September 18, 2009

A Day In The Life Of Me

Candy recently did a video post on what a day is like in her life and she invited others to participate as well. Unfortunately I don't own a video camera but I thought it would be fun to make written post on what our day is like, so here goes... :0)

Usually I am awakened twice each morning. First at about 3:30 am when my husband is getting ready for work. I don't wake up for the day as early as he does but I can't help waking up when he is preparing for work. After he leaves for work I go back to sleep until my 2 year old wakes me at around 6:30 or 7 am. Sometimes I wake up before she does but usually she is my clock, LOL! I have had some MAJOR problems sleeping for several months now (long story) which is why I tend to go to bed early and sleep in later than I would like. Prayerfully this problem will be solved very soon with some medical intervention (another long story LOL) and I will begin to wake up the same time my husband does, which is my intention.

Anyhow, I digress... :0)

Once awake I get myself and two year old dressed and ready for the day. If my other girls are still sleeping then I will do a quick email check and then start laundry, put away dishes from the dishwasher and then start breakfast. I will let the girls sleep no later than 8 am. I let two year old wake them up because she really likes to do that and they love it too. Once the girls are up I remind them to do their "morning list". When they are done with their list they are allowed to read or play until breakfast.

During breakfast we read from a Children's Bible story book or my Bible. Right now we are reading from the Rod and Staff book called Bible Stories To Read. My two oldest girls have a Devotion book they are working through right now as well as a Scripture memory system and a Bible Study book for homeschool ... as well as an AWANA class they go to so most of the Bible stories are fairly simple for them (but they still enjoy them). After we read our Bible Study we then read a chapter or two from our current Read Aloud book. Right now we are reading On The Banks Of Plumb Creek.

After breakfast we clear the table and start our chores. Usually the girls will fold and put away a basket of laundry or vacuum one room each. Chores vary from day to day depending on what needs to be done. I start a new laundry load and wash dishes and do any dinner prep that is needed. Then we have a 10 minute break. At this time I check email again because that is how my husband and I usually communicate during the day. If I have any important phone calls to make this usually when I make them.

After this break we start school. This is the most hectic part of the day because often the girls just don't want to work on school work yet and are restless. Also, my two year old is still not able to sit still and quiet for very long so there are plenty of interruptions and distractions for the other girls as they try to concentrate on their work. But we work through as much as can during this time. I aim for us to get at least two subjects finished during this morning block of school. Once we finish lessons for the morning it is usually time for lunch. During lunch we will read another chapter from our read-aloud or sometimes we will call my mom or sister and chat with the speaker phone on so all the girls can talk as well. My sister's little boy is just starting to talk so the girls love to talk to him on the phone and hear him say their names and babble his cute little non-sense words.

After lunch the girls have another short break while I get 2 year old down for a nap. They often go outside and play at this time. I also start a new load of laundry at this time. I do my best to take a basket of laundry with me as I move from task to task throughout the day so I can fold throughout the day but sometimes the clean things will pile up and we will do a big folding session in the morning and put things away. It really all depends on the day and what we need to get done.

After this we have our afternoon school session. This is when I give spelling tests, help the girls with lessons they don't understand and work on learning to read with my 5 year old. Once the girls finish all their lessons for the day they do a quick clean up of books, supplies and toys then they have some free play time. 5 and 7 year old usually take out things to play house or doll house and 9 year old usually opts to read a favorite book. Weather permitting they go outdoors at this time. This is when I take a break, blog, rest or do some other relaxing activity for a few minutes to refresh before the evening.

After a quick break I start a new load of laundry and work on food prep. I get dinner going and make preparations for the next day if any are needed. I might also work on a grocery list or menus for the next week. Once this is done, I sit and watch the kids play while I grade their school work for the day.

Once 2 year old is awake, I get the girls to clean up from play time and get bath time started. After bath time we might watch a DVD or eat dinner (if my husband is going to be extra late getting home from work). Once Daddy is home we either eat with him (if it's an early night) or just spend with with him if he's late and it's close to bed time.

Then it's bed time for the girls and my husband and I spend a few minutes together before he has to get to sleep. I then finish up any things that need to be done before I go to sleep, such as packing my husband's lunch for the next day and getting in some quiet Bible reading and prayer time. I try to get to bed by 9 pm to get enough rest.

Now this is what our average "work day" looks like (unless we have to grocery shop or do a run to the library or something like that). On days my husband is off work things vary from day to day. We usually do all our shopping and errands together as a family so each day off is unique.

Hope you enjoyed reading about our day! :0)

2 comments:

DeNiece Barnes said...

You really have a busy day....even without the pictures I can image what your day is like because I have a similar day...Thanks for letting us live your day with you dear friend....

Atm said...

Hi,

Enjoyed reading about your "Day in a life.." I stopped by from Candy's blog, I was interested because you said you wrote out your day instead of video taping it...well done. I too could visualize it!

Thanks for sharing,

Nisha@ Memoirs of the New Wife