A day in the life - November
I’m probably the only person doing the “Day in a Life” thing this month. At least Sheryl, from whence the inspiration sprung, hasn’t mentioned it recently. That’s okay, I’m always a little behind the trends. My day yesterday was busy but also sort of pointless - the kind where you’re exhausted at the end but wonder what it was you actually accomplished. Yeah, that. 6:45 a.m. - alarm clock, how I hate you! Wake the girls and fix their morning 7:30 a.m. - wake up again. Dan has fed the girls and helped pack their backpacks. I fix their hair and help them find clothes. Amy wants to wear a shirt that is dirty. Brief argument ensues, I win. 7:50 a.m. - fix Mia’s cold lunch. She’s my picky eater and it’s a constant challenge to pack foods she will actually eat. Today I send a peanut butter sandwich, orange slices, a granola bar, and goldfish crackers, I estimate at least half of this will come home this afternoon. 8:10 a.m. - carpool arrives and the girls leave. 8:50 a.m. - shower, hair, and makeup while listening to Dan’s side of the phone conversation with our lawyer. Try not to be too discouraged, but I have a feeling we’ll be moving within the next six months. If you don’t know about this drama, it’s here. 9:30 - breakfast then Dan leaves for work. Turn on the computer and check email, blogs, message boards, and my eBay auctions. Answer a question from a potential bidder. 12:30 p.m. - spend the next few hours at the fabric store gathering the final things we need to make dance costumes. I haven’t blogged about this yet, but basically, my girls started dance class two months ago and I checked the box on the registration form saying I would be willing to help sew costumes for recitals. Somehow or another, this translated into me being in charge of all the costumes for 150 girls, mostly because I can’t say no to people and I’m a big wimp. So, I’ve been designing, researching, and shopping almost nonstop for the past three weeks. There are several other people who are going to help with the actual sewing (thank goodness) but no one has wanted to be in charge. It’s been a lot of unneeded stress, especially right now when we’re dealing with other stressful things, but hopefully the worst part is over. Today I buy over $200 worth of thread and notions, including lots and lots of sequins. The woman at the cutting table is slow and I’m afraid I’ll be late getting to the studio to hand out fabric. 1:00 p.m. - race home and bag up all the fabric, then rush to the studio where a few of the moms are already waiting. Spend the next two hours passing out supplies, giving instructions, and taking phone numbers. I’d planned to do the sewing for only one class, but two moms don’t show up and another one changes her mind at the last minute. I am suddenly stuck with four classes, 12 girls per class. The studio owner vows to find more help, here’s hoping. 3:00 p.m. - hurry home to grab a snack (a pear) and check email. Answer emails from clients and submit a bid for a future writing project. 3:30 p.m. - pick up the girls from school. Drop off the carpool kids and head straight to the sewing machine repair shop. I bought a used serger last month and I want to get it checked out before using it. After leaving the serger, the girls and I wander into the model shop next door and look at the doll houses. They want the most expensive one and start immediately revising their Christmas lists. 4:30 p.m. - we’re stuck in traffic when one of the sewing moms calls. Her machine isn’t sewing the fabric properly. I give her some advice and 15 minutes later she calls back, still no luck. We swing by her house and pick up the costume pieces. When we get home, I get the girls a snack and then try to sew the costume pieces myself. It works perfectly on both my machines; feel slightly smug about this. I call her back and we talk for a few minutes about possible solutions, she’s noncommittal and I have a feeling this is another class that will end up back in my lap. *sigh* 5:20 p.m. - Dan gets home. We chat while I finish fixing and easy dinner (soup and toast) and then we eat. 6:00 p.m. - family time - we read a story together and discuss family business, then have a Perfection tournament. Afterward, Dan migrates to the bedroom to watch the basketball game while I help the girls do homework. 7:30 - Amy practices the piano and Mia plays Barbies while I answer some email and read a few message boards. 8:30 - bedtime for the girls. They get into pajamas and brush their teeth, then we read bedtime stories. Amy and I are halfway through Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire and Mia and I finish one of her Junie B. Jones books. She’s excited and proud to make it through an entire chapter book, even if she did have some help. 9:00 - after the girls go to bed, I clean up the kitchen, throw in a load of laundry, and mop the floor. Dan is at the counter doing paperwork and we talk about how to spend my latest paycheck. There are approximately five bazillion things the money could be used for (isn’t there always) and we finally decide to use half to pay extra on a few debts and save the other half for Christmas. 10:00 - watch a Tivoed episode of Whose Line is it Anyway. Usually I love this show but the episode tonight isn’t very funny. I fast forward through the musical games. 10:30 - decide a shower would help me relax. The hot water turns cold five minutes in, I forgot the dishwasher was on. I hurry and finish up and am grateful for the electric blanket as I climb into bed. I read for about 15 minutes, but can’t really get into the book. Finally go to sleep. Aren’t you glad you stayed for that whole thing? If you want to do a write-up about your day (hope it was more entertaining than mine), post your blog in my comments and I’ll link to you. Oh, one more thing - Don’t forget to vote today! When I went this morning it looked like an alarmingly low turnout. So go - vote!happy juice, cocoa. Remember Dan has taken a few hours off this morning to deal with some legal matters. Foist kids on him and happily stumble back to bed.
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