Working Moms Schedule

Up by 6:30am . Today I was wide awake bright and early so I got up at 5:00am. I shower and get dressed right away. Mine and the kids clothes are laid out the night before. (ideally) Then I go downstairs turn on the teapot and start up the computer. I unload the dishwasher and the dryer while I wait for the water to boil. I mix my cappuccino in the hot water and while it sets/cools down I make pancakes (every am.....they go in the microwave...much easier) for the boys and get their drinks ready. By now it is about 10 of seven, yes I CAN really move that fast in the morning. It beats the alternative of getting up earlier! I take my cappuccino into the living room and sit and sip in the quiet for ten minutes then I go upstairs and get Will up. Now, this is key to our success, Will gets out of bed when I coax him with "mommy will make your bed if you get right up and get dressed". He will try to get downstairs to breakfast without getting dressed...that will lead to disaster! So Will gets dressed while I make his bed then he goes down to eat...SUCCESS! I either slip back into the living room, eat with Will or do my hair during this time. By 7:30 if Luke hasn't already come downstairs I get him up. Luke eats breakfast right away and I get him dressed, washed, & teeth brushed in the kitchen right after. Will is usually done eating by the time Luke arrives at the table. So Will is off to wash up and brush his teeth! There is no TV in the am. The boys would watch a movie when they were all ready to go...but the usually ended in a struggle when it was time for us to head out the door...so we don't do that anymore. Lunches were made the night before so I only add the ice pack to each of them and I double check that everyone has what they need. Let Mali back in, I let her out and feed her somewhere during the am routine. By 7:45 we are all ready to get in the car, we pick up our carpool kid and we are off to Luke's school for 8:00 am arrival and then to work/Will's school by 8:15.

Much ado About Nothing........

Today has been one of those days. Well...another one of those days. You see it's spring, but it's snowing................ and freezing rain...... and cold.....and....vacation! So we have been cooped up in the house all day. No one wants to play outside, no one wants to do a craft and no one certainly wants to do any chores! So what do we do? Well since noon we pretty much pester each other! Will and Luke that is. So my strategies for dealing with pestering boys this afternoon included...


1. Hour long bath...for each of the kids ...not me(I can only wish) This ate up 2 hours. Works great for separating the kids.

2. Snack time.....4 times today. Usually only 2 times a day but desperate times call for desperate measures. Besides I secretly cut there usual snack in half so they didn't get any more food. That consumed another hour total (4-15 minute sanity breaks), instead of the usual 1/2 an hour.

3. The ever faithful movie. I pulled one out from the way , way, back. Listened to their complaints when they saw my choice. Once it was playing they were totally engrossed. Time spent 1.5 hours. Yeah!!

4. The not-so-popular quiet time. Luke napped from noon-1:30. From 1-1:30 was Mommy quiet time. AKA On the love seat with a magazine and knitting. Will was on the other love seat with a magazine. The only rule is to be...QUIET!!!!

Okay so 5 hours of manageable time, I made it!!!! There were the in between instances of bickering , crying and yes, (I am human) an occasional shout from MOM...but we made it . Tomorrow is another day....

All On His Own Accord

An unusual occurrence happens at my house a couple times a night. Once in the late evening and once in the middle of the night . At 9:30pm-ish and at 2:00am-ish to be more precise. I hear footsteps in the dark......., then a pop....., dropping water..., flush.., slam....., footsteps and then the crinkle of a crib mattress in a toddler bed. It amazes me every time. Luke (2.5) gets out of his bed, opens his door, walks past my open door, past his brothers open door, goes into the bathroom(does not turn on the light) does his business and returns to bed!! Okay...this seems weird to me. I have 3 other children....none of them did this. Will still won't get up in the middle of the night. He will hold it and sprint to the bathroom at daybreak. Shane and Brittni would cry (scream sometimes) for Mom to come and get them and escort them to and from the bathroom.

I still wonder how kids can be so very different . I know we, as parents, grow and change. I am a very different Mother than I was 17 years ago. Of course I have learned a lot of valuable lessons. Mostly through trial and error. But still........

So twice a night, on most nights, I awake from a perfectly golden slumber and smile, and yes, I lay awake and wonder what the future holds for my independent little guy.