Re: Doing too much when we feel good

[Guest guest]

--- " calle_kitten " wrote:

>

> My son has no clue as to how this disease

> has ravaged me, and frequently wants me to babysit his 4 children,

> all under 5. I love them dearly, but even a few hours with them

does me in for days.

Hi Calle -

Ain't it the truth?? I babysat my very active 3-1/2 year old great

nephew last week for just a few hours, and everyone in the family

laughed at how wiped out I looked afterward. They just thought it

was the fact that I never had kids and thus they thought I was just

overwhelmed. I may not have had children of my own, but I babysat

most of my teenage years and have spent years watching friend's kids.

I'm not incompetent with small children!

But they don't have a clue how much pain I felt after running up and

down stairs after him (in my sister-in-law's house - I don't have

stairs in my home for a very good reason!) and getting up and down on

the floor with him while he made an imaginary " camp " and " fished " in

the ocean in the kitchen. What an imagination! I finally got him to

sit down to read some books and play some board games, but by then I

was already past my limit.

There's just no explaining to them how much that morning cost me. I

adore my g-nephew dearly - he's a bright and cheerful child - and I

wouldn't have given up the opportunity to spend that time with him

since we live in another state and rarely get to see him. (He calls

me " Uncle Cheryl " - isn't that adorable!). But I'm just not like

a " normal " 44-year-old, even though I look slim and healthy, and

they'll never understand that.

Cheryl in AZ

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