Paiges of Life: Finding Balance

Beginning at a very young age, I learned to balance. I've been told that when I was still an infant, my dad would balance me in his right hand and say, "It's the next Mary Lou Retton".

At the age of two, I began dance lessons where I learned to balance on one foot...and the rest is history. You would find me standing on the arm of the couch attempting an arabesque, or walking around the ledge of the deck in the backyard...all to show off my great balance. One time, my arrogance and love of showing off bit me in the butt (well, it was close to my butt). I was wearing my slippery jazz shoes while doing an arabesque on my electrical meter "thingy" in my front yard. It stood about 3 feet off the ground and was maybe 4x4 inches wide for me stand on. Low and behold...the wind must have been strong that day...and my darn jazz shoe slipped right off, leading me plummeting to my death. Not really, but let me just say that if I was a boy...Avery would not be here today! OUCH!!!!

It paid off in the end. That balance helped me to be a great flyer on the cheerleading squad and perform tricks that made parents shriek in horror for fear of injury. My balance has also helped me with the new Yoga X video Michael and I are doing. Michael on the other hand...

Avery is at an age now where she is learning to balance. She can sit up with our help and hold her head up, looking around so eagerly. She can also sit in a chair for a few minutes, but then her sweet little head starts to fall to one side. Needless to say, Avery's balance is still a masterpiece in the making.

Now that my life has changed drastically, I'm trying to find the right balance between being a mom, wife, coach, friend, sister, and daughter. The first month since Avery was born, there was no real balance at all. Everything revolved around Avery and me. I would stay in my pajamas all day long, take a shower every two (or three) days, and didn't cook a single meal that whole month (thanks to my wonderful mother who stocked the freezer). I didn't answer the phone, occasionally returned calls, and certainly didn't think Michael needed any care or attention. HEL-LO...I JUST HAD A BABY! The world revolved around me...(I mean Avery!)

Things have gotten much better now. Avery is almost three months old (next Saturday) and I'm starting to find a decent balance with life. Since I'm not working, I try every day to take Avery outside, exercise, clean the house...(or, uh - pick up the dirty clothes off the floor), go to cheerleading practice, cook dinner for my wonderful Hubby, and spend some time with him in the evening. It's not perfect...but it's getting better. Trust me, finding the right balance between all of that will never be perfect. I need to do a better job at incorporating Daily Devotionals and Quiet Time with YOU KNOW WHO and playing with Cotton into my routine.

All in all (*a great transitional phrase for a conclusion*), I AM STILL LEARNING...to be a great mom, wife, coach, friend, sister, and daughter all at the same time. It's really easy to let Avery be my center of attention and forget about everything else. BALANCE....have you found yours?

Photo shoot time!!!