All this, AND my shoes are on the correct feet!

I recently bumped into an old acquaintance who said to me, "Sandi, you look great!  Your hair is brushed, your clothes are clean, and your shoes are on the correct feet.  How do you keep yourself smiling while raising 4 energetic daughters, taking care of your husband, and crazy dog. . .all while trying to launch a career as a children's author."

I answered her with a simple, "A moms gotta do, what a moms gotta do."

During my drive home from the store I began to rethink my answer.  I decided that I am a fantastic multi-tasker.

Here is a sample day:

5:45 am- begin hitting snooze bar on the alarm clock so that I can get up by 6:10

6:10 am- take out dog and begin to wake girls for school (while walking between bedrooms I collect dirty laundry and check phone just in case that 6 figure book deal came in while I was sleeping.

7:00 am- load girls into mom-mobile and drive to school.  At every red light I exercise by doing stomach squeezes to try and tighten that twin skin.  My twins may be 6 1/2 years old, and they say that skin won't go back into place without a little help from a plastic surgeon, but I am going to keep trying.

7:45-8:15 am-- drive to grocery store and call my parents (on hands-free speaker phone only) to check in for the day

8:15 am-- grocery shopping.  I try to pick out healthy foods that my picky daughters will eat.  At the same time, I work on rhyming words with the items on my list (eggs = begs, milk = silk, granola = flanola. . . ok, not always so successful here)

9:30 am-  take mom-mobile to dealership for oil change and tire rotation.  While waiting, I work on editing the manuscripts for the members of my critique groups.

11:45 am-  home, let the dog out, and hit the shower.  I exercise while blow drying my hair with butt kickers and calf raises.

1:00 pm- eat lunch and fold Mt. St. Laundry all while catching up on listening to Katie Davis podcasts.

2:00-3:00 pm-  work on my own writing, catch up on emails and reading blogs of my colleagues, all while taking care of the dog.  He gets his tummy scratches while sitting on my lap.  He is a great critique partner, because he likes EVERYTHING!

3:00 pm-  drive to school pick up and listen to news on the radio, once again while exercising.  Butt squeezes at the red lights.

3:20 pm-  arrive at school and park in the car line.  Here I continue to revise my own work.  In fact, I am sitting in the car line right now while working on the blog post.

4:00 pm-  arrive home with starving children and try to convince them that after school is time for a snack and not a meal.  At the same time I am trying to decide what to make for the next meal in just a few hours

4:30-6:30 pm- homework for 1st, 5th, and 7th grade (I sure hope that the 7th grader doesn't have math tonight).  5th grader is doing a lot of writing projects this year so I get the opportunity to work on my editing skills.

8:00 pm.  tuck 6 year olds into bed and read 3 picture books to each one.  While reading to the girls I study the books for the latest lesson that I am working on for Anastasia Suen's online Picture Book Intensive class that I am taking.

9:00 pm-  tuck in 10 and 12 year olds.  12 year old still likes it when I tell her a story.  She gives me a topic (usually mermaids or unicorns) and I create an impromptu adventure.

9:30 pm- watch recorded TV with hubby (bet you thought that I forgot about him)


At the end of the day there is still laundry to be done and groceries that I forgot on my list, but everyone is safe and sound and ready to repeat it all again the next day.


Thank you family for your patience with me, as I have now figured out that I am an inefficient and scattered multi-tasker, so that I can become the children's author that I someday hope to be.