Our schedule

Many of you know I was hoping to start a new schedule this year. Unfortunately, our new childcare plans fell through, so our schedule will stay the same. The kids will continue to go to their school uptown, which is a good 30-40 minutes from our home. It is only 5 minutes from mine and David's offices, which is convenient, but it's tough on Mondays when I don't go to the office.

I'll admit, I was bummed at first. Really I was frustrated and angry. And then it dawned on me...there was really no reason for me to be upset about this. Many women have a worse schedule than I do and less supportive helpmates and family. So...seeing that my schedule isn't going to change, I've decided to change my attitude. This season is only as hard as you make it, right? I mean, I have a supportive husband who is willing to take the kids to school three days a week so that I can get my hours in at work. That means he gets up and gets the kids completely ready all by himself. And I have a mom and MIL who alternate keeping my kids one day a week while I work. Plus, I have some loyal babysitters I can count on, if needed.

Here is our current schedule:

Mondays
I wake up at 6:45am to give myself time to get ready before I have to wake AJ at 8. Xander's usually up around 7 or so, but he's pretty self-sufficient and doesn't need much before breakfast.
I get AJ up at 8 and make sure both kids are fed and dressed.
We leave the house at 8:45 to drop X off at school by 9:30.
AJ and I run errands/hang out/have adventures until 1:15 when we pick up X.
AJ sleeps generally from 2-5 while X and I play/do housework.
5-6:30pm is our witching hour. I try to let the kids play for a bit if they will while I get supper together. More often than not they end up watching a couple of episodes of Jake. I'm going to try to start incorporating some fun, active games at this time...it seems to help them to stay active until dinner. With the cold weather I can't send them outside to play like I can when it's warmer.
David gets home around 6:30 and we eat supper.
The kids get baths, stories, pajamas on and are in bed around 7:30-8.

Tuesdays/Wednesdays
I wake up at 5:15am to leave the house by 6:45.
I get to work at 7:30 and work until 12:30.
David gets the kids up and ready for school to drop them off at 9:30, which means he gets to work at 10.
I pick the kids up at 1:15 and get them home so AJ can go down for nap by 2.
X and I play/clean while AJ sleeps.
5-6:30pm we go through our typical needy/clingy/whiny time. I feed the kids earlier on these days and try to have them bathed and ready for bed by 7. Then I either put them to bed myself or David gets in and helps with the last few stories.
David gets home between 7:30 and 8.
(Wednesdays we have our small group, so the babysitter comes at 6:30 and I meet David for group at that location. The babysitter does baths and bedtime.)

Thursdays
I wake up at 5:15am to leave the house by 6:45.
I get to work at 7:30am and work until 6pm. A long, 10-hour work day on Thursdays.
David gets the kids up and ready for school to drop them off at 9:30, which means he gets to work at 10. Our moms alternate weeks of picking the kids up from school and keeping them at the house.
I get home around 6:45. The kids have eaten, and last week my mom had them in their pj's so they were mostly ready for bed. That was a HUGE help.
I'm usually exhausted on Thursday nights, plus the kids haven't seen me all day so they're pretty needy. Those are the hardest times for me.
I put them down around 7:30 or 8, about the time David's getting home.

Fridays
Free days!
David works from 9-6 and the kids and I are at home.
I try to schedule something fun - I start MOPS tomorrow which means twice a month I'll be attending a meeting or social activity with other moms while my kids get to play with the kids there.
Some days we have pajama days and never get out of the house. Other days we go to the park or rec center and play. Some days we visit Daddy at work and take him lunch. Other days we go to the library or visit with friends.
I usually have laundry to catch up on and always some kind of housework that needs to be done, but I do try to spend some fun time with the kids.

So, that's it! I mean, really, it could be worse. I just need to remember to see the positive side of things.