Smooth Move
You might be thinking I am going to talk about some sort of laxative today.
You’d be wrong.
Another event occurred this week in which I am extremely proud of myself about, and I am willing to toot my own horn. And pass on a bit of hard learned wisdom to all of you. Although, I must admit, I am a bit stubborn myself and know that all of the bright amazing mother’s that follow this blog have already got this thing figured out.
I am probably the late one catching this bus.
Two days a week this month my kids have been taking swimming lessons. I purposely put them in a later slot knowing full well that our mornings are mostly a catastrophe any time I try to do something before say, ten. At least full of a lot of yelling, shoe losing, anxiety, and heaps of musings over why, why, why I do such things to myself.
So of course, they call a week before the class starts to let me know that they were combining classes and ours would be starting now 45 minutes before the class time I had chosen.
Grumph.
The first few lessons we were racing around trying to remember everything, have clean towels, all the right clothes to change back into, school lunch made before we left, breakfast too, shoes found, keys found…yada yada yada.
Phew.
But yesterday I tried something new. It is as if the heavens opened up and shined their rays of joy through the clouds over the house, all the while angles were singing and trumpets bellowing.
At least that is how I remember it.
Really the magic happened the night before.
For the first time, I prepared every single detail of the morning the previous evening. I packed all the under clothes, all the towels, and the lock. I laid out the kids clothes down to their socks, with their swimsuits on top. Shoes I found, books I packed in the car, and lunch was made and put in the fridge. I even lined up my own swimsuit and clothes in the bathroom to save time as I jumped into the shower for the all important last minute leg shave.
We beat the swim coach to class.
I am breathing an enormous sigh of relief even now as I write about this new discovery. A little preparation can go a long way to a smooth and peaceful morning. I had heard and read about other Mom’s doing such things. Smarter Mom’s than me obviously. I went kicking and screaming to this horrendous act of preparation, swearing that life didn’t need to be so orchestrated.
Yet in reality I had spent more time doing my fair share of swearing of a different kind.
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January 22nd, 2010 at 7:42 pm
love this lesson Jen. I learn it over and over again and again. and seem to smack myself on the forehead saying, “ureka!!” every time i pull of preparation well.
but still don’t do it consistently. perhaps because i cherish my evenings when i finally get a moment to myself and can’t get the energy for preparation and would rather veg out and not think about the kids or tomorrow. or perhaps if i go deeper, i thrive on the rush (-ing) . the chaos, the yelling, the speeding to get to somewhere on time…. because the old thrills are mostly gone for now. the snowboarding, the mountain biking, the traveling, the ME going fast time! Sheesh! either way, this is inspiring for me. given that school starts for two out of three of mine this coming week, i need to get my mama arse in gear !!!
thank you!
January 24th, 2010 at 10:53 am
Good for you! I applaud your efforts and success. In the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit that most nights I opt for the glass of wine and insta-movie on Netflix rather than be prepared. I KNOW I should prepare, but (insert whine here) I don’t want to. So our mornings remain hectic. Like addiction, admitting I have a problem is the first step on the road to recovery. Living in the denial, on the other hand, keeps me from full recovery. I think Nat’s comment is incredibly insightful–that in these days of very little to thrive on, the adrenalin may be its own reward. Who knows? Best of luck to you in keeping up your plan-aheadedness. And please accept my thanks for your rave review of my magazine. That was very kind.
Heather
January 24th, 2010 at 5:52 pm
Thanks Heather, I think your magazine Get Born has an important place in the world of mothering! I am sure I cannot keep up with always preparing, but I did do this AM as we had to be somewhere at 9 and it worked like a charm! And hey, I get the hectic adrenaline rush. We don’t often get that until one of our kids is falling on their head from a height we are uncomfortable with, but I feel like the adrenaline makes Mommy cranky and say things she wouldn’t want to be remembered for!
January 26th, 2010 at 1:22 pm
” I even lined up my own swimsuit and clothes in the bathroom to save time as I jumped into the shower for the all important last minute leg shave.”
I LOL’d at this line. So funny!
I TRY the “prepare the night before” technique on Tuesdays before co-op. I’m usually late anyway, because I have NO time management skills, but imagine how late I’d be if I left everything to the morning! Thanks for the funny post.