Our Day

What a day!

I got up at 4:55 AM, and I have been going full force ever since!  That is the key for me--getting up early.  I began Phase 2 of Insanity today, and the workout was 1 hour, 24 minutes.  I haven't exercised that long since the marathon on December 3.  Believe it or not, I have not been dragging all day.  (Lots of coffee).  Leah and Sam both have alarm clocks now, and I set them last night for 7:30 AM.  They both got up, and we were ready to begin school at 8:15.  I was able to get all schoolwork done with all five children today!  Yay!  I pulled out the school day schedule I made last August, set my phone timer for every segment, and pushed through all day.  We even had a one hour home ec class, and my girls got a lot of work done on the skirts they are making for themselves.  I trimmed a pattern for a cute outfit I plan to make Leah for the spring while they were sewing.

I also did my housekeeping chore for Monday (clean the boys' bathroom), supervised and helped Leah and Sam do their Monday chore (dust their rooms), completed three loads of laundry (folded and put away too), and cooked supper.  I really, really think what made my day so much more successful than last week was a few things:

1.   I got up early.
2.  I followed my schedule and changed activities when it was time--even if I wasn't through with what I was doing.  Like this morning I still lacked three chapters of my daily Bible reading when it was time for me to exercise--I will read those final chapters tonight.  When the timer buzzed for the 15 minutes snack break to be over, I stopped folding clothes and got back to school.  I only allowed 3o minutes for lunch.
3.  I was mentally ready for a hard day.
4.  We did not leave the house today.
5.  My children were glad to be back on a predictable schedule.
6.  I went to bed early (for me) last night--10:00.  This helped me to get up early.
7.  I spent absolutely zero time on the computer.  I just posted my workout from this morning on Daily Mile.


In other news, Clay has been diligently working on creating a knife out of a railroad tie.  It is really cool.  He has built himself a sort of forge--complete with handmade fire tools.  He has been working on metal working and blacksmithing for quite a while now.  He is still an early riser, and a hard worker.  He gets up, completes his chores, and then gets started on his schoolwork, usually while I am still exercising in the morning.  Then he uses his hard-earned free time to enjoy his various hobbies.  When he has the knife complete, I will take a picture of it.

I am hoping and praying for another productive day tomorrow.....and I am also praying that I will still be just as pleased at the end of tomorrow if the day does not go how I plan.  I have to remind myself that how I deal with interruptions to my schedule affects my whole family.  Following a schedule is nice, but dealing with life's little problems with patience and a smile is even nicer.