A simply kind of life

Well in only a few weeks my children will be embarking on school and I will be embarking on a crazy schedule.  My oldest daughter has already started school,she is attending a two week boot camp for all work study students.  It is giving me the chance to get the little girls ready for the early schedule.  I myself am working out all the bugs since this year I will have early days thanks to my daughters work schedule and it will also be my longest day.  I plan on having all items prepared in advance or my life might fall apart.  I owe my new lease on life to flylady, which as really been helping me get into a routine.  I have had a full week of keeping a clean sink at nigh, now I am working on de-cluttering my house in anticipation of the new school year. 

The plan for this year involves two different schools with two similar schedules.  I will be the taxi (chauffeur) for my girls and I will be the activities directory for the two little ones at home.  I have loads of things to print our for the pre k set, not sure what to do with the baby yet.  I hope to get a sitter in at least twice a week to help me keep up with my school work. I failed a class this semester, trying to be super mom, super student, and super wife, with no real game plan.  I hope that I can accomplish all that I have set forth and I know that staying on task will not be easy.

Now before I get in the bed I have a sink to polish, clothes to set out and electronics to put on the charger so that I am ready to go in the morning. 

GOAL:  Building habits that will make my life easier and learning that I can not do everything and still be sane.

What is the beginning of the school year bringing into your life?
Are you ready for the kids to go back to school and your life to get crazy again?
What habits have you had to learn since becoming a mom?

And So it begins

School officially started for us on August the 12 and it was super crazy the first few days.  The kids are now going on the 2nd full week of school and I think we all have the hang our routine.   This year we have a kindergartner, preschooler, and one in high school.  My teen dd also has tennis practice Monday-Thursday.  Everyone comes home hungry so this for the next 30 days I will be working on my after school snack list. 

Right now my goal is to be able to make a healthy snack and I have been looking everywhere for ideas.  I have a few recipes that I have been working on and so far so good.  I am looking for any suggestions of easy, quick, healthy, homemade snacks.  If you have any please leave me a comment and I will get back to you on if it passed the kid test.  This last week I made Pretzel Monkey Bread from Amazing Moms, it was a big hit with my girls.  We took it a step further and omitted some of the salt and in turn the girls dipped their bread in cinnamon sugar.  I love the fact that they have several recipes for monkey bread and I look forward to trying a few more.  This week I am hoping to work on a bento box inspired snack, fruit platter, a few baked goods and even some cookies just for fun.

Looking forward to a wonderful school year and looking forward to some amazing after school snacks.

What is Normal?

L2 is our odd child, she has been since the day she was born.  The moment she came into the world I knew she was different and she would play by her own rules.  She is a loving child and a smart child, but I have been worried that something was off with her and so I decided to ask for help.  She had a physical for preschool and after talking to the doctor she was given an appointment with the behavioral specialist.  I want to be able to find out if I am just over reacting or if she is really in need of extra help.  I have vowed to not paint her into a corner or try to define her, I just want to be able to handle it when she has her famous meltdowns and when she goes off on one of her moments.  The doctor said they will work with her twice a week and also help myself and my husband handle her issues so that she is not overwhelmed.  I will let her got to preschool without putting any stigma on her and if issues arise then we will discuss them with the specialist.  This is new territory for me and I hope that I can navigate it with grace and patience.  I look forward to learning about my daughter and learning how to become a better parent for her.  Is there a normal, nope, not really and if there is its definitely not any person in this house.

Jayde

Back to the Grind

In exactly one week my life will turn from late mornings and late nights to early mornings and late nights.  School is creeping upon us and as a parent I am not looking forward to it.  A lot of my friends will be enjoying the quiet and calm that comes with school, that sadly will not be the case at our house.  This year I have 4 kids in school; the one in college still counts.  Not sure what the preschool schedule will be but it will conflict with the kindergarten schedule no matter what.  High school schedule is set in stone and so is the tennis practice and games that I will be missing once again because of my duties as a mommy to little ones.  I walk the girls to school so these will be awesome exercise for me, which means I can drop the 25 pre-baby pounds that I have been battling with for years.  I of course can only think of the horror of shopping for clothes, shopping for supplies, the physicals (2 down 1 to go), the need to get on some kind of schedule to help stabilize my day (fat chance with a newborn). 

At home with me this year will be L3(2) and L4(newborn), which means nothing will be accomplished unless both are sleep.  I plan to continue to participate in the playgroup this year as soon as it starts up, which means 2 days a week my schedule will be even more insane.  I look forward to returning to the group and allowing myself some time to unwind and interact with adults for about an hour. 

Don't get me wrong I love the fact that they are going to school, but I can see the PTA meetings, the parents nights, the parties, the pictures, the yearbooks, the gym clothes and I panic.  I look forward to my daughters first day of preschool and kindergarten and hope that they have a wonderful year.  As the summer winds down, I look forward to art projects and homework know that these are rights of passages that all kids should enjoy.  So as we mark another day off the calendar I say to all the moms with crazy schedules about to impact their lives.  "Buckle your seat belts its going to be a bumpy ride"