Mary Tsao, this is your life
It's been some time since I've done one of those "A day in the life" posts, so I thought I'd do it today. Like I am fond of saying, I do believe that twenty years from now these will be the most interesting of all my posts. Remember that when you are bored to tears while reading this today.
Here goes:
A day in the life of this suburban homemaker and mother of two
June 28, 2007
6:30 AM -- Wake up to the sun in my face and the sound of voices in my ear. Emily is awake and Mike is about to leave for work. Then Thomas is awake and I am, too.
6:45 AM -- Pee and weigh myself. 141.2. I still have three pounds to lose from vacation indulgences. I vow to eat less cake.
7:00 AM -- Check email. Leave comment on my own blog. Read some blog posts and contemplate a future post of my own.
7:15 AM -- Realize the kids are playing a game that consists of pulling all of the tissues out of a box of Kleenex and using them to put a glass candle holder "baby" to sleep. Agonize over the changing of the climate and our own (now) un-green home.
7:30 AM -- Move load of clothes from washer to dryer. Put some clothes away. Clean towels from floor of kids's bathroom. Make beds. Water front lawn. Make coffee. Make oatmeal for kids and a leftover pork chop for myself.
7:45 AM -- Clean up art supplies so kids can eat at kitchen table. Contemplate day ahead. Decide to document for this blog post and posterity's sake. The kids finish their oatmeal and demand turkey sausages. I make sausages in the microwave and give to kids.
8:00 AM -- Put kids in front of Max & Ruby. Exercise for 25 minutes on elliptical. Do 5 minutes of strength training using hand weights. Continually ask Emily to go get dressed. Finally resort to my mean voice. She gets dressed in pink shorts and matching shirt. I am impressed and tell her so.
8:35 AM -- Get Thomas dressed while singing a made-up song about getting dressed. I am pleased that he doesn't resist. Not sure if it's the song or if he's just in a compliant mood.
8:40 AM -- Realize I don't have enough time to shower before having to go drop Emily off at preschool. Take a sponge bath with a washcloth. Liberally apply deodorant, get dressed, tie my hair back, throw on large sunglasses and decide to channel my inner, unwashed Jackie O.
8:50 AM -- Leave to drop Emily off at school. Praise the children for being able to leave the house without a struggle.
9:00 AM -- Take kids into Emily's preschool. Sign in, hang out for a bit while she signs up for her activity (Art), watch Thomas do some mixing, then leave with Thomas.
9:15 AM -- Arrive at grocery store. Shop for weekly groceries. Also get copies of Vogue and InStyle magazines. On the way out, rent "Because I Said So" from the in-store movie kiosk. Hope it doesn't suck as bad as people say.
9:45 AM -- Arrive home and put groceries in house. Put perishable items in refrigerator. Hop back into car with Thomas and drive to playgroup.
10:05 AM -- Arrive at Vista Park in Hillsborough. Hang out with friends and chat while Thomas plays with a dump truck, the swings, and the water fountain. Experience no major meltdowns. Bring him to pee behind a bush. Feel proud that he's potty trained. Wonder if I had anything to do with it. Leave around 11:45 to go get Emily.
11:55 AM -- Pick up drycleaning on way to get Emily.
12:00 PM -- Pick up Emily. Chat with some parents while Thomas and Emily play with trucks and dolls.
12:20 PM -- Arrive home and contemplate the afternoon. Put away rest of groceries. Decide to put together a picnic lunch and go to the beach.
12:21 PM -- Revise plan. Decide instead to make english muffin pizzas and then go to the beach after lunch. I eat an english muffin with butter, ham, and cheese. Emily and I have nectarines for dessert. Thomas has applesauce.
1:00 PM -- Go online and lose myself in the Internet while the kids trash the bathroom.
1:45 PM -- Give both kids a three minute timeout. Throw some towels, sunscreen, water, and grapes in our beach bag.
2:00 PM -- Leave the house to head for the coast.
2:01 PM -- Decide that going to the beach is a bad idea; I can see fog over the coastal mountain range. Instead, we go to our local Aquatic Park, which is built on a shallow inlet and has a small beach and several play structures.
2:10 PM -- Arrive at park. Apply sunscreen with SPF 50 to kids and myself. Read my InStyle magazine while the kids build sand castles and eat grapes.
3:45 PM -- Leave park. Thomas falls asleep on way home.
4:00 PM -- Get home. Emily and I take a shower while Thomas naps on the couch. I give up the unwashed Jackie O look for the washed Mary Tsao look. Briefly lament the fact that nobody on the Internets will see my outfit. Realize that I am wearing the same exact thing I wore on this day last year.
4:30 PM -- Start dinner: leftover pork chops, twice-baked potatoes, and green beans. Sunshine makes me hungry! Before starting dinner, I brew myself a cup of iced coffee with half-n-half and sweetener. Decadent and delicious. While the food is cooking I load the dishwasher and check my email.
5:15 PM -- Mike gets home from work. Pleasantries are exchanged.
5:20 PM -- Dinner is on the table and Thomas wakes up from his nap when he smells the food. We eat.
5:40 PM -- Mike decides we should have a family speech night. One by one, each family member gets up and tells about his or her day. Afterwards, the rest of us clap. The kids aren't very good at the speech part but they are very good at the clapping part.
5:45 PM -- I leave for my relapse prevention meeting.
6:30 PM -- Have a good meeting. I'm getting to know my fellow rehab'ers and we joke and laugh about our addictions. During group we discuss ways we will avoid relapsing during the 4th of July holiday. I am going to take my own bottled sparkling water to the party we're attending.
8:00 PM -- Get home to find kitchen exactly as I had left it two hours earlier. Put food away, empty and load dishwasher. Mike is giving the kids their bath.
9:00 PM -- The kids are in bed and I start this blog post. I want to be finished by 9:30 so that I can watch my movie and eat a small snack of 10 Triscuits with 1 ounce of jalapeno jack cheese.
9:30 PM -- Finish entry and post. If you're still awake after reading this, good night!
Here goes:
A day in the life of this suburban homemaker and mother of two
June 28, 2007
6:30 AM -- Wake up to the sun in my face and the sound of voices in my ear. Emily is awake and Mike is about to leave for work. Then Thomas is awake and I am, too.
6:45 AM -- Pee and weigh myself. 141.2. I still have three pounds to lose from vacation indulgences. I vow to eat less cake.
7:00 AM -- Check email. Leave comment on my own blog. Read some blog posts and contemplate a future post of my own.
7:15 AM -- Realize the kids are playing a game that consists of pulling all of the tissues out of a box of Kleenex and using them to put a glass candle holder "baby" to sleep. Agonize over the changing of the climate and our own (now) un-green home.
7:30 AM -- Move load of clothes from washer to dryer. Put some clothes away. Clean towels from floor of kids's bathroom. Make beds. Water front lawn. Make coffee. Make oatmeal for kids and a leftover pork chop for myself.
7:45 AM -- Clean up art supplies so kids can eat at kitchen table. Contemplate day ahead. Decide to document for this blog post and posterity's sake. The kids finish their oatmeal and demand turkey sausages. I make sausages in the microwave and give to kids.
8:00 AM -- Put kids in front of Max & Ruby. Exercise for 25 minutes on elliptical. Do 5 minutes of strength training using hand weights. Continually ask Emily to go get dressed. Finally resort to my mean voice. She gets dressed in pink shorts and matching shirt. I am impressed and tell her so.
8:35 AM -- Get Thomas dressed while singing a made-up song about getting dressed. I am pleased that he doesn't resist. Not sure if it's the song or if he's just in a compliant mood.
8:40 AM -- Realize I don't have enough time to shower before having to go drop Emily off at preschool. Take a sponge bath with a washcloth. Liberally apply deodorant, get dressed, tie my hair back, throw on large sunglasses and decide to channel my inner, unwashed Jackie O.
8:50 AM -- Leave to drop Emily off at school. Praise the children for being able to leave the house without a struggle.
9:00 AM -- Take kids into Emily's preschool. Sign in, hang out for a bit while she signs up for her activity (Art), watch Thomas do some mixing, then leave with Thomas.
9:15 AM -- Arrive at grocery store. Shop for weekly groceries. Also get copies of Vogue and InStyle magazines. On the way out, rent "Because I Said So" from the in-store movie kiosk. Hope it doesn't suck as bad as people say.
9:45 AM -- Arrive home and put groceries in house. Put perishable items in refrigerator. Hop back into car with Thomas and drive to playgroup.
10:05 AM -- Arrive at Vista Park in Hillsborough. Hang out with friends and chat while Thomas plays with a dump truck, the swings, and the water fountain. Experience no major meltdowns. Bring him to pee behind a bush. Feel proud that he's potty trained. Wonder if I had anything to do with it. Leave around 11:45 to go get Emily.
11:55 AM -- Pick up drycleaning on way to get Emily.
12:00 PM -- Pick up Emily. Chat with some parents while Thomas and Emily play with trucks and dolls.
12:20 PM -- Arrive home and contemplate the afternoon. Put away rest of groceries. Decide to put together a picnic lunch and go to the beach.
12:21 PM -- Revise plan. Decide instead to make english muffin pizzas and then go to the beach after lunch. I eat an english muffin with butter, ham, and cheese. Emily and I have nectarines for dessert. Thomas has applesauce.
1:00 PM -- Go online and lose myself in the Internet while the kids trash the bathroom.
1:45 PM -- Give both kids a three minute timeout. Throw some towels, sunscreen, water, and grapes in our beach bag.
2:00 PM -- Leave the house to head for the coast.
2:01 PM -- Decide that going to the beach is a bad idea; I can see fog over the coastal mountain range. Instead, we go to our local Aquatic Park, which is built on a shallow inlet and has a small beach and several play structures.
2:10 PM -- Arrive at park. Apply sunscreen with SPF 50 to kids and myself. Read my InStyle magazine while the kids build sand castles and eat grapes.
3:45 PM -- Leave park. Thomas falls asleep on way home.
4:00 PM -- Get home. Emily and I take a shower while Thomas naps on the couch. I give up the unwashed Jackie O look for the washed Mary Tsao look. Briefly lament the fact that nobody on the Internets will see my outfit. Realize that I am wearing the same exact thing I wore on this day last year.
4:30 PM -- Start dinner: leftover pork chops, twice-baked potatoes, and green beans. Sunshine makes me hungry! Before starting dinner, I brew myself a cup of iced coffee with half-n-half and sweetener. Decadent and delicious. While the food is cooking I load the dishwasher and check my email.
5:15 PM -- Mike gets home from work. Pleasantries are exchanged.
5:20 PM -- Dinner is on the table and Thomas wakes up from his nap when he smells the food. We eat.
5:40 PM -- Mike decides we should have a family speech night. One by one, each family member gets up and tells about his or her day. Afterwards, the rest of us clap. The kids aren't very good at the speech part but they are very good at the clapping part.
5:45 PM -- I leave for my relapse prevention meeting.
6:30 PM -- Have a good meeting. I'm getting to know my fellow rehab'ers and we joke and laugh about our addictions. During group we discuss ways we will avoid relapsing during the 4th of July holiday. I am going to take my own bottled sparkling water to the party we're attending.
8:00 PM -- Get home to find kitchen exactly as I had left it two hours earlier. Put food away, empty and load dishwasher. Mike is giving the kids their bath.
9:00 PM -- The kids are in bed and I start this blog post. I want to be finished by 9:30 so that I can watch my movie and eat a small snack of 10 Triscuits with 1 ounce of jalapeno jack cheese.
9:30 PM -- Finish entry and post. If you're still awake after reading this, good night!
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