Nothing Runs on Empty. Except Parents.

Today is the day when being the mother of three children has completely emptied my tank. And it's not just empty, the tank is bone dry.

I just looked at my infant and said out loud, "We did it. We made it through another night." And although I just celebrated making it through another hideous night of fractured sleep and feedings, I am already overcome with anxiety about getting through another night with my three month old. #tankempty

My work hours are 24-hours a day, seven days a week. And my office is my house. As someone once said, "parenting is the only job you never get to go home from." Ain't that the truth. In this "office" of mine, all phone calls are conference calls as I'm rarely able to limit the number of participants to less than two. Given the number of people who accompany me into the bathroom, all bathrooms in my home feel public. I'll never get a raise. I'll never get a bonus. But I do receive regular "reviews" that come in the form of feedback such as "But Mom, you NEVER let me use the iPad." My office mates feel more like cellmates, or so I imagine.They are all up in my business and don't contribute to my productivity. In fact, they are the ultimate detractors.

It doesn't matter how much coffee I drink, how many sugar free Red Bulls I consume. I'm not just exhausted, I'm depleted. Welcome to parenthood.

I remember before I had my first, someone said that the sleep deprivation is unimaginable. What no one told me is that it's all the other moving pieces that exhaust you. It's the constant worry, the routine visits to the pediatrician, the scheduling every move around feedings and diaper blow-outs, managing school schedules and the dozens of activities and parties that consume not just your child's life, but your own. Oh, and the laundry. Why doesn't anyone warn you about the endless loads of laundry?

What I've learned is that parenting empties the tank. Being a parent, though, means you need to figure out how to run on empty. And shockingly, I wouldn't trade it for the world.