what a day!

Today was fantastic!!

Took myself a little girl time. . .pedi and lunch with Rachel, then a massage (present from Chad).  So relaxing.  And I'm so ready for bed!!

I've been home a week.  And maybe have seen the inside of my house a total of 24 awake hours, ok - maybe that's a slight exaggeration, but not far off.  I certainly have not kept up with my schedule. . .but really, I have been keeping my head above water, at least not endless piles of laundry, my kitchen has stayed clean, my floors are vacuumed, and my toilets are shiny.  I have yet to dust  maybe tomorrow, after the oil change.  Maybe.  I hate, hate, hate to dust.

Started off the week successful since Monday is a no clean, no laundry day - and I did go to the grocery and I didn't need to clip coupons since there weren't any!

Next week, I'm going to start working with Noah on potty training. . .any helpful hints?  Afraid we're gonna need any help we can get for this cute stubborn boy!

one.more.day

Tomorrow is my official last day full time.  And official last day of the year.  I've agreed to go back part time in January through April 15th.  But that's so far away, I can't even think about it!

Today, we drove up to Columbus to worship with the congregation there, meeting the in-laws there.  And Skyline (surprise, surprise!!) for lunch before we each headed for home.

I've got my schedule for Tuesday all ready.  Not one moment to sit!
7:15 - wake up
7:40 - take Madison to the bus
8:00 - grocery
9:00 - home to unload groceries
        - load of laundry (maybe 2 since I've been behind in the laundry area)
10:40 - library for story time
12:00 - lunch
12:45 - nap for Noah
          - fold laundry/cleaning for Mom
   (ok, this may be the sit time. . .depending on how long Noah sleeps)
3:00 - get Madison from school
3:30 - take Noah for a hair cut
4:30 - homework for Madison
        - start dinner for Mom/pack lunches for Wednesday
6:30 - Chad home. . .

Shoo. . .looks like a lot on paper!

Since I'm working tomorrow, I did most of my meal planning and grocery listing last night and this afternoon.  So that's all done.

Here's what I came up with for dinner for the week. . .
Monday:  Ground Turkey Tacos
Tuesday: Chicken with Creamy Dijon Herb Sauce with peachy green beans
Wednesday: Tasty Turkey Thai (I'll use chicken instead, since I have it)
Thursday: Lasagna with corn
Friday: Pierogies
Saturday: Family Night: Homemade Pizza and a Movie

Looking forward to a great great week!

Only 1 more Monday

Today was the start of my last full week.  Only one more Monday to go.  Was a bittersweet day though, I took two of my co-workers to meet clients they are going to take over in my absence.  I emailed another client that I was leaving.  And me and the partner tell the last of my "during the year" clients tomorrow.  So far, I've gotten the same reaction from everyone. . ."We sure are happy for you, but we sure are going to miss you".  True or fluff, it makes me feel good.  Like I've made a difference, in the accounting and financial records anyway.  Telling my clients has been the hardest part of all this.

Last Thursday at Family Night, Madison's teacher told me that Madison comes into school every morning and tells her how excited she is that I'm staying home, and how much longer I have to work.  If ever I had a doubt about making the right decision, it was gone in that moment.

It was a successful weekend, I put together a tentative weekly schedule.  Tonight, I'm going to work on a time blocked daily schedule.  We're going to hit the ground running!!  I'm afraid that the first week is going to cramp our style though. . .I still have work on Monday, field trip Wednesday, and the Madison is off school Friday.  So, Tuesday, I've got to do all the things that I've been putting on the back burner. . .Noah a hair cut, much needed oil change, a trip to the grocery store.

I did find a mom group.  It's apparently very selective, and it may be totally out of my league.  But I'm going to try it out.  First meet-up is next Friday, a park stroller walk and play-date after.  Should be interesting if nothing else!  If all else fails, we will be hitting up the library once a week for story time.  We shall see.

1 more week. . .

This afternoon after work, I realized that I only have 8 days until my last day of work. Eight days, seven working days. Things are starting to calm down a little as we near the end of tax season, and I am starting to feel the excitement of the unknown of staying home full time.

I started mentally looking around and thinking about what needs to be done, a schedule to keep the house clean and laundry in drawers.  Do I work on laundry everyday?  Do I have a marathon laundry day?  Do I clean the main floor one day, and the upstairs another?  Or do I group it by chore, and focus on one or two chores a day?  I'm just not sure what's going to best work for me.  I think to start anyway, I'm going to try the a-little-each-day approach to the laundry and housework.  In theory, if we miss a day a home because of a planned (out of ordinary) outing, then I can (again theoretically) add a little to the other days of the week and still not feel behind.  Adding in small projects each week, to spruce the house up a bit.

The only thing I do know for sure, Monday's.  No laundry.  No cleaning.  You see, it's Chad's day off - so it's my day to do my coupon clipping, meal planning, grocery listing, and grocery shopping.

What works best for you?  Why?

What tips can you give me, as I start this adventure?