My "Day Off"

It was my "day off" work today. Did you notice that I put "day off" in quotation marks? That's because my days off work feel like major "squeeze in everything you couldn't get done while you were working" days. Which just means more work, but just a different kind. I work three days a week, Wednesday through Friday. But because of a retired payroll person, I worked Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday last week. With this odd schedule, I happened to be off 4 working days in a row. This meant a lot of calls at home today because it is so CRAZY at work. These were my calls:
--"Can you respond to the custodian's e-mail. She was upset because she wasn't invited to (payroll coordinator)'s retirement luncheon?" Me--"Sure...I guess because she's not an employee and not a volunteer, but a vendor...she wasn't in the e-mail groups that I sent it out to. I'll add her to the volunteer group and make sure this doesn't happen again." Sent nice, but groveling e-mail to custodian.
--Voice mail of a call I missed--"The Creative Memories consultant is here to meet you about the set up of the room for the Fundraiser Crop (we are holding it all day Saturday). Are you coming in?" Me--Shoot!! That was today??? Sent another groveling e-mail thanking them for taking care of it.
--"How is the food planning going for the Fundraiser Crop?" Me--Gave her the update but agreed I should send out a follow-up e-mail asking employees and volunteers for more food donations (snacks, desserts, and someone to donate sub sandwiches for lunch. This fundraiser crop landed on my shoulders when we lost our Special Events Coordinator. We are working to replace her with a Director of Development, but haven't posted that job yet.

After some of those calls, I decided to read my work e-mail to take care of any outstanding issues...including responding to interested applicants for the payrolll position. So basically, I put in about an hour's worth of work today.

Besides work, these are my other accomplishments today on my "day off":
--Went to the 8:00am mass. Great way to start my day!
--Went to the band shop to pick up some new band book Abby needs. It wasn't open yet. Went later mid day...they were out of it. Was told they had them at the other location.
--Helped Becky drop off her car at the shop, which happened to be near the alternate band shop location, so I picked up the book on the way home.
--Went to purchase my "dry goods" and other groceries which are cheaper there than the grocery store. Cereal, pop-tarts, granola bars, frozen pizzas,Velveeta Cheese (for a meal I wanted to make tonight). I also got jeans for Ben (he's outgrown all the others), tennis shoes for Mary (her new school shoes are ALREADY SHOT!!), a Ripstik for Ben (fancy skateboard to be a Christmas gift from my mom), soda, and hair gel.
--Went to the grocery store for chicken and sourcream to round up tonight's Chicken and Rice meal that the whole family loves! Also got some bananas, a card for my nephew who is earning his Eagle badge Thursday night, and some deli meat, cheese and Pane bread for another meal this week (panini sandwiches).
--Ran to Walgreens to get the poster board I should have gotten at Target but forgot! Sam needs it for a Saint project in Religion.
--Sent an e-mail out to the family asking them if they wanted to pitch in on a season pass to Six Flags for my nephew who is earning his Eagle. They all agreed so I went online to purchase the pass, printed it out and put it in the card after signing everyone's name to it.
--Ate lunch with Ted.
--Typed up the lyrics and chords to songs that my friend is having me play (guitar) and sing at her renewal of vows mass in her home on Wednesday night. I practiced the songs because I knew I wouldn't have time tomorrow night because I'm taking out my neice for her 16th birthday.
--Carpool friend called and she said she would take home the kids today (Thank God! Normally my day to take home)
--Read and responded to personal e-mails.
--Cooked dinner
--And while I was cooking...got the following calls: 1) Can you sub tomorrow night for the walleyball game? Me--No...Ted has to drive Boy Scouts and that will run late so I need to be home to put the little ones in bed. 2)Called my carpool for Boy Scouts to tell her we will drive tomorrow night because Ted has to be at the meeting anyway since he is planning the Northern Tier trip and needs to talk to the boys.
3)Got call from friend (vow renewal one) who's son also needs a ride to scouts tomorrow. Can she drop him off around 5:30pm so we can bring him? Husband will stop by after work to pick him up and take him home after the meeting. Me--Sure...no problem.
--After dinner, Ted and Sam bring up the dusty, underused treadmill so we can use it for Sam's fitness plan which is a requirement for Eagle. After this, Ted runs off to Men's Group. The house was so crazy and loud, he couldn't wait to get out.
--I help Sam with his big Saint project. He has to finish tonight because tomorrow night he won't have time because of Scouts. This includes helping him with facts about Padre Pio because he needs to do an oral report and must know his saint well. This also included rounding up stick glue (no small feat!)
--I drag Sam through the fitness test which he needs to do get a baseline performance so he can measure his results biweekly to track his progress. This fitness test involved running a mile on the treadmill, sit ups, push ups and measuring parts of his stinky, sweaty body afterward. He moaned and complained the whole time. THIS IS YOUR EAGLE BADGE, NOT MINE!!! We (me dragging him the process) devised a fitness plan for the next 12 weeks, where he will have to record his almost daily fitness activities (GOD HELP US ALL).
--I then round up the little kids to get them ready for bed and sit outside their door to brush their teeth.
--Wrote this blog while sitting outside their door.

Does this sound like a "day off" to you? I didn't think so. This rundown of my day gives you a great idea of what is going on in my life right now! It's a crazy life, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. As much as this may sound like complaining...I'm very happy...even if it is a bit overwhelming at times.

Maybe tomorrow I can have some fun before heading back to the other roller coaster ride called "work"?

My Baby is Six

We just finished celebrating Mary's birthday party with family tonight. I can't believe my baby is six! I feel bad saying, my last two children totally stressed me out! I blogged during this time of total stress and it really helped....but it was very difficult for me. I thanked God for every major milestone they reached and prayed they would get older...FAST. Well, now they are 6 and 7 1/2 and things are much easier. They are all in school. I have a lot more freedom. I am happier. But it's odd....I now want to slow this whole thing down.

It was easier to wish that they would start eating table foods, learn to walk, talk or get potty trained. Before I know it, one is heading off to school and the other follows quickly behind him. And that's it. It all goes so quickly now! She's in Kindergarten, playing soccer, going to Daisy meetings and getting ready for cheerleading. What happened to the girl who clung to me and wanted to be held all the time? She's off with her own schedule on the calendar now! Ben and Mary used to just follow along while we ran ragged with the older two. Now they both have their own agenda full of games, practices, birthday parties and homework. Ugh.

This afternoon Ted and I went to the kids' parent teacher conferences. Four conferences scheduled in a row, one after the other. Kindergarten, 2nd grade, 6th grade, 8th grade...this year only. This is the only year they will all be at the same school. After that, it will all change.

Just like there was no "fast forward" when they were younger and I wanted to skip my way out of a difficult period....there is also no "rewind" to bring me back to those stages that slipped by me like a dream. For the first time, I want this train to slow down. I want to enjoy the ride. I want to hold them longer. I want to kiss them more. I want to relish every moment with them. This year she's six. Next year she'll be seven...and before I know it, she'll be packing up the car to head to college. I want to be a part of every conscious moment. I want to be fully and completely present. This is the only way I know to slow down this process. .

Jumping Through Hoops

Sometimes I can be very skilled at jumping through hoops. It's funny...sometimes the presentation of a hoop can be the very excuse I need to get out of something. But SOMETIMES, I want something so badly that I am willing to jump through hoops to get it.

What am I talking about? Well, just a couple of days ago my nephew posted on Facebook that he had made it to regionals on his high school swim team and that the meet would be held this Thursday (I get all my latest news from Facebook). We have two functioning adults in this family so we are used to tag teaming to get it all done. Thursday night is our ultimate tag team event! It is totally my luck that this would HAVE to fall on a Thursday! Did you ask what was scheduled for Thursday? I thought you did. Here is what I saw when I looked at the calendar:
3:00-4:00 - Sam's play practice
4:00-6:30? - Kyle's Regional Swim Meet
5:00-6:15 - Abby's volleyball practice
6:00-7:00 - Ben's soccer practice
7:00-8:00 - Abby's soccer practice

Time to jump through hoops.
--I texted my friend who coaches volleyball, asked her about the carpool of girls that goes from volleyball to soccer practice and if Abby could hop in this time (there are quite a few on both teams). She said that should be fine. She then was nice enough to offer to take Abby home from school and BRING her to volleyball (which I felt too guilty to ask her to do). Yippee! She asked me how Abby would get home and I told her that Ted coaches Ben's team and their practice is held on the same field as Abby's and that Ted is already there coaching Ben's practice when I drop her off...so he stays and helps her coach and takes her home after her practice.
--So Ben's practice is taking care of since Ted is the coach, and Abby's volleyball and soccer were just taken care of with one phone call. Now on to the play practice!
--I texted another friend who lives near us, who we carpool for Boy Scouts with. I asked her if she could bring Sam home from play practice. She said she wasn't sure if the boys had play practice because Friday is Parent Teacher conferences and they may not have it (this is a lady who is always ON TOP of things...her act is TOGETHER and I rely on her for all the latest information when my act is NOT TOGETHER). She texted me back today letting me know that they don't have play practice! Another yippee! I'm totally cleared to go to Kyle's swim meet!!!

Not so. In reading my e-mails after three busy days, I discovered an e-mail that came in Monday from Mary's Daisy leader saying that the meetings for the month are November 4th and November 18th. Really? THIS Thursday? I just want to go to a swim meet! Why is this so difficult? I don't know Daisy moms well enough yet to ask for a favor. She already missed the first two meetings. She can't miss another. She has to go. They are working on a petal for the daisy flower (really...that's their badges) and I can't have her be the only one missing a petal!

So I drag myself to ask Ted for a favor for him to leave work early and pick up Mary from Daisies. He proceeds to tell me how busy he is with work and he has to get all of his sales in before Thanksgiving because after Thanksgiving it's too hard to nail people down. But he senses how hard it would be to say no to me because the more hoops you have successfully jumped through, the more you do NOT want to go back. He knew if he didn't do it, then I wouldn't be able to go. I got a very begrudging "Yes" from him.

Fall is crazy with one volleyball team, and three soccer teams on top of Daisy's, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, play practice, speech practice, piano lessons and whatever other miscellaneous thing you want to throw on top of there. It's not easy. But the volleyball, soccer, speech and play practices will be over in three weeks!! Then it's on to two basketball teams and one little six year old cheerleader who will learn to cheer them on. Darn. That still sounds busy.

The point is...I'm willing to beg, borrow and steal to not miss something that's important to me. It can feel a little selfish. But I know if I sacrifice too much, then I lose myself. And if I lose myself, I'm not happy and no good to my kids or husband.

(Raising wine glass) Here's to making time for things that matter and husbands that pitch in so you can. Cheers!