A quiet moment in the afternoon

It's almost 4:30 and the house is pretty quiet.

My husband left for work a little over an hour ago and my son fell asleep while we read the Little Golden Book classic, "The Good Humour Man."

There are very few moments like this in my life, when everything is peaceful. Of course, there are things around the house calling to me - the laundry, dishes in the sink. There's also my son's room, which I started tidying up this afternoon, sorting out old toys to donate to charity and trashing bits and pieces that were broken.

I could also sit and read, scrapbook, watch TV (not cartoons, for once), or even take a nap. Instead, here I am, taking a few moments to write.

Normally, I'd be busy writing a story for publication, running around to take pictures or on the phone doing interviews. But that life has finally changed. I no longer have to worry about sitting at a desk making sure I look busy, and trying not to fall asleep from lack of sleep.

It takes some getting used to, this being a stay-at-home mom, working as a freelance writer and copywriter. It also requires far more energy than I ever realized. Keeping up with a very active 2-year-old can be challenging for any mother, especially one with Fibromyalgia, like I have. However, I'm learning to create a schedule that helps both of us.

In spite of a terrible storm that tore through Bermuda this morning, I'm feeling pretty good. We had a slow morning, being that we couldn't even go outside and I baked muffins as a special breakfast treat. I'm still a little achey, but I think that has more to do with cleaning my son's room than the weather, for a change. I hope this quiet day will continue into the evening, when I settle down to watch the movie, "Ray," and do some ironing.