Starting this year, ah yes its the year end; I thought it would be good to reflect back on what life has given me, the kind of parent I have been and would like to be, the changes and challenges I have faced and could have handled better and so on and so forth.
My regular day:
Alarm rings at 5:20 AM. The first thing I do is to snooz for 10 minutes. Rings again and I push myself to wake up and turn on all the geysers of the house. While I dress myself up for the morning I am thinking the plan of action for the breakfast, lunch and all the boxes for the 3 boys in the house.
5:40 AM, I am in the kitchen, opening the fridge, taking my vegetables, etc to be cooked. There I am churning up dishes to be filled in to the lunch box, warming a glass of warm water for me to drink, reminding myself to do deep ujjaiyi pranayam, so it will give me more energy and calmness to deal with the morning school rush...
With the 4 burners with dishes all getting cooked, I heat more warm water for the kids as it is 6:15 AM and I need to wake them up. Rush to their room, yet calmly, call out in whispering voice.. wake up, its morning time, school time; turn on their lights and draw their curtains out.
They jiggle and say mummy "60 more seconds". In my mind, ok and rush to the kitchen to get their breakfast on to the table, pack their boxes and rush back to their room in 120 seconds.
They wake up knowing each day I give them more time than they ask for. Send them to do their morning duties while I get back to the kitchen to do the finishing touches to their school boxes.
Did you ask me how many boxes I pack?
1. Morning Breakfast Break Box
2. Lunch Box
3. Evening Return from School Bus Snack Box
And that's for two boys (my children), my third boy (dear husband), his box is half ready. It will get packed completely just before he leaves for work.
Once done, I get to their rooms again as they are ready after bath to help with uniforms and then we all finally sit on the table to eat breakfast. It is 7:00 AM and time for breakfast. I like to chat with them and watch their sweet calm faced munching the breakfast away.
They have learnt to eat really quickly this year and understand the importance of eating their breakfast. I know now they will never ever skip this meal in their lifetime.
Training 1:No matter what time we wake up, a glass of warm water, toilet and bath.
Training 2: Breakfast is important and cannot to skipped
Mornings are never a rush for my children, I gave myself enough time to finish my work and help them with theirs as well. I feel really happy when I send my children calm and happy to school. I feel I have achieved.
7:13 AM, we are out of home to the bus stop to wait for the bus that comes in at 7:20 AM. We relax a bit in the bus stop watching other kids. They meet their friends with a smile and begin playing hand cricket.
I board them in the bus, and really make an effort for them to take a look at me to say BYE :).
My mind is running, I have to finish my runs/ walks and yoga and get the breakfast and hubby's boxes ready. So i time and pushing myself to be on schedule.
Oh yea, I love this schedule of mine, because, all of us are calm and things get on time as per everyone's wishes and schedules and I get to fit in my fitness regime in as well. I cant do without yoga. Sometimes my time is so limited that I have to decide either run/walk or yoga. If yoga then I fit in 2 asanas and pranayam.
But no matter what I try to put in one asana - the most rejuvenating Sirsanana and Nadi sodhi pranayam.
My morning rush is done, have got my exercise and I am back in the kitchen, getting tea, breakfast and lunch ready for husband and me. Set the breakfast up at table and this is the time I love the most. The breakfast time. Sit relaxed with all work done, a cup of coffee and both of us with our news papers or news on ipad, chat about news, work and pending work, plan for day...
My day begins, with my computer, checking mails, replying to recipe comments, social networking, writing recipes, making videos, taking photographs, video editing and more.. I seem to have very less time all the time, I do a working lunch as I need to prepare dinner, evening, milk shake, evening snack all before kids get back from school at 3:45 PM.
At 3:45 I shutdown my computer and I am done for the day until 9:00 PM at night. When they are around, I try my best to keep myself away from my smart phone, gadjets etc.
Tennis, studies, play ground time/rest, reading, dinner, piano, guitar practice get done during the course of the weekday after school schedules. Some get skipped, some get done, but no pressures.
In my mind, my children need an extra break, how best can I let them have it. Rambling thoughts, do this today, then that tomorrow and that no day and let go.
By 9:00 PM they are dead tired and drop dead handsomes into their beds. With our daily prayers, kiss them good night and back into my computer again replying to pending mails and doing what I am doing just now.
Turn off in about half hour and catch some TV to shut off my mind. Relax and back to routine in the morning again.
So that's my daily routine.
My regular day:
Alarm rings at 5:20 AM. The first thing I do is to snooz for 10 minutes. Rings again and I push myself to wake up and turn on all the geysers of the house. While I dress myself up for the morning I am thinking the plan of action for the breakfast, lunch and all the boxes for the 3 boys in the house.
5:40 AM, I am in the kitchen, opening the fridge, taking my vegetables, etc to be cooked. There I am churning up dishes to be filled in to the lunch box, warming a glass of warm water for me to drink, reminding myself to do deep ujjaiyi pranayam, so it will give me more energy and calmness to deal with the morning school rush...
With the 4 burners with dishes all getting cooked, I heat more warm water for the kids as it is 6:15 AM and I need to wake them up. Rush to their room, yet calmly, call out in whispering voice.. wake up, its morning time, school time; turn on their lights and draw their curtains out.
They jiggle and say mummy "60 more seconds". In my mind, ok and rush to the kitchen to get their breakfast on to the table, pack their boxes and rush back to their room in 120 seconds.
They wake up knowing each day I give them more time than they ask for. Send them to do their morning duties while I get back to the kitchen to do the finishing touches to their school boxes.
Did you ask me how many boxes I pack?
1. Morning Breakfast Break Box
2. Lunch Box
3. Evening Return from School Bus Snack Box
And that's for two boys (my children), my third boy (dear husband), his box is half ready. It will get packed completely just before he leaves for work.
Once done, I get to their rooms again as they are ready after bath to help with uniforms and then we all finally sit on the table to eat breakfast. It is 7:00 AM and time for breakfast. I like to chat with them and watch their sweet calm faced munching the breakfast away.
They have learnt to eat really quickly this year and understand the importance of eating their breakfast. I know now they will never ever skip this meal in their lifetime.
Training 1:No matter what time we wake up, a glass of warm water, toilet and bath.
Training 2: Breakfast is important and cannot to skipped
Mornings are never a rush for my children, I gave myself enough time to finish my work and help them with theirs as well. I feel really happy when I send my children calm and happy to school. I feel I have achieved.
7:13 AM, we are out of home to the bus stop to wait for the bus that comes in at 7:20 AM. We relax a bit in the bus stop watching other kids. They meet their friends with a smile and begin playing hand cricket.
I board them in the bus, and really make an effort for them to take a look at me to say BYE :).
My mind is running, I have to finish my runs/ walks and yoga and get the breakfast and hubby's boxes ready. So i time and pushing myself to be on schedule.
Oh yea, I love this schedule of mine, because, all of us are calm and things get on time as per everyone's wishes and schedules and I get to fit in my fitness regime in as well. I cant do without yoga. Sometimes my time is so limited that I have to decide either run/walk or yoga. If yoga then I fit in 2 asanas and pranayam.
But no matter what I try to put in one asana - the most rejuvenating Sirsanana and Nadi sodhi pranayam.
My morning rush is done, have got my exercise and I am back in the kitchen, getting tea, breakfast and lunch ready for husband and me. Set the breakfast up at table and this is the time I love the most. The breakfast time. Sit relaxed with all work done, a cup of coffee and both of us with our news papers or news on ipad, chat about news, work and pending work, plan for day...
My day begins, with my computer, checking mails, replying to recipe comments, social networking, writing recipes, making videos, taking photographs, video editing and more.. I seem to have very less time all the time, I do a working lunch as I need to prepare dinner, evening, milk shake, evening snack all before kids get back from school at 3:45 PM.
At 3:45 I shutdown my computer and I am done for the day until 9:00 PM at night. When they are around, I try my best to keep myself away from my smart phone, gadjets etc.
Tennis, studies, play ground time/rest, reading, dinner, piano, guitar practice get done during the course of the weekday after school schedules. Some get skipped, some get done, but no pressures.
In my mind, my children need an extra break, how best can I let them have it. Rambling thoughts, do this today, then that tomorrow and that no day and let go.
By 9:00 PM they are dead tired and drop dead handsomes into their beds. With our daily prayers, kiss them good night and back into my computer again replying to pending mails and doing what I am doing just now.
Turn off in about half hour and catch some TV to shut off my mind. Relax and back to routine in the morning again.
So that's my daily routine.
10 comments:
Though I knew a lot of this, it was brilliant to read about your day Archana :).
Biggest takeaways
- As soon as I started reading, I ran to put on the geysers ;). Our solar doesn't function as well at this time of the year.
- That gadget free time, I have been thinking about it a lot. Really want to enforce it here too, so this was a good push for me :).
Looking forward to that book release!
And hey, I'm missing your lunchbox posts, are you still doing those?
A lot to learn from you, Arch, on pure discipline. Great going, girl, looking forward to more inspiring posts!
You are so very disciplined. As much as I aim to get there it just never works out for me. Hats off!
Like Aparna says I knew some of this and girl you rock!! I think we need to go on a holiday together and you need to do some serious Knowledge Transfer sessions on the patience, planning, discipline and the super woman organizing abilities you have :)) I am so looking forward to reading and knowing more. Keep writing!!
O how much i loved this post. My mornings or rather any other time of the day is never calm. I am gulty and shameful of that :( I am always stressed. I get stressed at the drop of a needle. My daughter always gets to leave home in a rush and after some crying post scolding from mumma to be quick. (Oh i am dying of guilt now) Let me go back and try to fix it slowly. Thanks. Your post must be kept as a reminder to be referred to every now and then.
phew just reading it made me tired ;)
I probably do all this too but writing it down makes it so much more concrete :D kudos on the discipline
Simran,
I am afraid if all of us take her to a holiday we will spoil her too instead of learning ourselves ;)
Thanks everyone. Let me tell you, If I am not like this then I am mad.. so to avoid being MAD i have to do what I do. Simi,.. a vacation with just martinis and margarita's is what we need. Will miss thailand, next time soon.
Life Begins - please dont feel guilty, we moms are always guilty, and i am trying to change the way the children think of me " Hurrying mom " hmm....
You missed mentioning your sleeping time, and after that I would have been completely depressed! :)
Somehow the post reinstated that all shall be fine when I reach there. What I loved the most was that you always take out time for things to do for yourself. Kudos
Post a Comment