Can meditation help to dissolve the blues?

[Jeremyll33]

I'm having the blues bad right now. Week before last my wife went on a business trip and I had to look after the kids (2 and 4) for two days, or one night if you will. Last week she went to Italy for three days (or two nights) so I had the kids around me solid. Last saturday I just wanted to be alone after all the demands.

I should mention that autumn I started to cut down my alcohol intake to say a bottle or so of wine a week and a couple of beers. Saturday I drank four beers and a bottle and a half of wine and was up till God knows ehen listening to my old 70s albums - I am stay at home Dad living in Germany.

My kids whom I love more than you can imagine need me 24 hours a day (except when daughter is at kindergarten) and I do my best to look after then, but there seems often little time to really play with them and I lack creativity sometimes to think of things for them to do. This makes me feel so guilty.

There are a few of us Dads down here but tbh when I am down I don't want to get out to meet them as they bring their bloody kids which make even more noise - mine are relatively quiet.

This afternoon I tried to cook nice mushroom and onion pancakes but they didnt eat hardly any of it (they more often than not do eat everything I cook - I love to cook and it gives me a sense of pride) but today there was just mess all over the floor afterwards.

I try to tell my wife but she just doesnt "listen" By listening I mean that she does say "yes I know they are difficzult" but really listening would mean accepting that mess is normal when you get home from work when you had no time to clear up cos some cockup happened.

The two ways I want to get out of this rut arte exercise. At the moment it is to cold and icy here to start jogging - the only way I can see to get fit. The second way is to practice mediation when they are in bed. Has anyone tried this approach?