I am not one of those parents that bemoan the end of summer. I love these kids, but I also love the moment when they step away from me towards the classrooms and I have some breathing room. I met Monday morning with arms wide open and full of potential.
I WILL take advantage of this time when the kids are at school.
- I will write in regards to my book every day.
- I will work more faithfully on the websites.
- I will work out at least 4 of 5 days.
- I will do 3 loads of laundry every day.
- I will have a straightened, if never spotless, house.
- I will cook dinners that do not involve the words “buns”, “delivery” or “nuggets”.
This is just a sample of the expectation list I made for myself. New School Year Resolutions, if you will.
Yet THIS is what my week has been:
Monday – realize that in frenzy to get rid of kids kids to school on time I have left my keys hanging from the lock on the front door…clean summer’s worth of funk out of van, find carpet again…have breakfast with friend…reschedule Peyton’s Tuesday clinic appointment just in case Fay decides to menace * hahahaha! * through Tampa…work on STUFF…homework…dinner…family time…baths…..bed.
Tuesday – seethe at county for hurricane day (FL version of a snow day) when there is not so much as a drop of rain…barge into friend’s house with restless kids so they can swim and make mess…show up in pajamas…work on NOTHNG….fall asleep by 8:45 PM.
Wind damage due to Hurricane Fay
Wednesday – drop kids off at school….on time, we are off to a attendance record at this point…coffee = 3 cups, Starbucks Americano = 4 shots of espressso…head home to work feversishly…realize that overcaffeination feels a lot like having a stroke, lay on couch to stop the spins…get call from oncology clinic asking if I’m planning to arrive for appointment for Peyton….am 2 hours LATE!….scramble to go get Peyton from school, speed all the way to clinic, get there at 1 for new appointment at 3….BANG head against wall…take older two kids to chess class where I am reminded that Nathaniel is a chess rockstar…get all kids into bed so can work on STUFF.
Thursday – drop kids off to school…on time, am practically HIGH off success of arriving on time 3 days in a row….go home, try to convince self to work….take a nap…at 8:45 AM…PERFECTION!…awaken with much energy and get lots of little things done…am disgusted with FL weather for pouring TODAY….confuse children by making them bathe at 4 in the afternoon as it will be late when we get home and they have the sweaty funks….head off to Children’s Cancer Center for dinner and support group.
I keep telling myself that next week is the week where I find my groove and start getting all those other things done. But I am also the person who has a pair of the world’s coolest neon bell-bottoms hidden in the back of the closet, just in case they come back in style. I live for the dream, people.
on Aug 21st, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Your wind damage due to Hurricane Fay threw me over the edge. I actually snorted when I laughed.
*Hope you’re all OKAY!* LOL
I plan to make a list of expectations that I also won’t be able to live up to next week when my kids are back in school…
Melisas last blog post..Creative Parenting 101: The Magic of Blankets
on Aug 21st, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Wow, your lucky. My kids don’t go back to school til September 3. No fair.
on Aug 21st, 2008 at 11:15 pm
I love the pop can tipped over from those hurricane force winds. Excellent.
Jennifers last blog post..nostalgia
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 12:05 am
I love the hurricane damage photo! And the school pics are awesome! I’m jealous that yours are already in school! Please, don’t kill my own dreams with tales of how yours are going! I’m afraid I am cut from the same cloth, my dear! Lots of ambition, very little follow through! Oh well, we are fun at least! Ha!
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 2:23 am
Let’s cross our fingers in hope that the photo above is the worst you will get this hurricane season. Love the chairs!
Your kids look thrilled to begin school. Mine (me) have 2 more weeks to wait. 🙁 I am mulling over schedules and goals for myself this school year, too. We can do it!
Mamikazes last blog post..Shoe Spam
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 3:01 am
How many of those things on the list are you actually going to do, huh? I think you’ll manage the website one…. Hey nothing wrong with meals containing nuggets, I could live on chicken nuggets!!!
Hey Anissa just some friendly advice, you might want to fuzz out the logo on your kids uniforms. Creepy people could track them down that way. It’s yuck to have to think like that but you don’t know who views this site, you can’t be too careful!
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 8:08 am
Hi Anissa,
I’ve been so totally lazy this summer. This week was a bit of a shocker. Fortunately for us, school got cancelled two days and I was probably the only mom in S. Florida that was okay with that.
You won’t believe what I’m doing. I signed up for an instructor training so I can teach Zumba! Wish me luck with that one.
I’m going to try and keep up with what you’re up to. I don’t know how you do it. 3 kids and keeping up this website and cancer treatment. You rock.
Regarding all of our collective mom goals, there is always next week…
love,basi
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 1:21 pm
Anissa,
We started this week too. Well some of us did. Tom and I took turns going from school, work, and home to take care of Stephanie – stomach flu -started Sunday during church, and Rosie – UTI started Friday afternoon. Everyone was IN school on Wednesday!!! We have made it on time every day so far. But being the school secretary I do NOT have a choice. I get to write the tardy slips! lol
Hope you do not have 2 much rain. Dad said they were at 5 in. yesterday.
Love ya,
Ang
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Yer doin it wrong!
You’re supposed to take a week off, live in pj’s, screw the house, the work, the STUFF. Blame it on Fay. Cmon man, don’t stress over spilt pepsi. LMAO. *KISSES*
Double Agent Girls last blog post..New Shoot!
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 3:58 pm
Hey look at it this way. At least your kids get to go to school. I was so set to have Adam and Joshua start nursery school this year only to have that stupid cancer come back into play. Now I get to “enjoy” another year at home with them. ALL DAY LONG!!!
Oh, and the wind damage is too much. I can’t wait to show Jeff that picture.
Oh, and love Peyton’s hair. She has so much now!
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 8:03 pm
Haha….I can gloat that those days are over for me 🙂 And yet I oddly miss them…go figure!
And what is with Florida? Those neon colored bell bottoms would be styling here 🙂 I seriously know of high school and college kids that would LOVE them!
on Aug 22nd, 2008 at 10:21 pm
Anissa –
Isn’t it the truth … nothing happened Tuesday.
But, wouldn’t you know last night’s wind caused a really huge branch to fall down in the front yard.
What’s up with that?
LOL … completely off topic, but I know you’ll appreciate this story. Tonight we went out to dinner with the fam, and Juliette wanted to wear her pink cowboy boots and her Fourth of July dress. Oh yes, she was stylin. So, she fell asleep on the way home and I let her just sleep on the couch while I got some stuff done around the house.
Apparently, when I just put her to bed right before reading your post … she woke up. Completely stripped naked and just came walking out to the living room with her birthday suit on (and a really cute pair of pink cowboy boots) LOL … I love these years! 4.5 is easier than 3.5, right?!!
on Aug 23rd, 2008 at 12:08 am
I am so glad you survived such intense hurricane winds. Love the picture!
Actually, I love this whole post! We sound so much alike!
Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundrys last blog post..Oh where, oh where could they be?