A Day in the Life

 My life on November 20, 2008 (or thereabout)
Where all the magic begins:

Although it’s hard to believe I have any sort of self-discipline, I usually get up at 5 a.m. I like to walk/run while I blog and watch old episodes of The West Wing (I have all the seasons on DVD. When I finish them I’ll probably have to stop working out.)

I like to be showered and dressed by the time I wake the first batch of kids up at 6:45 (otherwise I completely forget and leave the house with no make-up and greasy hair. Yeah, scary).   I grew up fixing myself cereal for breakfast because my mother was a night owl and didn’t get up with us.  I hated it, so I usually make the minis a nice from-scratch breakfast.

The elementary schoolers start an hour and a half before the middle schoolers. I think it is just too cruel to wake anyone up even a second before it’s necessary, so I read the scriptures twice (Plus I like reading twice because I’m soooo spiritual.  I’m a big fan of reading while the kids eat. There is no fighting or fidgeting that way.)

Phase One:

Phase Two:

After getting everyone else off to school, it’s time to start India on her homeschooling. I pretty much just assign her something and she goes off and takes care of it herself. It’s easy to get her to do her work because she studies what she likes. This week we’re working on plagues and pandemics. And Mesopotamia. And drawing.

While she studies I’m supposed to be working on this: 
(the dreaded Cave of Laundry)
Guys, do I need to mention how much I despise the laundry?  It’s my most hated household chore.

But I usually work on this: (because if you ignore laundry long enough it will simply disappear!)

By snacktime Jasper has usually stripped down to his skivvies

He falls apart shortly afterwards.  Which leads to the most blessed period of the day: NAPTIME!

Ada plays and I spend the next few hours doing I don’t know what until . . .

. . . the kids roll in from school. Mayhem and messiness ensue.

Snacks and homework

Then it’s time for my little minions to check the chore chart and do my evil bidding

After chores it’s time to play. Why get out all the fancy European toys we’ve bought over the years when there is bubble wrap to be jumped on? We’re simple folk around here.

Just because I make a nice breakfast doesn’t mean I necessarily make a nice dinner.  Tonight it’s frozen orange chicken from Costco along with rice (medium grain so it’s nice and sticky) and green beans (also frozen and from Costco).  Hey, at least it’s not pizza!

Arabella is the dinner helper tonight.

I get more and more peevish as the night wears on.  I try to hold it together until everyone is in bed and I can spend some time in a vegetative state.  Usually I read.  Tonight’s laugh-a-minute book:

Then it’s time to check on all the sleepy-heads (usually Mister’s job)

Then I’m off to fight cavities and wrinkles, and finally to go to sleep. 
(Notice I squeeze the toothpaste from the middle.  I like to hang free and loose that way.  As you can guess, Mister is a squeeze-from-the-ender.  We have never been able to compromise so we each have our own tube.  Don’t even get me started on peppermint vs. spearmint.  It’s one of the fascinating games we play to keep the marriage fresh.)

We have several “day in the life” people playing: (you might need to give them some time to get everything ready, so check back again if they haven’t posted yet.  Or just mutter “loser” and go on to the next blog.)
Arianne at Little Pink Houses (highly recommended because she’s my sister and she’s funny)
Gabrielle at Through My Eyes
| Filed under Books, Family, Kids

19 thoughts on “A Day in the Life

  1. this was fun jennie! thanks. i’m a squeeze from the middle person as well. my husband is not! and your dinner looked a lot better than ours did last night. brent was out of town so it was mac and cheese and hot dogs for the kids. i’m so gourmet!

  2. Thanks for this activity Jennie, my post is a little more detailed but that is how I roll, and talk, and write 🙂 Enjoyed your day. Thanks again! Glad I found your site.

  3. I’m working on my post and I LOVED this look into your day!

    Beautiful kids by the way! Love the living room too!

    I, too squeeze from the middle and hubby from the end. DO you think I could get a gov’t grant to study this one?

    I can’t be the only who wants a copy of that chore chart, please do post!

  4. Love this post–but gotta say–the whole running/blogging set-up–G.E.N.I.U.S–of course, I seem to have this little issue that when I run, very little blood seems to go to my noggin–my husband can read and all sorts of nonsense, but I have to keep eyes forward, music blaring and concentrate on not falling off the treadmill–I’m coordinated like that–

    Blessings!

  5. You’re so cute! I love your bedding and phone in your room.

    I like how you read the scriptures twice and make a nice breakfast for your kids. I’m kind of the opposite. It is interesting how everyone does things differently and it just works for their family.

  6. I’m working on my post! No time to right now! Funny thing is, we had teh EXACT same orange chicken the day I did my pics! Go Costco!

  7. What a great insight into your day. I must say you manage to look divine throughout.

    I wish that would spur me on to get up at the crack of dawn to shower and make myself look socially acceptable but instead I try get every second of sleep I can and look dreadful all day long.

    I never learn.

  8. I like how organized you are to get up and ready before the kids, I think that is a great idea, and at the same time that puts me in the shower some time around 5am and I don’t like the sound of that.

    So nice that you make your kids homemade breakfast each morning, my mom also did that for us. Such a hard thing for me to pull together. Your kids are lucky.

    mine will be up later, blogger is being difficult, but I really like the layout of your day. Glad to see that there are gaps of time that elapse with unknown activities in your life too.

  9. So fun to read! Scripture reading twice? WOW. Mui impressive!

    I guess you can take me off the list, since I failed miserably. First, I started late, then I forgot to take my camera with me when I left the house, then the battery died, then I had PMS. Awesome day. Be grateful there are no pictures.

  10. OK, this was way way too impressive. I guess we can still be friends but you might have to lower your standards.

    xoxo, m

  11. I’ve been to your house and it sure seemed a lot more crazy and hectic than you let off. Maybe it’s just back when the kids were a little more reckless and young.

    Anyway, I enjoyed it thoroughly. I was going to do a day in my life, but no one wants to see pictures of the desk I sit at all day long.

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