My Days

Ever since giving birth to Jordyn, nearly four years ago, I have hardly had a solid night's sleep. Like most mother's, and with each additional child, I've often felt exhausted and like I was running on empty.

So it's been interesting to come to the completion of my second 45 hour work week - on top of the exhaustion of motherhood. Very interesting.

I've had some question.....so here's a little FAQs:

How's your morning routine working?
Well, I HAVE to get up at 5:30 am. I ride my recumbant bike for 30 minutes because I feel like I really need to keep my body healthy to survive this rigorous schedule. I try to be totally ready when the girls get up at 7:00. Then it's the mad rush of getting them to get dressed (usually involves an obscene amount of crying on Jordyn's part because she hates every article of clothing in the universe), get them to eat, fix all three girls' hair, make sure homework is in backpacks, shoes are on sweaters are on, not to mention all of my stuff...and then I try to drive away by 7:30. It's craziness! And I say "we need to HURRY" about 155 times.

Do you feel anxious or intimidated at school?
No, I don't actually. I feel well prepared and at a good stage in my life to be around the kids and know how to teach and handle them. I'm also open to suggestions and not offended when offered one. I am enjoying what I'm learning. I'm also overwhelmed by the amount of work a teacher does. I feel tired from being on my best behavior all day long without hardly a second alone to even pee. I've re-realized that I'm a person who needs downtime to refuel. I do not have a moment's down time from 7:30 until 3:30/4:00. Or...come to think of it......it's not till 7:30 actually.

What do you feel like with the kids when you get home?
I feel a mix of feelings. To state the obvious (and be repetetive) I feel really tired when I get home. I leave kids and come home to kids. BUT, these are my OWN kids. And I feel so excited to see them and to hug them and to really make sure they know I love them and missed them. I try really hard to be "present" for the few hours of the evening. But once 7:30 hits, and they are (hopefully) in bed.....I feel half dead. Laundry? Cleaning? Are you kidding? By 9:00, I am worthless.

How do you do it all? You have so much going on!
You should see the dust balls under my couches. And you should see the piles of clean kids' laundry piled all over that will probably have to be re-washed to get out the wrinkles. And you should ask Tucker the last time we had a conversation. I definitely don't do it "all". And I don't do it all "well" either! But it's a temporary set-up and it's for a greater purpose. It's scary for sure. And I just complete one day at a time, cross it off and see it as one step closer to completing this goal!

It's interesting being around the other teachers and finding out how they all balance their kids and work. But I have not yet met one who has kids the same ages as mine. There are a few who have one baby, and there are several whose kids are older or grown. And not many have more than two kids. So, I'm probably choosing a unique phase of life to student teach in. But, for us, this is what is working and feels right. Hard, but right. And even though there isn't much room for error in our schedule right now....it's working somehow! Thank heavens for that!