Gawd, having two toddlers is tough. And trying to be a good mom is the hardest thing I’ve ever done (and I imagine it will continue to be so for the remainder of my life).

These past couple of weeks have been especially trying with J’s parents and my own mother all on vacation (the timing was purely coincidental), leaving me with no help or backup for the kids while J is at work.

To make the experience extra memorable, my little Aerin fell sick with a cold…and as soon as she got better, she got hit with a full-on case of roseola.

How has the human species survived this long when parenting is so grueling?

It should come as no surprise to long-time readers that I am not the most positive person in the world. I have been called downright pessimistic — a Debbie Downer to the sunshine & rainbows crowd that seems so prevalent in the blogging world today.

But I am not a complete Negative Nancy. I have my “look at me sharting rainbow cookies!” moments. And, with my favorite TED talk in mind as I go about my everyday life as a SAHM, I have been noticing that perhaps the greatest influence my kids have had on me is that they give me the most spectacular highs. Sure, the downs are as low as ever, but the unhinged highs keep me hangin’ in there.

A chart from the abovementioned post

As a result, whenever I’m feeling especially in the dumps, or when I’m overwhelmed and exhausted to the point of breaking-out-in-hives-and-getting-nosebleeds (both of which have happened this past week), I try my best to take a deep breath and think of at least one thing that I am thankful for.

And since most of my stress stems from Claire & Aerin these days, I like to focus my positive energy on them as well.