I used to love Fridays. It meant Friday night was here. That meant going out. Dates. Lots of dates. Spending time with friends. Movies. Oh, yes, Friday was for movies. And martinis. Movies and martinis. It was a glorious evening that started a weekend of sleeping in until 10 a.m. (or later sometimes!), naps and just being lazy. Weekends were for reading, going to the beach, sleeping and going out. Did I mention movies and martinis?

Now, Fridays mean crash day; the night the weekend is here. But I’m too tired to do much. If we do decide to go out it means shelling out at least $50 extra dollars for a sitter. What happened to TGIF?

However nostalgic I am for my traditional happy hour Friday’s, don’t mistake that for lack of love for being a mom. It’s just different. Now I just have to get creative with how I’m going to get out for some fun. Maybe it’s a martini in the backyard after work and a DVD that I’ve been dying to see. Yeah, that sounds good.

It’s hard to balance getting the household chores done, dinner cooked, shopping done … and still have time to spend with your family. “Parents” magazine suggests doing some of these things together. Specifically, they mention the idea of making washing the car a fun event:

If you get the whole family involved in washing the car, this chore can be a blast!”

We’ve done this recently. With the heat coming on strong already, it’s a great way to get outside while getting a much needed chore accomplished. Kids can help wash the car, rinse off … and, if you’re extra clever give the kids a “shower” in the process!

Read the entire article here.

Moms have enough to do without having to worry about cleaning the house too. I was recently sent a press release about a contest that can solve the problem of cleaning up after your family — the grand prize if bi-weekly maid services for a year. Yep, 12 months of a clean house. Here’s the information:

Weiman Products is offering consumers the chance to win a one-year break from their house cleaning routine. Weiman Product’s annual “Maid for a Year” contest, which runs May 1 – July 31, 2008, will award five U.S. residents free house cleaning services from Merry Maids every other week for a year. Consumers can enter by logging onto www.weiman.com/contest. Winners will be announced by mid-August 2008.

All U.S. residents 18 years and older can submit a 250-word or less essay between May 1 and July 31, 2008. Entries may be submitted online at www.weiman.com or mailed to Weiman “Maid for a Year” Contest, 755 Tri-State Parkway, Gurnee, IL 60031. Essays must describe what the feeling of clean means to the entrant and why he or she needs and deserves maid service. Essays will be judged by an independent judging organization on the following criteria: the description of what “the good feeling of clean” means to the entrant, why the entrant needs/deserves maid service and the originality and creativity of the essay.

Visit www.weiman.com for official rules and regulations. BalancingMotherhood.com is not affiliated with this contest, but thinks it’s a great idea. Good luck!

Let’s talk about celebrities and motherhood! I read a headline on a story from earlier this year about Katie Holmes and motherhood. Here’s the headline, “Katie Holmes Has No Trouble Balancing Motherhood And A Career”

It sounds almost crazy. I don’t care who you are — if you are a mother, it’s hard to do everything that you want to do. It’s great that Katie seems to have figured this out, but I don’t think that it’s true for most people.

Later in the article she is asked point blank about balancing her career with motherhood.

IS IT HARD TO BALANCE MOTHERHOOD WITH A CAREER?

No, not at all. It’s fun. I find it exciting.”

I wonder if she would be able to say the same thing if she weren’t famous or rich. I just feel like this comment is a slap in the face to the millions of mothers out there who work a traditional full-time job, for traditional wages and do find it hard to balance everything.

It is a busy morning, I’m a bit rushed. My husband has to leave early, which throws off our routine but I make it out the door on time. I drop off my son at school for the day. Make my way, coffee in hand, to the office and get my day started.

I attend the daily 9:30 a.m. meeting and go about the rest of my morning. Must be around 10:00 when I go to the ladies room from all that coffee. I look down at the slate tile and stare at my shoes. That’s when I realize what I’ve done: Two different black shoes are on my feet.

Panic sets in: I’m mortified. Did anyone notice? My first thought is to go home and change, but I quickly dismiss this idea because it would take an hour to get home and back — the simple economics of gas cancels out this idea.

Luckily, the shoes are both black and the same height so I decide to just wing it the rest of the day. I don’t care if anyone notices. It’s just a fact of life. I get through the day without humiliation.

I wasn’t going to blog about this, but think that I should share this misery in hopes that I will make some other Mom out there feel better. And, “Moms At Work” recently posted on their Twitter page about another common embarrassment, “Classic. My zipper’s been down for two hours. Luckily, my job keeps me tied to my desk.” That made me feel better. Perhaps you’ve done this yourself or you just feel better knowing that it WASN’T you. Either way, I’m sure you can relate — we’re all doing so much. If the only thing I screw up this week is wearing two different shoes then I’ll consider myself lucky.