A Day in the Life of...

Joshua's dinosaur that he colored today during our "color time"

A lot of people wonder what I do on my days "off". I teach middle schoolers Monday, Wednesday and Friday, but am at home on Tuesday and Thursday...Since none of my kids are in school yet, it makes people assume that I have tons of time on my hands...I'd like to think that I've got the routine down, but it varies from day to day a bit. Here's what a "day in the life" of my is like on my days "off":

I wake up to laundry. With six people, four of whom manage to go through more than one outfit a day on occasion makes for constant laundry. This cannot be neglected or there will be a mountian waiting for you the size of Mount Everest. So, I wake up at 5:30am (hey, that's sleeping in for me!) and throw a load in the washer. Then it's downstairs to make Jason's lunch and unload the dishwasher.

6:30am rolls around and the kids start waking up. They all come downstairs and I usually make eggs and sausage for breakfast. Today they wanted strawberry oatmeal, so we had that. I let them stay in their jammies a bit and we watch the morning news. Josh is learning about weather so we talk about that. He asks frequently "what's the weather going to be like later today?"

Tuesday's and Thursday's are special because the kids get to watch a couple cartoons in the morning after the news. I let them watch two episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on Disney Junior. It's about the only kids show I can stand to watch (what happened to all the good cartoons, by the way?!). While they watch their hour of cartoons, I am answering school emails, entering grades, or doing something for school. Then it's upstairs to the playroom to play for an hour or two. in the meantime, I will fold and put away about two loads of laundry somewhere in between playing with the kids.

We come down about 10am for a early lunch-time snack. Today we had dinosaur chicken nuggets. I fix it a bit early because Julianna and Jayden go down for their naps at 10:45am. I then tutor Pre-Algebra for an hour and a half. This is when Josh and Jenna get to color with "big kid" markers, or write with things other than color wonder markers. Usually they just like playing and hanging out together. Sometimes they'll sit next to me and practice their letters while I am tutoring...

At about 12:30pm, Jayden's hungry for some baby cereal and will play on the floor with Josh and Jenna for a bit. Today he didn't make it very long as you can see from the picture below. (He's growing like a weed!)

After tutoring, I like to spend some special time with Josh and Jenna. I taught them how to play "Go Fish" today. it was fun and they enjoy playing games with Jason and I. It's funny to watch someone learn how to play a game you've played for ever. Also makes you think about how to explain it to someone who is very "literal". But we play together until 1:30 or 2:00. Then Julianna is awake, and it's time for Josh and Jenna to go "rest" upstairs....

Now that Julianna's awake and the other kids are usually asleep, or resting, I do a couple more loads of laundry and the dishes. I also try to clean the kitchen a little and decide what to make for dinner. I let her pick a special movie - today it was "The Brave Little Toaster". It's nice to also spend a little time with just her and make her feel special as well. Sometimes we'll play together with her toys. :)

At 3:00 or whenever the big kids get up, we ride our bikes to the mailbox (although we couldn't today because it was raining). Then we play outside until 4:30pm. A quick tidy up downstairs and vacuum to make the living room look nice for daddy follows (BIG fan of Febreeze). Then I start on dinner and the kids play with their toys. Daddy gets home at 5:30 - 6:00pm and we eat dinner. The kids like watching Wheel of Fortune (they repeat the letters that are called - so funny!), and then it's get ready for bed time for the little ones. Julianna is in bed by 7:00, Josh and Jenna at 7:30pm. Jayden is chilling in his bouncer, but usually falls asleep not long after. Jason and I usually spend some time together until he falls asleep. Then I come downstairs and work on some school work and get backpacks, clothes, everything ready for tomorrow's school day. I also get a chance to have my "God-time"... Bed time for me is usually about 10:00pm.

Whew - I'm tired, just talking about it again!

I hope you enjoyed walking through a typical day with me! It's tiring and at times frustrating, but it's such a blessing to watch my kids grow and learn before my eyes that I wouldn't change it for a bit! I don't mind staying up a little later to cherish those smiles and hugs I get during the day just for spending some quality time with them...