When does it become too much?

I am sure we have all been there… we over commit ourselves.  Whether it be to be the “PERFECT” : mom, worker, house keeper, volunteer.  My mother in law always said that it is so important to keep the house clean and spotless… and how dare I not iron my clothes.  Really?  Ironing is not even mentioned on my page long to-do list!  Seriously…

Now don’t get me wrong…I tried.  But.  Yes there is always a but…my husband and I both do shift work.  Number one thing that leads to chaos as our routine changes.    Number two, three girls love their clothes and accessories…I was forever doing laundry.  Number three, we live in rural areas…activities for my girls include an hour and half round trip. (Quite exhausting when it’s just one parent dragging sleeping kids into the cold, dark house)

I would wake up and feel as if I would ‘clean house’ from sunrise to sunset and still not accomplish everything other then annoy my girls by nagging them to ‘Clean Up!’.

Then, do they really need to be involved in three activities each?  Whirlwind.  No they don’ t need dance, hockey and music lessons.

This fall I was exhausted just thinking about it.  So, due to location, dropped hockey (for this year, then will see as they did well last season).  We chose one activity for the fall, skating lessons.  We still have a 45-minute one-way drive, but once a week is doable.  My house, well that’s hit and miss.  And I have an internal struggle to be “Super working mom with the clean house”…but the little time I am at home… That time should be focused on the three most precious gifts in our house…not vacuuming or wiping the Nutella prints off white cupboards.

A tip I learned from my sister, accomplish one housecleaning chore a day…and spend quality time with your loved ones without feeling “guilty”.

Anyone else have any tips? Anyone else struggling with the overwhelm of it all?