Drowning is different for moms. I'm not talking about swimming in pools without your floaties. I'm talking about dentists, school shopping, class schedules, football schedules, flat tires, cleaning your house, kids throwing up on you in a public place, gaining three pounds, and then having your computer crash. That's the kind of drowning I'm talking about. I think every mom can relate. If not? Then you have a cleaning lady, a nanny, a personal trainer, and a good computer tech.

Me? I don't have any of that. I'd settle right now for a cleaning lady, but I'll take my kids doing their chores. So, drowning. That kind of happened yesterday. Sitting in the dentist office, thinking how peaceful and wonderful life was and then my youngest child walks over and throws up all over my lap and half the office as well. Honestly, how much can a four-year-old stomach hold? Turns out - quite a bit. The day kind of went downhill from there. But I won't bore you with the details.

My question is this: when you are drowning, what do you do? My friend (who came over the other night because she was drowning) chose to escape to my house for a couple hours. Escape can be fun, but it doesn't get rid of the problems. The five loads of laundry waiting to be folded aren't going anywhere. Chocolate is always good. (Hence the three pounds.) But what's the best life-saver ever? I know you're thinking a trip to Hawaii would be great, or a cruise. That's called dreaming, and it won't help you when you're in the middle of a crisis.

What actually will help? Here's a list of my top four life preservers when you're drowning and (for some reason) don't have tickets for seven days at a resort.

1. Exercise - Walking counts, believe it or not. Free the body, free the soul kind of thing.

2. Reading a good book - The more uplifting the book, the better.

3. Helping a neighbor or friend - Or in other words, service. This actually really, really helps.

4. Know that nothing lasts forever - Just keep going with a smile on your face no matter what.

5. And, when all else fails, grab the chocolate and run to your best friend's house.

That's it. Each one is a floatie you can hang on to on days when you feel the waves of life lapping over your head. Yesterday, I just had time for #4 and #5. But sometimes, that's all you need.