In which you find out that no two days are alike at our house, some days aren’t very impressive ‘school days,’ we don’t have much of a routine, and it takes me all day to clean my house (I use that term loosely) when company is coming over. Oh, and I don’t move very quickly when I’m tired.
12:05 am Russ and I fall into bed.
2ish Luke crawls into bed next to me.
4:30ish I tell Luke to go get in his bed because I’m not getting much sleep.
4:45 Russ gets up for his day.
4:50 Russ tells me that Luke’s legs are hurting and he needs some Advil. I get up and take care of it.
5:00 Luke sneaks back into bed with me…in his Daddy’s spot.
6:45 Lola is up. I put her into her playpen with Cheerios and cartoons and go back to bed. I’m not going to win any awards today. I can’t fall back asleep, but I can’t make myself get out of my warm, cozy bed.
7ish Levi is awake and reading in his room.
7:45 Leif and Luke are up. Leif is eating yogurt.
8:00 I make myself take a shower. I weigh myself and I gained more than a pound. {sigh} I think I’ll have cookies and soda today.
8:30 I waste time on the computer.
8:45 Finally we get going. I open the shutters and let some light in, turn off the tv, change Lola, have the boys get dressed.
Luke empties the dishwasher and teaches Leif (I think he’s grooming Leif to take over his chores). Levi starts his math. Luke puts on the hot water for cocoa.
9:00 Breakfast prep. Mental note: need to go to the grocery store and the library tomorrow.
9:15 Breakfast. Repeat of yesterday. Luke makes hot chocolate with whipped cream for the boys.
9:30 I clean Lola up and get her dressed. We go up to her room and play, talk, and snuggle, then I put her down for a nap.
9:45 I’m on the computer again.
10:00 Levi still hasn’t completed his math. I threaten consequences. We both have a meltdown. He finishes. Luke and Leif play while I clean up the kitchen, make some tea, and switch the laundry. I succumb to the mini marshmallows on the counter. (Who didn’t put them away yesterday?!!!)
10:45 Lola squeals. That was a short nap. The boys escape outside without permission. I hunt them down and threaten consequences. Luke goes back to reading. Leif plays upstairs with Lola.
11:15 Levi switches places with Leif and hangs out with Lola. Leif pounds out Mary Had a Little Lamb on the piano. Repeatedly. I start facing the fact that company is coming this evening, and the house is a disaster. I go through STACKS of papers on every surface. A pizza ad catches my eye. I decide to fix an early lunch to avoid whining.
11:30 Grilled cheese and veggies for the boys. Leftover spaghetti for me. Levi reads at the table.
11:45 Clean up. More laundry.
12:00 Clean Lola up and change her diaper. The boys are playing. Levi has the Dangerous Book for Boys and is making paper airplanes. I’m still trying to clean up the house.
12:30 We need an outing. And I need a Dr. Pepper. We work on memory review in the truck. I pick up a ready-to-bake pizza for dinner. I’m ready for low-stress.
1:00 We’re back home. The boys play outside. Lola plays inside. I do MORE laundry and bake cookies. I snitch. A lot. I do more house tasks.
2:00 Boys are in for quiet assigned reading. Lola goes down for a nap.
2:30 The boys get on the computer to play geography quiz games. I do more cleaning and organizing in the kitchen. Dishes. Sweep. Mop.
3:15 The boys clean up their room while I clean the bathroom
3:45 Lola’s up. She goes in her playpen with a snack. Luke practices his piano. Levi and Leif head outside to pick up stuff in the yard.
4:15 Pizza’s in the oven. The boys watch a Bill Nye DVD.
4:30 Russ is home. Lola squeals and goes running to him with her arms in the air. Pizza’s done.
4:35 We sit down to eat as a family. It’s only pizza, but no one is complaining. Russ feeds Lola and cleans her up.
4:50 I clean up the kitchen (again) while the boys wash up and finish their Bill Nye DVD.
5:15 I head down to the studio to clean. Russ loads up all four kids and takes them to the pool. Luke and Leif have swimming lessons. Levi has swim practice. Lola is along for the ride. (thank you, thank you, thank you)
6:15 I finish up the cleaning in the studio and am feeling great. I think it was the Dr. Pepper and chocolate chip cookies. And not cooking dinner. And the fact that I’ve been all by myself for an hour. And my house is kinda clean. I get the last few things ready for our parent-child book club.
6:40 My niece arrives to help. We take the cookies down to the studio.
6:50 My sister arrives and we go over our discussion material. (Nothing like the last minute.)
7:00 Everyone arrives, including Levi and Luke. Russ takes Leif and Lola up to the house to play. One of the moms brings her phenomenal caramel corn. Well, if today is a cheating day, I’m going to make the most of it. We have a fabulous book discussion with our wonderful families. The book turns out to be even more wonderful than we thought!
8:15 The kids are turned loose to play. Some in the studio. Some out in the dark and cold. The moms have a lovely time of chatting. Russ brings Leif and Lola down to play while he gets some computer work done.
9:20 I head up to the house to feed Lola some yogurt and crackers. The boys get ready for bed.
9:45 I put Lola in her crib after giggles and snuggles.
9:55 I give the boys snuggles and tuck them in.
10:00 My house is quiet. And clean. Ahhhhh. I run the dishwasher, check my email…
10:45 Both Russ and I get to bed at a decent hour. My stomach is grumbling and I can’t stop thinking about the leftover pizza in the fridge, but I’m too cozy and tired to get up and get it. It’s a good thing I’m going to fall asleep in about two seconds…
6 comments:
I love your honesty, Heidi. :) I had one of "those" weeks this past week, so I'm glad to read I'm not alone.
Those stinkin' paper airplanes are all over my house. (design by DB Book... ) And All of my construction paper is gone. :) Gotta love DB Book.
Thanks always for sharing a window into reality. ~ Laura
Again, thank you. ;)
My days are this way most of the time....and like your day 1 the rest of the time. I spent yesterday cleaning and getting ready for company, and absolutely cheated at this whole foods thing. Oh yes, with 3 boys, we have paper airplanes all over the place. Thanks, Heidi, have a great weekend!
I'll add my thank you too! I'm a long time reader, I seldom comment, but this seemed like a good time to do so. I think of you as one of those super hsing moms, and it's reassuring to see how you have to squeeze in hsing around the chaos somedays too. I have a 13 month old and feel like school has been so hard to get done since he arrived!
Hahaha! Sounds like my house.
Laura's comment above made me burst out laughing.
I keep running out of paper around here, too! For the same reason!
After your Day 1, all I kept thinking was, I hope you eat whatever you need to keep your body and mind content and energetic. Obviously within reason of course. But many times we just need something yummy to encourage us that we can do all that God has given us.
So I was thrilled to see those choc. chip cookies pics. I understand your goals but keep the big picture in mind. Your kids won't remember if you were 20 pounds overweight but they will remember you being cranky and jumpy. I say to this to myself too! I'm an over-reactor and I'm working on having a firm but calm response to life's challenges, which right now is sickness at our house. Praying for you and going to finish the rest of your days posts. I think you're the best, Heidi!
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