Project Manager x10

I know this sounds pretty un-motherly but the job of a stay at home mom often feels like being a project manager.  You are balancing the house, the kids, the errands, the laundry, personal time (what's that?) and trying to get it all done efficiently and on-schedule.  You have daily deadlines (bath and bed by 8:00 pm) and weekly deadlines (clean sheets, laundry folded and put away, groceries stocked in the fridge, sack lunches made, dinners planned).  The weekend comes and the schedule is thrown off and then Monday you do it all over again.  One of the extra twists in this project management role is that in addition to all the above mentioned "to-dos" you are actually managing two small people.  And one of them, 3 going on 4 (*this* Friday) needs constant interaction, dialogue and re-direction.  The younger one needs a lot of the same, too, but her needs are different.  Basically, what I am saying is that in addition to all the shit that you need to get done around the house to keep the house and our lives managed, you need to be one step ahead of your kids so that not only do they feel loved, comforted, and secure, they also need constant reminders of the acceptable and appropriate behavior and that there are consequences for behaving badly.  Charlotte has been testing me hourly.  Its been a struggle.
I'll be honest.  Some of the best moments in our days are when both kids are locked into their respective seatbelts/car seats and we are driving someplace.  I know they are both "safe" and that they can't get anywhere.  A moment of peace.  How sad is this?  Honest reality I'm afraid.
Okay so get this... my amazing husband... decided we needed to engage in some "home improvement" projects.  Stuff we've put off.  Our home is 100 years old (or 90 actually) so in reality there is always a home improvement project necessary.  We put them off (they are expensive) and you can say our house has character but really it is dilapidated.
So much to my delight (horror) he says we need to engage in the following: replace three sets of doors that are operating poorly with french doors, replace hood over kitchen with new hood (the old one does not meet the necessary requirements for our range output), paint kitchen (including sanding and covering old oil-based trim in kitchen...smelly), replace deck off back of house and build new fence separating driveway from backyard, and some minor gardening work that requires a dump truck, a few cubic yards of mulch and some tree trimming and gutter replacement.
How does that sound for a to-do list?  Guess who is responsible for collecting multiple bids/estimates on the bigger projects (doors & deck) and organizing all these simultaneous events? Yep, me!  Does Bob help with any of this?  Well by help, I'd say he's providing financing for the projects.  I run the numbers by him and he says yay/nay.  I run some of the various contractor's ideas by him and he asks more questions which in turn, I must ask, and report back to him. 
Needless to say the phone is ringing regularly and the doorbell too (except our doorbell is broken so KNOCK LOUDLY PLEASE) with various faces.  I am actually doing a pretty good job of juggling it all! 
Am I overwhelmed?  Yes!  Do I have crazy dreams where everything works out, or doesn't, in various re-arrangements?  Of course!
Do my children feel that mom's attention is spread too thin right now?  Most likely.  The evidence:  any time I'm on the phone thing seem to spiral out of control.  Charlotte and Abigail hang on me, nag, whine, etc.  Can you blame them?  I guess not. 
If my job was in an office, I'd be expecting a BIG FAT BONUS this year!  Project Manager of the Year award!!! 
However, this is not an office, it is our home.  The bonus can't be quantified!  But I'm only complaining a little.  When it is all done, we'll have a little quiet time, and then we'll do it all over again.  Such is life... or as the French say, C'est la vie. 
Charlotte turns 4 on Friday and Bob's birthday is the 25th.  I've been working on the details of a very special purple party for Char and a dinner party for Bob.  These two things I enjoy more than any of the other stuff so I guess things do balance out.  Can't wait to share some pictures from Charlotte's special day... and pictures of our home "improvements"!  Stay tuned!