The Interview

So since it has been almost a year since my last blog post I have decided to kinda interview myself to let readers know how my life is running at the moment! So here goes!

Here is a brief overview, I am a wife to one and mom to one, Jim is my amazing husband and Tommy, my compassionate, loving and strong-willed 8 year old son. We live in Maryland and have our whole lives! I work at a private school at the kindergarten level so my life (at least during the school year) is very busy. Summers are my time to reflect, regroup, and plan for balance for the upcoming school year. Yes, I am pretty lucky to have this time to do so!

1. What is my work schedule like?

So during the school year it varies. I either work 10 hour days or 4 hour days depending on if I substitute or not~my weeks can run from working 20 hours a week to 50 hours a week. On my 10 hour days I leave the house at 8, drop Tommy off at school and head down to work and I am there until 6~home @ 6:30, dinner, down time, shower bed. On days I work 4 hour shifts I have my whole morning so I drop Tommy at School, workout until 9:30, home, shower, errands, prep dinner for that night or meals for the week, pay bills, house stuff~whatever needs to be done. I leave for work around 1 and work until 6, home, dinner, downtime, shower bed. Summer is a whole different story~I am "off" but I do watch my bestest friend's children for most of the Summer so still very busy but I can make my own schedule which is nice. There is childcare at my gym so working out is a daily ritual to survive taking care of 3 children all Summer~I would be no good without it! Since I am home I take every advantage to prepare super great meals every night and we really cherish eating outside and together during the Summer since eating dinner together during the school year is few and far between and if we are lucky to be able to sit down it is usually rushed.

2. How do I handle Childcare?

Well I am so blessed with great friends and family I do not have to pay for childcare which is huge!! Tommy is in school all day and my schedule allows me to drop him off in the mornings. After school I have various people that pick him up from carpool and watch him until his father picks him up around 6. My father in law does Mondays and Tuesdays, my father does Wednesdays and my very dear friend Melissa picks him up with her 3 children at St. John's Catholic on Thursdays and Fridays. Very Blessed!!

3. When do I fit in family time?

During the school year family time during the week is few and far between. I am torn often because I can't pick Tommy up from school and have that time before dinner to do homework, talk about his day, fix him a snack even. I always think to myself that I have Winter break, Spring break and all Summer to spend time with him and that helps! So during the school year I try and make sure we sit down for family dinners as much as we can but it is tough with our late days. When we do sit down this is where we talk about our day and any issues or exciting things that are going on. I read to Tommy every night before bed and we have breakfast together most mornings. Jim and I watch TV and talk together after Tommy goes to bed, usually for an hour or so before we are ready to go to bed ourselves~weekdays are hard.

4. Do we have any family rituals?

Reading before bed, Saturday and Sunday morning breakfasts, Mass on Sundays and we like to hike together when we can fit it in! During the Summer months we go swimming every weekend as a family~we are all dolphins:)

5. How do Jim and I fit our marriage into the balance?

Ha~well in the earlier years when Tommy was little I think we both would admit that we were terrible at the balance, downright awful at it. Over the years we have really worked on it and learned through our mistakes. We get along really well, we both have the same overall goals in life~to live comfortably, live simple, appreciate the little things and just enjoy family as much as we can all while trying to stay healthy and active for ourselves and as role models for Tommy. We take date nights not nearly enough and we need to work on that. We need to start going on little trips to get away and focus on us as well.....we are a work in progress.

6. Do I have time for myself?

During the school year sometimes it's tricky with being on call but I usually manage to fit an hour a day in for working out which I think is important for my sanity. I make time on the weekends to grocery shop and prepare meals for the week~to some this sounds like work but to me it is how I relax, one of my favorite places to be is in my kitchen cooking. During the Summer I have more time, the gym has a daycare~enough said:)

7. Who handles dinner?

That is all me 95% of the time and I wouldn't have it any other way~although Jim does man the grill in the Summer months as he should:)

8. Who cleans the house?

So this is a fun question! My husband was in the military and basically he is obsessed with ironing. So when I moved out of my parents house and on my own I met Jim and was living with him 6 months later so I have only ever had to iron my own clothes for that 6 months and I think my way of "ironing" was to throw what I needed to be de-wrinkled into the dryer for a few minutes! I am very lucky that he does all the ironing and he pretty much does all the laundry~he says I do it wrong so he just has taken over. I do most of the cleaning of the house although he cleans his own bathroom and he cleans my shower~I have always hated cleaning the shower and when I was pregnant he had to do it b/c it was hard to do with a belly and he has done it ever since. We are very much a team when it comes to everything in our life and I am really lucky that Jim is such an involved husband and father~he truly loves being home and being with us and I feel very blessed to have him.

What would you change if you had a magic wand?

I'd nap without guilt, and without question, I'd hire a housekeeper and a landscaper. I would sleep in on the weekends. I'd allow myself to enjoy a pedicure or haircut without looking at the clock or feeling guilty about the money I was spending. I would worry less and live in the moment more. I guess I don't need a magic wand for any of these things, but they seem so indulgent nowadays.