Just a Spoon Full of Sugar

A spoon full of sugar may help the medicine go down, but does sugar really help an overwhelmed writer-mama?

What do we need in our spoons to help us get through a day of trying to balance parenting, work, writing, spouse-time, personal-time, and time to just fit in a 5 minute shower?

My daughter and I are heading to a doctor's appointment for me today as I am now at the end of my pregnancy. She's accompanied me to almost all of my pregnancy check-ups, but the visits don't get an easier on her. At her 12 month appointment, the doctor (an intern) accidentally sliced her leg with the needle while trying to give my daughter a vaccine. Ever since then she has been petrified of doctors and doctor offices. As soon as she sees the nurse slap the blood pressure cuff on my arm my daughter starts to sob.

It just so happens that "Mary Poppins" is one of her favorite movies (in addition to Shrek), and she particularly loves the song "Just a Spoon Full of Sugar." When we're at my pregnancy check-up appointments and she's crying, I try to console her with singing, reading, or playing, but it doesn't always work. Only two distractions have ever worked: the promise of ice cream and a friendly nurse letting my daughter play with items on her desk. As soon as my daughter is intrigued by something else, she calms down.

Ice cream and playing with 'toys' may work for children, but they don't get me past too many hurdles as a writer-mama.

When I get too wrapped up in writing a particular manuscript, I can get easily frustrated or let down when something isn't working with it.

My spoon isn't full of sugar, but I do get past my frustrations if I spread my attention over a few different writing projects in addition to reading a book or article or blogs, then I find it easier to work through the small challenges I may face in the writing. As often as I wish for more time to write, parenting is also in my spoon because it helps to take my direct attention off of a writing piece. But somewhere in the back of my mind I am still thinking about my writing when I am entertaining my daughter, and this subtle unfocused thinking about it helps me when I return to the particular writing project.

What's your spoon full of that helps you take a step back from a writing project when you get too absorbed in it? Or if it is trying to balance the many different aspects of your life that requires a spoon full of something, what is it that helps you?