What I Do

Since deciding to stay home with my kids, I've heard some interesting things. The criticism I've gotten at times is to be expected in a society that seems to have lost the value of the family. (I am not criticizing anyone who is working outside the home here -- I'm just explaining that I'm doing what I know is best for my family.) But, sometimes the criticism comes from the most unexpected sources, particularly from a certain member of my family. (who never reads my blog) Whenever I'm around this person, I can expect some sort of "slam" because of our decision to keep me at home with our kids. On our most recent visit, I was asked if I'm "ever going to use my degree."

Well, I have a B.A. in intercultural and biblical studies. One day, I would be interested in teaching ESL (English as a second language) but I have no idea when that "day" will come. For now, I know that God has called me to be home with my kids, homeschool them, and invest in them. As far as what I learned in my biblical studies, I think I can apply that to any and every part of my work. I don't feel it was a waste to get that degree and I don't feel it is a waste to be home with my kids either.

Anyway, staying home is definitely not easy. There are days when I wonder how I'll ever be able to keep doing what I do. That's when God gives me the grace and mercy to keep going.

This family member of mine has said on more than one occasion that since I stay home, I should have the time to do certain projects. Things like scrapbook. I am baffled by these comments because I think to myself, "Does she have any idea what I really do each day? Does she remember that she paid someone to do the things I do when her kids were little?" If I were to describe what these days are like when my kids are little, I would say they are intense. And that I rarely have time for big projects or to spend hours scrapbooking. I've also been told that I may not have a lot of time to get back in the work force and that the longer I wait, the harder it will be to get a job. I'm never quite sure what to say in reponse because I don't even know what God has in store for me as far as getting a job outside the home or not. All I know is that for the time being, I need to be home with my kids.

So, the whole point of this post aside from the rambling intro I just gave was that for entertainment purposes, I wanted to describe what a typical day is like for me. Then, the next time someone asks me to do something or wonders why I'm not working outside the home, I can look back on this and reflect on what I really do being home all day.


*The day begins with the girls getting out of bed and coming into my room to inform me that they are hungry and want breakfast. I'm usually fairly zombie-like at this point because I've been popping a pacifier in Christian's mouth every half hour or so since about 3 a.m.

*I drag myself out of my soft, warm bed and then make the bed. I move on to changing diapers and stripping wet pajamas off of both Kayley and Christian and add them to the growing pile of laundry that needs to be washed. This is taking a bit of time and the whole time I'm doing this, Aubrie is reminding me that she's hungry and that I "forgot breakfast!" I tell her that I haven't forgotten -- I'm just not that far yet.

*I run around the house filling dog and cat dishes, wiping up any messes the puppy might have left for me in the night and let the dogs outside.

*I put Christian in either his walker or his swing and hurry to make toast, fill sippy cups, and get the girls settled at the table. If I get a chance to eat at all, it's usually done standing up at the counter and done quickly since Christian is crying by this point and wants to be held. As I walk by my bedroom, I look at the three loads of clean laundry and wonder when I'll have the time to fold them and put them away.

*For the next couple of hours or so, I break up screaming fights over toys, remind the girls to share, discipline, put kids in time-out and then enforce them staying there, put Christian down for a nap, change more diapers, read to the girls, get Kayley off of counters and out of the bathroom numerous times, hug and cuddle the kids, kiss cute cheeks, laugh at the things the girls say, answer questions, let dogs in and out, tackle the laundry and get about ten minutes into it before I'm interrupted, clean up the kitchen, unload the dishwasher and then load it again, wipe the counters, vacuum, pick up toys, nurse Christian, clean spit-up off of my clothes, change Christian's outfit and mine because of spit-up, etc. If I'm lucky, I may have a few minutes to use the computer, read and respond to e-mails, and perhaps blog! :)

*Time to prepare lunch. For some reason, this seems to be the time that Christian is the most cranky. I rush around the kitchen, preparing lunch while he cries. Sometimes, Aubrie sits on the kitchen floor and holds him and sings to him which keeps him happy for a few minutes. Finally, it is ready and the girls and I sit at the table. I bounce a fussy Christian on my knee and attempt to eat at the same time.

*A few bites into my food, Kayley decides she's done and struggles to get out of her booster chair. She has spaghetti sauce all over her hands and face and is touching everything. I jump up from the table, grab something to clean her up with and do it one handed while Christian continues to fuss in my other arm. Meanwhile, Aubrie is talking my ear off, asking difficult to answer questions, and trying to discipline her little sister.

*I try to scarf down the rest of my food before Kayley gets into something in the other room. I ask myself, "I wonder why I'm not losing the last 12 lbs of baby weight when it seems I never have time to eat?" I run down the basement stairs to switch the laundry and then come back up. I put Kayley down for a nap and she repeats "the pledge" after me: "I will not take my diaper off. I will stay in bed. I will be a good girl." Then, she giggles and curls up on her pillow looking all innocent and ready to fall asleep. By this point, I'm exhausted. The lack of sleep the night before and the busy morning have gotten to me and I hope I can get a quick nap in to help myself function better the rest of the day. I feed Christian and put him down for his nap, get Aubrie busy with something, and lay down on my bed.

*I'm just falling into the deepest, most wondeful sleep ever when I hear a door open and a little voice say, "Mommy, I took my diaper off." Ahhh! I close my eyes real tight and pretend for just a second that I didn't really hear that. But the persistent voice gets louder and closer until I finally jump out of bed and go out into the hallway. I find a naked little two year old. I quickly put a dry diaper back on her, zip her into the tightest pajamas I can find backwards so she can't get out of them, and sternly put her back to bed. I collapse back onto my bed and just as I'm falling asleep again, Christian wakes up and starts to cry. I put his pacifier back into his mouth and beg him to go back to sleep. Eventually, he does and I am back to sleep. Then the phone rings and it's Sam, telling me he's on his way home. I talk to him briefly and hang up. By this time, I am still very tired but not able to go back to sleep because of all the interruptions. I decide to get up and start working on dinner since Sam is starving when he walks in the door.

*I'm about halfway into my dinner prepartions when Sam walks in the door. I greet him and chaos erupts. Kayley is done napping, Christian is crying from the other room, the dogs are barking loudly, and Aubrie is begging to be played with. Sam is tired from work, I'm tired from work, but dinner still needs to be made and the kids still need us. Sam holds Christian while the girls run around the house screaming and being hyper and I scramble to finish dinner. It's time to eat and we all sit down together at the table. Kayley prays for our food because she loves to and we dig in.

*Once again, just as I'm starting to eat my food, the kids are done, Christian starts to cry, and I look at the huge mess I have to clean up. I either choke down my food and start to clean up, or tune everything out and take my time finishing my food. Sam helps keep the girls busy and tries to keep Christian happy while I clean up the kitchen. I am finally done and take a crying Christian from Sam and feed him. Pretty soon it's bedtime and Sam is usually the one who does the routine with the girls and gets them tucked in.

*I get a brief quiet time with Christian while I hear Sam playing his guitar and giving the girls a mini-bedtime concert in their bedroom. I try to decide if I want to stay up and do some things I can't normally do during the day but decide I'm too tired. As I walk into my bedroom, I see the mountain of laundry that I never got time to put away. If Christian has gone to sleep, I can spend the next hour putting everything away. I read my Bible, spend some time praying, and then collapse into sleep.

And the next day, it starts all over. Of course there are variations to this, but you get the idea. As of lately, Christian has started sleeping way better at night and so I'm not always as tired during the day. And in case you're wondering how I even had the time to write this whole, long post, it's because I type fast, Christian slept in until 10:30 this morning (wow!), and I didn't do it all at once. There were several interruptions.

So, about using that degree, doing a bunch of projects, and getting a job outside the home? Yeah, that's a nice suggestion but I just don't think I have the time right now.