ok, ok, i realize that my blog has lost some of its luster. its basically become a travel journal for us, which is cool, but it's not a true representation of what is going on in our daily lives. the truth of the matter is that the last 6 months have been insane. we've been on a continual roller coaster of ups and downs and a few wild spins. i most days i still feel like i'm in a competition with life and the score is uneven...Me, 2. Life, 56. i don't think i'm the only person to feel this way, but that is where i am.
another thing i have noticed lately is that i can't remember how to journal. nothing seems to interest me enough to write down. i've been mulling these things over in my head for the last few weeks and then my sister reminded me that even though the mundane in life seems boring to me right now, i will want to remember it later...and i know she speaks truth.
so i am going to let you into my little world more, give you a peek at what i've been doing. Here is my schedule for the week.
Monday-
6:45am alarm goes off, my feeble attempt to get out of bed and get a head start on the day is thwarted by my wonderful bed and i push the snooze button.
7:30am attempt to get out of bed and shower (didn't happen today, but i did have Emry & Carley in bed with me playing dolls, so not a total loss).
8am everyone up and adam. time to get dressed and wake up Luke. if you were here you would have heard some weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth...Carley hates to get dressed for school. she wants to wear a skirt every day, today she tried to wear a skirt from the dress up box, which i had to put the kibosh on. she was not happy. i was not happy. emry got into trouble because she was trying to placate carley when she should have been getting herself dressed instead. you know, it's the weekday morning drill!
8:10am i throw a load of laundry in the washer. this might not seem like a big deal to anyone who lives in the states, but over here laundry is a process! my washer is a bit smaller than a normal american sized one, so i can put about 3/4 the amount (and that is awesome because mine is actually really big for the standard here. some of my friends can only fit 1/2 as much in). the cycle time takes anywhere from 60 to 90 minutes depending on the cycle. then i have to hang all the laundry. it's not hard, but it takes time. also, we have to remember that it's winter here so things take a long time to dry. sometimes 2 days. right now i can do 1 load of laundry and have it dry by the end of the day or at least the next morning. some weeks i get behind so i have to haul everything to the laundromat, which is nice because then everything gets washed and dried all at once, but if you get hosed out of a machine, you're there all day.
8:15am i am in the kitchen making lunches (the girls eat pb&j exclusively. luke enjoys a meat sandwich, today he got chicken) i also threw in cheese nips, carrots and teddy grahams. not my best attempt at being healthy, but hey, it's monday people!
8:20am kids are in the kitchen. emry shows up dressed, but still without socks and shoes. she gets them and then plops right down at my feet to put them on. now i am walking around her to finish the lunches, get them packed and get breakfast going. carley is still crying, she is dressed, but can't find her shoes. luke is helping her, reluctantly.
8:25am everyone is eating jelly toast. we are experiencing a rare moment of peace. all is well.
8:35am i kick everyone out of the kitchen to brush teeth and hair.
8:40am i'm yelling up the stairwell...and i yell the same things at this time of day, every day of the week.....
9am school bell rings. Carley goes in the gate when she sees her teacher. she lines up with her classmates. they look like a little line of circus elephants all holding on to one another's backpacks with their tiny little hands. then i have to stay where she can see me because as they begin to file into the school they all look back and wave and say a final good bye.
9:05am back in the car headed home. i always listen to the news from the armed forces station. i get annoyed during the weather forecast because i end up knowing what the weather will be like in england, germany and italy...they only mention southern spain a few times a week. i guess we don't count.
9:15am back at home. i went straight to the laundry and hung all my whites for today...clean undies for all tomorrow! then i quickly start to tidy the house from the weekend. empty and refill the dishwasher, clean up the breakfast mess and make beds.
10am my spanish tutor, yes i'm taking private lessons, shows up. for the next 2 hours i try to get a grip on the spanish language. it's hard, but she is patient. i hate it when she gives me homework and today she's given me quite a bit....aargh!
12pm lunch. threw in another load of laundry, started this blog post, checked my email and got envelopes ready to be mailed.
13:40pm back into the car to get the kids.
13:50pm carley gets out of school. the kids stand inside the school and when the teacher sees you and makes eye contact she'll release your child. meanwhile, on the other side of the gate i have to stand in a sea of parents all trying to bud in front of each other to get their child first. i can't stand this rudeness and i'm becoming a bit claustrophobic so i usually hang back and get carley when the group thins.
14:00pm school bell rings. now i have to fight a new group of parents storming the castle gates! i have to also make eye contact with emry's teacher for her to be released. so amid a sea of adults, kids, pets and strollers i'm on tippy toes trying to wave at emry's teacher so she can be sent out. it's all a bit ridiculous. i am happy that they are into saftey, but there is a limit.
14:20pm home from school. the kids are famished so i make them food. not snacks, food.
14:50pm chore time/free time. they each have to keep bathrooms and bedrooms tidy, make beds, put dirty clothes in the hamper, put clean clothes in drawers or what ever else i need them to do. The sooner they finish, the more free time they have at their disposal. today during this time i washed the walls in the stairwells. we have matte paint on the walls...can someone please explain why we use this type of paint. this is our second home with matte painted walls and i hate them!!! they are impossible to keep clean and scuff whenever you brush past them. when i have my own place it won't be this way. in the mean time, my bff, mr. clean and his magic eraser, came to the rescue today.
16:20pm into the car once again to go pick up luke's tutor. she's a local high school girl named Marta, and I would be lost without her. i pick her up and her parents come get her. it's working out pretty great for us. she also babysits the kids and is going to stay with them so trent and i can take a trip later this summer.
16:40pm back home. luke and marta in the office doing homework. emry at the dining table doing homework. carley either watching a movie in spanish or playing quietly in her bedroom. it was warm today, so my whites are dry, time to fold the dry and another load of wet.
and now a bit of a reprieve. i worked on a few photos for this weeks M4H theme, personality and read a little.
18:00pm usually time for me to start making dinner, but trent came home a bit early so we chatted for a while instead.
18:30pm marta left. kids are playing. trent is showering after his run and i am starting dinner.
18:50pm we sit down to eat dinner.
19:15pm kids cleared the table, put dishes into washer, washed pots and pans..kitchen is closed.
19:30pm family night...the kids have been memorizing the articles of faith. tonight we're learning #6.
20:30pm teeth brushed, stories read and kids in bed. i'm finishing this blog post and then i'm going to sit on the couch with my sweetheart for a while before i take myself to bed.
goodnight neverland!!!
another thing i have noticed lately is that i can't remember how to journal. nothing seems to interest me enough to write down. i've been mulling these things over in my head for the last few weeks and then my sister reminded me that even though the mundane in life seems boring to me right now, i will want to remember it later...and i know she speaks truth.
so i am going to let you into my little world more, give you a peek at what i've been doing. Here is my schedule for the week.
Monday-
6:45am alarm goes off, my feeble attempt to get out of bed and get a head start on the day is thwarted by my wonderful bed and i push the snooze button.
7:30am attempt to get out of bed and shower (didn't happen today, but i did have Emry & Carley in bed with me playing dolls, so not a total loss).
8am everyone up and adam. time to get dressed and wake up Luke. if you were here you would have heard some weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth...Carley hates to get dressed for school. she wants to wear a skirt every day, today she tried to wear a skirt from the dress up box, which i had to put the kibosh on. she was not happy. i was not happy. emry got into trouble because she was trying to placate carley when she should have been getting herself dressed instead. you know, it's the weekday morning drill!
8:10am i throw a load of laundry in the washer. this might not seem like a big deal to anyone who lives in the states, but over here laundry is a process! my washer is a bit smaller than a normal american sized one, so i can put about 3/4 the amount (and that is awesome because mine is actually really big for the standard here. some of my friends can only fit 1/2 as much in). the cycle time takes anywhere from 60 to 90 minutes depending on the cycle. then i have to hang all the laundry. it's not hard, but it takes time. also, we have to remember that it's winter here so things take a long time to dry. sometimes 2 days. right now i can do 1 load of laundry and have it dry by the end of the day or at least the next morning. some weeks i get behind so i have to haul everything to the laundromat, which is nice because then everything gets washed and dried all at once, but if you get hosed out of a machine, you're there all day.
8:15am i am in the kitchen making lunches (the girls eat pb&j exclusively. luke enjoys a meat sandwich, today he got chicken) i also threw in cheese nips, carrots and teddy grahams. not my best attempt at being healthy, but hey, it's monday people!
8:20am kids are in the kitchen. emry shows up dressed, but still without socks and shoes. she gets them and then plops right down at my feet to put them on. now i am walking around her to finish the lunches, get them packed and get breakfast going. carley is still crying, she is dressed, but can't find her shoes. luke is helping her, reluctantly.
8:25am everyone is eating jelly toast. we are experiencing a rare moment of peace. all is well.
8:35am i kick everyone out of the kitchen to brush teeth and hair.
8:40am i'm yelling up the stairwell...and i yell the same things at this time of day, every day of the week.....
- time to go!
- grab your backpacks
- do you have your lunch?
- did you put your homework in you backpack?
- are you sure?
- please double check.
- no, you can't take that to school
- because it's not allowed
- i tell you this everyday, the answer is no
- get into the car
- NOW!
- we're going to be late
- get your jacket
- why don't you have a jacket
- get into the car
- ok, i'm leaving
- you'd better hurry
- don't forget to close the door
- please buckle
- please buckle
- i can't start driving until you're buckled
- please buckle
- are you buckled yet?
9am school bell rings. Carley goes in the gate when she sees her teacher. she lines up with her classmates. they look like a little line of circus elephants all holding on to one another's backpacks with their tiny little hands. then i have to stay where she can see me because as they begin to file into the school they all look back and wave and say a final good bye.
9:05am back in the car headed home. i always listen to the news from the armed forces station. i get annoyed during the weather forecast because i end up knowing what the weather will be like in england, germany and italy...they only mention southern spain a few times a week. i guess we don't count.
9:15am back at home. i went straight to the laundry and hung all my whites for today...clean undies for all tomorrow! then i quickly start to tidy the house from the weekend. empty and refill the dishwasher, clean up the breakfast mess and make beds.
10am my spanish tutor, yes i'm taking private lessons, shows up. for the next 2 hours i try to get a grip on the spanish language. it's hard, but she is patient. i hate it when she gives me homework and today she's given me quite a bit....aargh!
12pm lunch. threw in another load of laundry, started this blog post, checked my email and got envelopes ready to be mailed.
13:40pm back into the car to get the kids.
13:50pm carley gets out of school. the kids stand inside the school and when the teacher sees you and makes eye contact she'll release your child. meanwhile, on the other side of the gate i have to stand in a sea of parents all trying to bud in front of each other to get their child first. i can't stand this rudeness and i'm becoming a bit claustrophobic so i usually hang back and get carley when the group thins.
14:00pm school bell rings. now i have to fight a new group of parents storming the castle gates! i have to also make eye contact with emry's teacher for her to be released. so amid a sea of adults, kids, pets and strollers i'm on tippy toes trying to wave at emry's teacher so she can be sent out. it's all a bit ridiculous. i am happy that they are into saftey, but there is a limit.
14:20pm home from school. the kids are famished so i make them food. not snacks, food.
14:50pm chore time/free time. they each have to keep bathrooms and bedrooms tidy, make beds, put dirty clothes in the hamper, put clean clothes in drawers or what ever else i need them to do. The sooner they finish, the more free time they have at their disposal. today during this time i washed the walls in the stairwells. we have matte paint on the walls...can someone please explain why we use this type of paint. this is our second home with matte painted walls and i hate them!!! they are impossible to keep clean and scuff whenever you brush past them. when i have my own place it won't be this way. in the mean time, my bff, mr. clean and his magic eraser, came to the rescue today.
16:20pm into the car once again to go pick up luke's tutor. she's a local high school girl named Marta, and I would be lost without her. i pick her up and her parents come get her. it's working out pretty great for us. she also babysits the kids and is going to stay with them so trent and i can take a trip later this summer.
16:40pm back home. luke and marta in the office doing homework. emry at the dining table doing homework. carley either watching a movie in spanish or playing quietly in her bedroom. it was warm today, so my whites are dry, time to fold the dry and another load of wet.
and now a bit of a reprieve. i worked on a few photos for this weeks M4H theme, personality and read a little.
18:00pm usually time for me to start making dinner, but trent came home a bit early so we chatted for a while instead.
18:30pm marta left. kids are playing. trent is showering after his run and i am starting dinner.
18:50pm we sit down to eat dinner.
19:15pm kids cleared the table, put dishes into washer, washed pots and pans..kitchen is closed.
19:30pm family night...the kids have been memorizing the articles of faith. tonight we're learning #6.
20:30pm teeth brushed, stories read and kids in bed. i'm finishing this blog post and then i'm going to sit on the couch with my sweetheart for a while before i take myself to bed.
goodnight neverland!!!
5 comments:
This was a fun post. I DO wonder what ya'll are doing over there. :) I was giggling with your "questions" before school, as these are the same ones we go round and round. Also, I don't comment on every post of your site seeing. I can't think of anything more original than, "Awesome". lol I AM really enjoying seeing the sights through your eyes, so keep them coming. I also got our blog up to date (finally). Talk soon, my friend!
Oh Millie, sounds similar to our house! Love reading a bout your adventures, thanks for a great post!
Hip, hip, hooray for Millie!!! You blogged a super great mundane day in spain post! Love it! Keep them coming babe. And I laughed like crazy over your morning out the door list because you pegged it perfectly, except in our van, it's Hugo who is yelling at me for driving off when he isn't buckled yet, at least our driveway is long! Love you!
I don't always comment, but I do love reading every single one of your posts! I absolutely LOVE that you guys are doing Spain in such an authentic way. You're the coolest! Jeff and I are planning on visiting while you're there. We're trying to build a house right now, so not this year, but definitely before you move! We miss you guys! And, we are dying for you to show us all the best food places!
So fun to read! I read your list of morning words to Eric.
I think your lack of ambition or interest in journaling sounds similar to my thoughts in our first 6 months after moving. It was hard to find my place & interests & what is going on; my brain ass excited for adventure, but there was a disconnect somehow. And I don't have 3 kids to try to help adjust. It's hard enough to do it as a kid less adult. Glad you & Trent have a get-a-way planned for this summer!
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