Today marks the last day of my maternity leave; I head back to the office tomorrow morning. It’s been great to have the ability to take 12 weeks off so that I can learn how to be a mother to two, instead of one. Staying at home is hard work. There are no breaks. There are few naps. It’s a tiring and pretty thankless job, but one that I’ve really enjoyed.

Thankfully, I really like the job to which I am returning. I have people that I like working with in a very welcoming and creative environment. I’m sure tomorrow will go just fine. And, it’s not like I haven’t returned from maternity leave once before. Everything will fall into place. It’s just another of life’s transitions. A season of change.

Wish me luck.

By now you’ve heard of the  mess that Jon and Kate of “Jon and Kate Plus 8” are in over Jon’s bar-hopping episode with a younger woman, headlined on “People” magazine as ‘Caught With Other Woman.” Jon and Kate are all over the press these days with questions looming about their marriage and possible infidelities. I really hope their marriage isn’t in jeopardy: That the strain of having kids hasn’t gotten to them.

I think the popularity of their show isn’t about how many kids they have, but about the relationship between the two of them.

Don’t we all see a little of ourselves in Jon and Kate?

They bicker, they glare at each other, they bicker some more. If your marriage doesn’t have any bickering, then kudos to you, but I bet most people reading this would have to admit that it exists in their home to some extent.

What’s appealing about the show is that they are (seemingly) shown as a real couple, with real problems. Kids run everywhere, toys are everywhere, their time is torn to shreds trying to keep and run a house full of little people. When and how do they find time for themselves? Although their experience with eight kids is exaggerated for most families, we all have the same strains on our relationships.

The reason we can’t have Jon and Kate divorce is that it might shed light on other marriages, maybe our own, that there is something wrong.

Because Jon and Kate can argue on national television and still be married, gives us all a little breathing room that we’re not alone. Marriage is hard and having kids adds to the stress. There are times you can’t even complete sentences with your spouse without being interrupted by one of your adorable offspring. Jon and Kate have this time eight.

I’ve read that the couple is trying to work through this mess privately. Nothing is revealed yet, but I’m hopeful they will stay together and give all marriages hope.

My baby is 11 weeks old now and lack of sleep is common. It’s better than it was the first couple of weeks, but it’s still there. The heavy eyelids, aching muscles, weary head, and the desire to just lie down all the time.

This weekend my husband was out of town for two days, and I had both kids by myself. It was a lot of work and I was tired. This is nothing new though. One of our friends offered to have my son over for a playdate one afternoon. The baby, miraculously, took a nap and so did I. That 1 1/2 hours of sleep made all the difference for me. I felt refreshed and rejuvenated.

Later that evening I broke one of my favorite plates - my grandmother’s french china, decorative plate that I only have two of — both hang on my kitchen wall. Well, only one does now. I accidentally knocked one off and it smashed into bits on the tile floor. For some reason, I was OK with this disaster. I quickly got a broom and dustpan and swept the pieces of my childhood up. I moved on to taking care of the kids and the rest of my evening in peace.

Had I not had that nap earlier in the day I know I would have lost if when that plate broke. It would have thrown me over the edge causing my stress-level to elevate even more. Beacause I was rested, I was able to deal with it and move on quickly.

Having a baby isn’t the only time we loose sleep. I think American’s don’t get enough sleep as it is, not just when we add babies, kids, work, school, extra activities to our already oversheculde lives. Think of how much better you could handle situations if you had more sleep. Tonight, try to get to bed early and see if it makes for a better tomorrow.

For two nights this week my daughter has been up crying in the middle of the night, inconsolable. She’s been fed, diapered, swaddled, burped, given her medicine and fed again to only continue crying.

That’s when I resort to pacing and rocking her. It wasn’t working so I unintentionally started singing, “hush little baby.” It started out as me just whispering to her, hush little baby, but then the words to the song starts and I start singing,

Hush little baby, don’t say a word,

Mama’s going to buy you a mocking bird,

If that mocking bird won’t sing,

Mama’s going to buy you a diamond ring,

If that diamond ring won’t shine,

Mama’s going to learn the words to this nursery rhyme!”

For the life of me I can’t get past the first two verses of this song, and I didn’t even get those right. Last night I just started to make things up and to hum part of it to keep the melody going.

It worked. Within 20 minutes she was asleep in my arms and back in her crib.

Hush little baby, don’t say a word,

Mama’s Googled the song,

Next time she sings to you,

She’ll know the words!

I remember my first Mother’s Day three years ago. I looked forward to the Sunday in May for several months — my first son was born in November and I wanted a day of rest on Mother’s Day. Nearly 6 months after his birth I had the most wonder of Mother’s Day which included a homemade breakfast in bed, an afternoon at the park where I pushed my son in a swing for the first time and I even snuck in a guilt-free nap. It was a wonderful spring day.

This year will be different, but not just because I am now the mother of two.

My mother-in-law is dying. She is a terminal patient, but has been hanging on for quite a while. She was able to meet her newest granddaughter several weeks ago, for which we are grateful. This weekend we are down for another visit for Mother’s Day. It may very well be her last one.

I also have a dear friend who has been dealing with her mother’s near deadly surgery. For more than a month her mother has been in a hospital fighting for her life. Her mother is only a few years older than my own Mother.

And, over the past several years I have had a few friends who have had their mother’s snatched away from them prematurely.

The fact that I can spend the day with my two children, my own mother is what makes this year very special. It’s about being thankful for the time we have and being reminded to treasure every day.

Happy Mother’s Day.