A Day in the Life

Like most of my work days, it was a busy day. A little tougher than most, though, because Matt is out of town on business which added an extra element of responsibility. I was zipping through my morning, keeping all of the balls in the air for once, when I suddenly saw my life as if from the outside. It made me laugh in horror, and I wondered if there were a way to convey it adequately in writing. While not the long version of my day's story, here are some highlights that may give you the idea.

5:55 AM - I am in the shower, having to do so ahead of the boys' wake-up since Matt's away. I am aware of the fact that I've woken up exhausted; I was up too late working last night and for some reason Lyle woke twice in the night, calling me. When the alarm went off, I laughed out loud in my sleep, my subconscious apparently assuming this was a joke.

8:27 AM - I am leaving the house with the boys. I glance back in just before I lock the back door, pleased with the fact that the kitchen is clean, there are two fresh bunches of tulips in sight, the dishwasher and washing machine are running, and the house is uncluttered. It will be delightful to return home to this place tonight. This week I have prioritized keeping it clean so that we can enjoy ourselves this weekend when we're all together here. It's certainly not always like this. I ponder why I am so much more organized when Matt is away; I guess doing it all on my own forces me to stay focused.

8:56 AM - I have dropped off the boys with the nanny. Baxter has no school today which helped my case somewhat this morning (no lunch to make, no homework to pack). I am wiped out - and just think, my "work day" hasn't even started yet! - but shocked that I have accomplished the following:

a) remembered to send Lyle's treasured Baby in his backpack;
b) filled Baxter's backpack with all of the library books that are due tomorrow and asked the nanny and boys to return them when they walk by on their way to tumbling class;
c) reminded Baxter to pack a book to read during the toddlers' tumbling class;
d) packed a note about where the nanny and I will meet at 4pm;
e) packed the nanny's check for the week - this involved calculating her hours (which is often complicated since it's a nanny share), writing a check from my business account because we still haven't found our personal check refills since moving, and then transferring money online from our personal account to the business account. I did this in the span of a few minutes, with the kids racing around the home office vying for my attention.

9:13 AM - I arrive at my first appointment. I was to see one of my clients in conjunction with her OT, at the OT's clinic. The child never shows up. When I call her mother and discover that she completely spaced our appointment I feel nothing but relief that I am not the only one with too much to keep track of. The OT and I have a productive hour-long consult without the child.

10:20 AM - I am driving over to my clinic. I realize that I am simultaneously mentally preparing for my first two therapy sessions and keeping an eye out for a market where I can buy the four medium onions I need to pick up today for the frittata I'm making later tonight for brunch with my sister-in-law's family tomorrow.

11:10-3:30 PM - I work with four adorable and clinically challenging boys back-to-back at my office, enjoying them immensely. They are making terrific progress; I love my work! I keep my phone in my pocket on vibrate in case the nanny needs to reach me. She doesn't, but I am distracted by many work calls that I am unable to answer until Monday.

3:59 PM - I meet the boys at Scooter's so that we can celebrate our little friend Anya's 2nd birthday with her and her mom, Becky. This was the most relaxing and yummy part of my day! And that Anya - oh. so. cute!

4:57 PM - The boys and I are running around the Jewel, picking up the four medium onions, some eggs, and orange juice for the morning. Lyle is "talking" to Papa on the new toy cell phone his buddy brought him back from Disneyworld. Baxter is running in front of the cart as often as possible, causing me to crash into him at least twice. He insists on helping me run my debit card through the scanner even as Lyle is crying because he is "too far away" from me, sitting in the cart while they put the bags in for me. He's about 12 inches from me.

5:09 PM - I am on the phone in the car ordering up a Giordano's pizza for the three of us. I have to pull over to give them my debit card number. I can't face making a meal at this point; I decide it would be better to make the frittata in the morning.

5:45 PM - I'm at the dining room table draining the last of my glass of red wine as the boys watch an episode of Caillou out in the living room. Matt's plane from San Francisco will land tonight at midnight and, as I do every weekend, I am looking forward to a couple days of rest - or at least, not working - together.