GTL. (Because "T" stands for "tantrum", right?) A Day in the Life of a Homeschool Mom

I've finally decided to do one of those a "Day in the Life" posts that get linked up every month or so.  I can never seem to commit to link ups in a timely manner, and this is no exception. So I'm going out solo with this one.

I love the DITL posts because they help fulfill my stalker tendencies it's fun to see how other people spend their days. Since my days are all different I just picked a random Monday.  So here is how this Monday went for me.

Alarm:  5:30 a.m.  I spend about ten minutes deciding if I am going to commit to getting out of bed.  Then I remember iced coffee is totally happening today.  I sprint to the kitchen. I find my favorite green mug and pour a nice (cold) cuppa joe.  I end up on the couch to do my Bible study, which is the perfect place to go when you first wake up and are determined to make it as hard as possible for yourself to stay awake.

Good morning, Internets.  Um, yeah I did my hair for you.  Did you really think this forehead 'fro occurs naturally?

I hit the computer, edit and post Monday's blog, and Facebook stalk for awhile.

Alabama sweatshirt?  Green mug? Iced Coffee?  Ugly comforter wrapped around my body like a bath towel?  Creepin' on Facebook?  Yep.  All my favorite things in one picture.

At 6:30 I responsibly get in the shower and get myself ready, because the kiddos will be making an appearance at 7:00.  I take some time to snuggle with the boy child.

So. much. win.
("Um, Kelly?  Do you really think the forehead 'fro needed more volume?")

I start to climb Mt. Laundry, making sure I am properly fueled for such an arduous task.

Baskets are in this order: delicates/children*, whites, darks.
*children's clothes; we don't wash the children in the machine.  We use a hose outside the bathtub for that.

Oatmeal and peanut butter.  Breakfast of champions.  (215 calories)

We finish getting ready, pack our bags and head out the door at 8:30.

If you need an outfit that says "I can homeschool, fold the laundry, clean the kitchen, drive a minivan, and go boating all in one day" I've got a look for you.  Eat your heart out, Mama Laughlin.

Library bag full of returns.  Ezra's backpack for school.  My purse full of things I need for errands. Pink crate for homeschooling.

Our first stop is the post office.  We go to the exact same mailbox where my hand got stuck and I was almost arrested, sent to prison, and forced to eat bologna.  Then the boy goes to school. (This is not really school because he is 2 years old, y'all; it's fancy pre-school for his apraxia.  He and two other little boys get two and a half hours of therapy twice a week for the bargain price of a new car.)(But? He's totally starting to talk - can fluently say, "mine" - now, so, completely worth it.)

Mini Elmo backpack.  So.cute.

The girlies and I run home to do a quick kitchen clean up (because we've got a half an hour to kill before the library opens) and then head to the library where we school on the days Ezra has therapy.

Today's show brought to you by the letter "W" and the number "13".

"Dude!  I'm telling you, sister dear, that you need to use this formula to find the area!"

At 11:30 we pick up Ezra and head home for lunch.  Today's menu is sandwiches and fruit for the kiddos, and leftover black bean and chicken fajita filling for me.  I still do my fancy food journal calorie tracking.

"Mom - if I have to eat black beans in their natural state I will die.   They look just like rabbit poop.  I'd much rather eat this ham or salami that came directly from the body of a pig because it's not as gross."

Food journal for the real world.  I think I'm going to post this on Pinterest.  Super creative and pretty, right?

After lunch we read on the couch.  The little ones get story books and then the big kids get a chapter from whatever we are reading. Oh, and we play Beauty Shop. (Don'tcha wish your Mama was hot like me?)

Slippers fully on, basket of laundry needing to be folded, "It's Raining, It's Pouring" (which yes, I totally sang) and "I Get Wet". (Stahp; it's about science.)

Gettin' my hair did while we read Little Men.

One of my favorite activities in the whole day is next: Quiet Rest time.  Ezra takes a nap and the girlies all go to separate rooms and be quiet.  I don't care what they do, as long as it is quiet.*

*And doesn't burn down the house.  We had to add that rule last year when I caught Esther shoving baby wipes into the lampshade and blanketing the light bulb.  And by "caught" I mean I walked into her room because I smelled smoke.

During Quiet rest I play on the computer and take a nap.  I also eat a banana.

After QR we have a science lesson on the shape of water. (*Spoiler Alert* water has no concrete shape.)(Unless it's ice.)(Which is tomorrow's lesson.)

This is right before our kitchen table looked like a Crayola factory threw up all over it.  Apparently "Make a chart and color different examples of the three forms of water" necessitates every coloring implement in the house.

Then we watch a super educational video on water than no one pays any attention to because I let them work on their graphic novels at the same time.  Ezra wakes up from his nap and we follow a super educational water video with a super educational Disney Cars video while I make dinner.

The chicken is amazing.  WW recipe here.  Those two chicken breasts (I cut them in pieces) fed the six of us.  Peas are a big hit in my house because you can launch them across the table at your sister.  The mashed sweet potato is a "no thank you" helping side dish, meaning you have to eat enough to convince me you tried it. Because I'm the Mom, that's why.

I say goodbye to the fam and hit the gym, leaving them to clean up dinner. (Genius timing, Kel.)  On the schedule is Ab Lab, arms/chest/back,  and a 2.5 mile run.  All the treadmills are in use so I hoof it around the track ... 40 times.  (Yes, you read that.  Four, zero.)  I can't bring myself to take a selfie at the gym (where I am desperately trying to fit in with the dudes in the free weight section) but don't worry, I totally reenacted Ab Lab for you once I got home.

This is just like Ab Lab but picture me all
red-faced and looking miserable.

Get outie here!

(When you lie down to take Ab Lab pictures, your two year old will probably jump on your stomach while you grunt in surprise and pain. Then you will flip the camera around and be all, "Dude, show me your abs!" and he will do this.)

I take a shower, fold laundry as I watch Biggest Loser, and do this to my hair:

"Um, wow, Kel.  That's ... um, why?"

Because on Tuesday morning I will do this:

And one final selfie, the Outfit of the Day (taken from above because I couldn't get my flash to turn off without the picture being super dark).

Trying to show off my bling.  I'm wearing skinny jeans tucked into some brown boots.   I'm also thinking about going into fashion writing.