, getting back just in time for her bus, so I’m looking forward to better quality quiet time tomorrow afternoon…heh, heh!s Oh, and the tree is still standing untouched.s But I did by a stack of storage tubs today, I’m going to see how many of the ragged cardboard boxes I can add to the burn pile instead of keeping them for yet another year… 😀

  20. I can’t get a darn thing done with hubby home either. I’m not sure why but I just can’t. I feel like I need to entertain him or something.

  21. Oh, NO!s So basically, you have a combination Hovering Hubby and Nagger all rolled into one college-aged son! LOL!!

  22. It is amazing how much you miss peace and quiet – for however long it lasts – when they’re underfoot for extended periods of time.s 😀 s Yes, it’s definitely a nice treat to have them home, but it’s also nice to regain some sanity in those quiet moments when they go back to school… O:-) s Thanks so much for stopping by!

  23. I don’t know what it is about hubby’s being home that make us not get things done when they’re home…aside from the fact that they tend to be constantly underfoot…LOL!s I think next year I’ll have more mixed feelings sending my Little Princess back to school when she’s on a ‘full-day’ schedule… 😉

  24. Oh, I can totally relate!s I adore them both, but sometimes they drive me crazy following me everywhere…Little Princess will even follow me into the bathroom and keep on chatting away – or trying to get me to play a singing game… 😛

  25. While it’s nice to have them home – especially over the holidays – it’s sure nice to get some peace and quiet when they go back to work and school…no matter how short that time actually is.s Thanks so much for stopping by! 😀

  26. Oh, yes, the nap times – those were also great times…my Little Princess stopped taking naps about 2 years ago – so I was really glad when it was time for her to start Kindergarten, even though it’s only 1/2 day (and really only 3 hours) but it’s like having those ‘good old days’ back from when she was taking an afternoon nap…LOL!!s Thanks for the comments on the Harriet Guest Post! 🙂

  27. LOL!s That is funny – I think that’s where ‘distance makes the heart grow fonder’ comes into play… 😉 s Thanks so much for stopping by! 🙂

  28. Oh, good, I’m glad to know that I am not alone in not having my Christmas decorations and tree all neatly put away…in fact, aside from getting the front porch cleared off on Sunday, I only this evening started to pack things up…I got about 1/2 of our bar top cleared off…but nothing else has been done yet…I figure tomorrow is another day! 😉 s At least I pulled all the boxes (about 20+) from the shed and stacked them in the house – that way, if we get the yucky weather we’re supposed to get the next few days, I don’t have to go trudging between the house and shed and can take my sweet time…it’ll get done when it gets done! 😉
    s
    If we had any unwrapped gifts still left under our tree, we’d have the same reaction from our Little Princess you got from your girls… 😀

  29. WooHoo!s OK, by my count that’s at least 3 or 4 of us so far…now I can breathe a huge sigh of relief that I am not alone! 😉 s Thanks for making my day, Nicole! 😀

  30. LOL!s Bedtime is always a good time, too…though for us it’s a Bedtime Battle trying to get the Princess to go to bed…by the time she gets to sleep, I’m just about zonked! LOL!!s Thanks so much for stopping by! 😀

  31. Quiet is wonderful–I’m glad you had some moments to enjoy it. Good luck with the tree. Your lightyears ahead of me. Although I am kind of glad I listened to my husband and got a fake this year because in 2 seconds it’ll be up in the attic. (Two seconds and two weeks!)

  32. That’s hilarious and I can completely relate.s I too must admit that Christmas is still alive inside the house but like you it is thankfully gone from outside of the house.s At least it looks like we are on top of things.s Well, except for the fact that you can still see the tree in the upstairs window.s Oops

  33. THAT’S IT!!!s That’s the ‘status’ I was racking my brain trying to think of…thank you, Elizabeth!s You hit the nail on the head!s It’s a feeling of having to ‘entertain’ him…plus, if I do get involved in something, and he doesn’t have something to do himself, he hovers like a forlorn puppy, asking every 5 minutes if there’s something he can do to help…and even when the answer is ‘No, thanks’, he’ll ask again…and again…and again…so when I finally ask him to do something – oh, I don’t know, like ‘Sure, you can take the garbage out!’ then he gets all whiney like a child because that’s not one of his favorite things… Yep, when he’s off work for any length of time, it does feel like you need to entertain him…LOL!!!

  34. LOL!s I, too, have a fake tree…s Maybe I should start off by saying:s “Hi, my name is Stacy, and I have a Fake Tree.”s LOL!!s At least I don’t have to worry about the ‘urgency’ of taking down the tree (and it is nice to know that there are others out there like me that aren’t jumping on the ‘tree removal’ right away…)s We are in good company! 😉 s

  35. LOL!s It is SO nice to know that I’m not alone! 😀 s I love that you took down your outside decor so that it looks like you’re ‘on top of things’ – that’s the thought that went through my head this weekend…’as long as I have the outside put away, no one will be the wiser that Christmas is still rampant on the inside…’s LOL!!s I usually keep the front drapes open, but made sure, tonight, to close them – you know, so the constant flow of traffic that passes by won’t see the 9-foot tree all lit up in its glory…LOL!s That’s funny that you can still see your tree in the upstairs window! 😉
    s
    Thanks for stopping by! 😀

  36. Peace and quiet?s What’s that?
    s
    I noticed some other moms were tickled pink to have everyone out of the house today.s Dad at work…kids at school…Wasn’t like that around here.s My toddler was WIDE open today.
    s
    Davida

  37. LOL Davida!s You poor thing!s You don’t get ‘peace and quiet’ yet, do you?s Not to worry, you will…and then there will be those times when you wish for the ruckus…LOL! 😉 s When our Little Princess started walking and talking, there were times when my hubby and I were fondly recalling what we liked to refer to as her ‘blob’ days…heh, heh!!s And I know it will be a bittersweet moment when she starts school next year – when she’ll actually be in school for a full day…I think I’m going to miss the craziness she brings during the day when she’s gone a lot longer than she is now… 😉 s

  38. You have done a great job with this blog, Stacy. I love the design, easy navigation and the wonderful post!
    s
    I have finished my review of “Stacy’s Random Thoughts” and I’m pleased to let you know that your blog has been added to Blogging Women“
    s
    It’s my pleasure to add another quality women’s blog to our directory. Thank you and continued success!
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  40. It’s true what you say about the urgency of the real trees. My friend was
    telling me about all the needles in her carpet and how she vacuumed for
    hours and I had one of those moments when I really appreciated the ease of
    the fake tree. Although I do miss the pine smell. Luckily yankee candle
    makes a great pine candle–people didn’t even know our tree was fake!

  41. Isn’t it great!?
    I just told my daughter to take my car today so I that I can get an extra hour of work done.s 😎

  42. Oh I definitely remember the needles that I’d be finding for months after Christmas…LOL!!s While the fake trees do drop needles, they’re not as invasive as those from a real tree.s I do miss the ‘pine smell’ of having a real tree, but like you said, Yankee Candle has a great pine candle, so we can fill the house with the wonderful aroma – and people think we have a real tree! LOL!! 🙂

  43. LOL!s I love it!s I bet when my Little Princes is driving age I’ll be doing the same thing…I do send my Hovering Hubby on random errands every once in a while when he’s home from work – just to get him out of the house and out from underfoot for an hour or two…LOL! Two great minds… 😉

  44. Lucky you! I send my last one off to school tomorrow BUT I still have my toddler at home. At least I have naptime…3 hours of quiet and me time!

  45. Thanks so much for stopping by! I LOVE peace and quiet. I completely agree with not getting much done with the hubbie is around. I wonder why that is???

  46. Oh, yes – naptime is a wonderful ‘me’ quiet time! 😉 s My Little Princess stopped taking naps a couple of years ago, much to my chagrin…so I’m glad she’s in school for that 3 hours now, so I can have some sanity back…heh, heh!s

  47. LOL!s I think that’s one of the ‘Great Mysteries’… 😉 s Any wife I’ve ever spoken to all say the same things – I think Elizabeth said it best – it’s a feeling of having to ‘entertain’ them…not sure why that is, but it’s definitely there!s 😀 s Thanks so much for stopping by! 🙂

  48. Sorry everyone – the comments got messed up via JS-Kit… 🙁 I hope to have them back up to snuff soon!

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