From Peace and Quiet to "Moooooom!" in 0.2 Seconds

Whew… this weekend? Rough.

The kids have been at their dad’s for a week, and while I miss them like crazy, those first few days after they come home? Not for the emotionally faint of heart.

Let’s paint the picture: five wildly different personalities, ages 6 to 16. That’s a full hormonal spectrum, people. You toss that into a blender and what you get isn’t just chaos — it’s a margarita mixed with pure madness and served with a soul-splitting hangover. And guess who’s bartending that mess solo? Yep. Me.

The soundtrack to this return home includes:

• One kid having an Olympic-level meltdown.

• Another screaming at a video game like it's a matter of national security.

• Someone yelling “MOM” just because I’m not within five feet of them for 7 seconds.

• All of this happening simultaneously. At all hours.

  
  

After a week of actual silence, it’s honestly like going from a spa retreat to a rock concert… in a very small kitchen. It’s overstimulating. Okay — it’s full-blown emotional whiplash.

But then the house gets quiet. They're finally asleep, probably tangled in blankets they dragged to the couch for absolutely no reason. And there I am… mascara smudged, listening to Taylor Swift’s Never Grow Up on loop like a true masochist.

The tears come in hot, not just from exhaustion, but from this aching hope that I’m getting it right. That the love outweighs the chaos. That they’ll remember I was there, even when I was losing my mind — especially when I was losing my mind.

So yeah… I survived another weekend of the emotional rollercoaster that is post-swap parenting. And even if it doesn’t always feel like it, maybe — just maybe — I’m doing okay.

And if not? There’s always mascara, meltdowns… and one more margarita. 🍸