A Cleaner

I'm seriously considering hiring a cleaner to clean my house twice a month.  Although I'm on leave, I do not have time* (and frankly I also do not have the desire or inclination) to dust or to mop or to give the shower/bathtub a thorough scrubbing.  Archer is in the midst of several home improvement projects (in fact, he is in the midst of redoing our downstairs bathroom as I type; he's currently laying tile, and soon he will install a new sink/vanity and a new toilet) which are creating more dust and dirt than is normal for our house.  Additionally, he is currently under a fair amount of pressure because his tenure review process begins next fall, so he isn't helping out with cleaning and picking up as much as he normally does. I've recently redone our budget, and I can afford to hire someone if said person is willing to clean my relatively small house for a reasonable sum.  But I haven't called either the company or the individual that have been recommended to me.  Why?  I feel guilty even thinking about hiring a cleaner, like it is a frivolous expense or that I'm less of a wife/mother if I hire someone to do things that I should be doing.  I also feel like I will be judged by my family.  While I wrestle with this guilt, my house isn't getting any cleaner.

*To clarify, obviously I do have the time--I could easily clean while George naps and while Bear and Wild Man play; however, I need to either nap or try to work a bit, and on the weekends, I'd rather hang with my children than scrub my kitchen floor. Frankly, I multi-task enough as it is.

A question for my readers

Have you ever hidden a family member's posts on Facebook?  If so, why?

Things I want to blog about

My writing time currently comes in snatches--15 minutes here, 20 minutes there.  I often have to accomplish other things during those snatches, like starting dinner or folding laundry, so blogging has taken a back seat to other writing when I can privilege writing over other more mundane, but equally essential tasks.  I have a list of things I want to blog about, but I don't necessarily have the time.  That list includes

• the middle child
• the politics of the bus stop
• bossy girls and passive boys
• my control issues
• clutter
• Christmas
• me-time

At some point in the future (I'm not going to say near because it could be months before I get to any of these posts), I will write these posts, but for now they will continue to ruminate.

Clothes

So shopping is never something I particularly enjoy.  I'm petite and I have what I consider a fairly classic style; I am a mom who likes to look nice but also wants to be comfortable without spending a fortune.  Unfortunately, I live in a town in which I am not a part of the target market.  I'm not a university aged female with her parents' credit card in my back pocket.  I also don't have much time or energy to go shopping, so how do I solve my current dilemma?  You know the dilemma?  I'm 8-weeks postpartum and not quite fitting into my pre-pregnancy clothes, but I'm also tired of wearing maternity clothes, which are a bit too big.  Well, I go online.  Today, I'm ordering this, this, and probably this.  I may also order this and this. I'm also ordering some yoga pants (the staple of stay-at-home-moms everywhere) and new jeans.  I'm hoping all of this will hold me over till I can either make a trip to an outlet mall or lose the last 8 pounds of baby-weight.

And yes, I fully recognize this is, perhaps, one of the most boring posts I've ever written.

Trying

I'm trying to write.  It's not going so well.  That's about all I have to say about that.  Now you see why it isn't going well.

Stay-at-home Mom

Starting today, that is officially what I'll be until late-May.  My leave officially starts on Saturday, but Archer starts teaching today.  He'll be working from home a bit, but most days I'll be on my own with George.  Archer will be here in the mornings, of course, but M-W he'll leave by 8:30 to go to campus, dropping Bear off at daycare on the way.  He'll be here a bit longer Thursday mornings, but when he does leave, I'll be on my own with George and Bear till 3:15, when I'll load them up into my nifty jogging stroller to pick Wild Man up at the bus stop.  Archer won't get home till 5:30ish most Thursdays as he teaches a late afternoon class.  Fridays haven't been worked out.  He doesn't teach, and he'll likely take the lead for a few hours every morning so I can try to get some writing done.  I do expect that he'll have to go to campus some weeks, though.

How is the first morning going?  Well, Archer took Wild Man to the bus stop.  When he got home, we loaded up George and Bear into the jogging stroller and took a long walk (we're both trying to get back into shape).  When we got home, he kept George occupied while Bear colored so I could take a quick shower.  Then I read stories to Bear while nursing George.  After Archer left, I talked Bear into using the potty (we're potty training, and while it's going well, he can hold it for a long time.  I have to bribe him to go on the potty).  As a reward for going, I'm letting him watch an episode of The Backyardigans, and George is napping.  I've done some routine stuff, like washed the dishes and answered emails.  I'm contemplating what to make for lunch, as it will likely be easier to make lunch while George is napping.  After that I embark on what could be the most difficult part of the day--trying to get Bear to take a nap.  Sometimes he naps, and sometimes he doesn't.  If he doesn't, the day will be much, much longer for all of us.  I'm hoping to get into some sort of a routine in a few weeks, but a lot of that depends on George.  I'm a little worried about keeping Bear occupied while nursing George as much as I do.  I expect I'll be nursing while playing cars and putting puzzles together a lot in the next few weeks.

Wild Man is in Grade 1!

Wild Man boarded the school bus this morning like an old pro.  Meanwhile I cried.  Bear did too, but he wanted to go with Wild Man to "ride the bus stop, Mama!" as he kept declaring.  After getting him on the bus, Archer and I loaded up Bear and George and drove over to Wild Man's school.  We wanted him to take the bus to get him used to it, but we also wanted to watch him go into school on his first day (parents weren't allowed in the building this morning).  I felt like a helicopter mom until we arrived at the school and saw a group of parents all waiting to see their first graders and kindergartner-ers getting off the bus.  A friend of Wild Man's got on the bus after he did, so they sat together and walked in together.  I felt better knowing he has a friend already.  Even if they don't end up in the same class they can play together at recess.  I was very proud of how well he handled it.  Now I can't wait to hear how his day went.