Im a planner. Long term could easily mean two years from now. Hey, it's never too early to start planning, right? In my pre-BPmom life one of my professional positions was an advance person; the staffer that gets to an event prior to the Big Guy to make sure everything is ready to roll, key people identified, exits marked. I was born for the job. No detail too small, having Plan B, C or D, mapped out and thinking 20 minutes ahead of anyone in the room (that's why they call it advance work). Now my idea of long term is this weekend.
 
Our kids make planning an obsolete skill. The best laid plans, they say, all but fall into a black hole when our kids crisis trump our birthday dinner out, quick summer getaway or finishing a pile of to-dos. When my son is having trouble, all bets are off. I can have the sitter planned a month in advance, snag reservations at our favorite place and have to cancel it all half an hour beforehand. It's just the way things roll at our house.
 
Many days I repeat the Alcoholics Anonymous' mantra "One Day at a Time" to help make a situation easier. My plans and hopes for a certain outcome are easily dashed when my son is not in a good place and we as a family have to recalibrate. 'Just get through today', I tell myself. Or 'just make it to dinnertime' and all will be OK. This too shall pass.
 
In some ways, taking events as they come forces me to be more in the moment and less looking a month down the road. And since my son has relatively little concept of time, he's usually more in the moment than I am. Waiting has never been my son's strength and immediate gratification is the way of the day. Planning? What planning?
 
As fans of the t.v. sitcom will remember the sage words from the One Day at a Time's opening song: "Don't you worry none, you just take life as it comes." Some days easier said than done, but a good goal nonetheless.