Day in the Life

 

This school year is significantly different from the last two years since I am homeschooling the kids five days a week (instead of on average three days a week) and I am unemployed. Naturally our schedules vary from day to day. We don't have any regular commitments on Tuesdays, Fridays, or Saturdays. We have church on Sunday morning, AWANA and choir rehearsal on Wednesday night, and a Bible study on Thursday night. On Thursday afternoons Nadia and Ian have art, and Nadia also has chorus at Meadowbrook. For eight more weeks Nadia and Ian will have chorale rehearsals on Monday nights. Field trips alter our schedule. Yesterday, for example, we went to the homeschool day at the Hershey Gardens and also did the ride at Chocolate World. If I had known about this field trip when I was doing lesson planning this summer, I wouldn't have scheduled any other school work for September 17, but since I had done so much advance planning, I rearranged things so that they each only had two things to accomplish when they came home. All three did some math, Nadia and Ian also wrote a paragraph about caring for

the ill during the colonial time period, and Oliver did a little bit of spelling. Nadia and Ian read some in the van. Nadia finished the third Harry Potter book. A field trip turned a day that is typically a "stay at home all day" kind of day into a "we were gone for eight hours straight" day. Since I was contemplating how full my schedule is even though I am not longer earning an income, I thought I'd write about our day on Monday this week.

1. I usually get up sometime between 6-7am, but I got up a little later than usual because we had been up so late on Saturday night. Sleeping in is something I don't take for granted as last fall I was getting up before 6 AM due to teaching an 8 AM class. I got a shower while Oliver looked at photobooks in our bedroom. After I got dressed, I called Nadia downstairs as the boys were already up. We ate breakfast while listening to The Hobbit. I typically have oatmeal and a banana, Nadia and Ian have cold cereal with milk, and Oliver either eats a bagel with cream cheese or a bowl of dry cereal with a glass of milk.

2. For the next approximately three hours we did schoolwork. We do science, Bible, Life of Fred, and history together. Some subjects the kids can do independently such as grammar (Nadia and Ian), reading (Nadia and Ian), math (Nada) and handwriting (Ian and Oliver). one-on-one with the kids for other subjects such as spelling (all three), reading (Oliver), math (Oliver and Ian), piano (all three), photography (Nadia), and sign language (all three). Oliver plays some when I am busy with working with someone else. All three kids recited the verses they are learning for AWANA to me.

3. Sometime between 11-12 we listened to more of The Hobbit while eating lunch. After lunch we returned to our schoolwork. Nadia usually finishes by 1pm. On this particular day Oliver finished before Ian. By 3pm the kids had all finished their schoolwork and their chores. Because we had been away on Saturday and Sunday, we had more chores than usual to do on Monday. I had the boys clean up the Lego room so I could vacuum that carpet. Oliver and Ian did some dusting. Nadia cleaned the bathroom sinks and

counters and mopped the kitchen floor. Throughout the day I did a variety of chores including: cleaning the microwave, wiping down the kitchen table and the kitchen counter, vacuumed the dining room, swept the kitchen floor, and mopped the foyer and three bathroom floors. I also called Penn Medicine because they have continued to sent me a bill for $130 even though I mailed them a copy of the death certificate. The man I spoke with said it was an error on their part as yes they did have record of having received his death certificate. Nadia helped me make a batch of sugar cookies.

4. Around 3pm the kids started watching part of Mulan 2, a DVD they had checked out from the library. While they were watching that movie, I made beef stroganoff, vacuumed out the van, took out the garbage and recycling, tidied up the garage, and swept the garage floor. Around 3:50 we started eating dinner. We have to eat early on Monday because we need to leave around 4:30 for gymnastics and chorale rehearsals. Oliver and Nadia had no trouble finishing their dinner

in a timely manner, but Ian had to finish his dinner when we got home around 7:45pm. The kids said they would have liked the beef stroganoff if I hadn't included any mushrooms. This day was far from typical in terms of the fact Paul ate all three meals with us. That was a treat! Paul enjoyed the beef stroganoff.

5. We dropped Ian off at the church where chorale rehearsals are held starting at 5:00 pm, and the rest of us then went to the library for a bit before taking Oliver to his 5:30 gymnastics class. After dropping him off, Nadia and I did some shopping at CVS before taking her to the church at 5:55 pm so that she could try on dresses to find the one she would be renting for the concerts. While Ian and Nadia were being fitted, I worked on a grocery shopping list while looking at the meal planner app on my phone. Ian and I picked Oliver up at 6:30 and then went to a grocery store. After we finished our grocery shopping, the boys and I picked Nadia up and then we all drove home. When we got home the kids watched a little more of the Mulan 2 movie while I did the dishes and folded some laundry. Finally at 8:05 pm I was able to sit down and open my laptop computer for the first time that day. I was seated on the couch for about 10 minutes before it was time to have family devotions and tuck Oliver into bed. We began reading Core 52 in our devotion time that day, which is a book our church is working through together over the next year. We also reviewed our memory verses that we are learning for church.

6. After Oliver went to bed I had time to work on a blog post, edit pictures, get caught up on email, etc. Ian went to bed at 9:00, Nadia went to bed at 9:30, and I went to bed around 10:00. I went to bed tired, and I hadn't actually accomplished everything on my to do list for the day (hadn't cleaned the toilets, mirrors, or bathtub as I hoped). I went to bed thankful that I am a stay-at-home mom right now because my "plate" feels full, but I no longer feel like I'm drowning as I did the past two years. After this school year is complete, Oliver will only have ten years left before he graduates from high school. Ten years is NOT a long time. I know it's going to fly by, and I want to savor each moment as much as I possibly can. Thank you, Lord, for the privilege of homeschooling our three precious children.

Tha