Ummm...well..yes it's true

I am 77% Addicted to Coffee

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I never enjoyed coffee pre-children. Really, I wasn't interested in anything more than the occasional Frapuccino or other heavily sugared blend. After Mckenna was born I desired a caffeine rush here and there, but I was nursing and refrained. When I was pregnant with Gabe the powers that be (doctors) lifted the caffeine ban for pregnant and nursing women and stated that a moderate amount was just fine. However, I didn't like the smell or taste of coffee when I was pregnant, and after he was born I maybe had a cup or two a week.

Then I became a mother of three under 5. yep, that did it.

I am certain I swore, at least to myself and probably to others, like my mom, that I would never hit that morning coffee pot like others I knew did. Now it is my favorite morning routine. It's automatic, like putting on a seatbelt when I get in a car or checking on my kids before I go to sleep at night. It's comforting, that large cup of deliciously brown, richly scented brew--it gives me encouragement that I will make it through the day.

We regularly use a cappucino machine I bought mom for mother's day a few years ago. Here's the drill: I pour three mugs of non-fat milk and put them in the microwave for 3 minutes. Then in goes the water and the Costco bulk coffee into the machine. Turn it on. If all goes as planned, when the milk is hot it is time to steam it and we end up with beautiful, foamy milk on top of perfect espresso. That happens, sometimes. Other times I get distracted by Thing 1, 2 or 3, and we end up with hot milk, watery coffee, and a mess from the overflow. Mom and Dad get cinnamon sprinkled on their's, I often add a splash of non-fat vanilla creamer. Dad drinks his right away, Mom reheats her's when she gets up. Mine gets a sip taken out of it here and there. Unless...that is...unless Mckenna is the only one awake and I can sit with her at the table while she eats her breakfast. Then I can enjoy the company of my oldest child AND drink my coffee. That is rare.

Sometimes, around 11:00 or so in the morning, I feel the hopelessness sink in that the day is nearly half over, I have not accomplished enough, and my energy is fading into a dull headache. On those days I start that trusty coffee pot right back up for another mug of strength. Around here that is called, "Coffee Part Two."

Wanna know something funny--Melissa will attest to this--I am just as likely to drink decaf as regular. It's really not so much the caffeine, although I like the spark it provides, I will admit. It is the flavor, the familiarity of the scent, the warmth of the mug on my hands, and the reason to pause, just long enough for a sip, that brings me back for more.

There are some days, well, many, that I reheat my cup of coffee more than once. You have read about days like that in this blog before. It's those days that I need my morning ritual the most, and also those days that I get to drink the least. Funny how that works.

Oh, and one last thing. My kids have started asking, regularly, "Mom, when will I be old enough to like coffee?" Who knows, but I will be there to teach them all the finer points of a good cup when they are.