I know, what family needs 3 pair of shoes in 1 week!? And 2 of them were mine.
That’s right. Woot.
Calista and I shopped together because she needed shoes for the 4th pair she’s needed this school year. We managed to find a pair of boots that will work for Sunday and for the probably 6′ of snow about to dump upon us. We were twins today while I tried some on.
And so what other way might a mommy break in a pair of black boots? Why, vacuuming, packing a lunchbox, doing laundry and playing Legos on a perfectly sunny summer… wait, I mean FALL day. And keeping them on while I blog, making for a great pic.
Don’t be jealous: I have pink carpet in my bedroom. Which is now COVERED WITH Legos.
I’ve been learning something this fall: I need to take care of myself.
Every parenting book on adoption has said 2 things, consistently, whether pagan, godly or agency-driven: take care of your marriage and yourself. As the main care giver with a spouse who frequently travels for multiple overnights away, I am learning to not feel guilty of having to take care of myself.
I have to sleep. Mostly I’m in bed at 9:00. With a book, or Mike Rowe on Dirty Jobs (it’s actually quite a clean show!), or a baseball game on my radio. Then I’m asleep around 10.
We wake up around 6 and if I can organize it, with 1 or 2 boys, I am at the Y around 8:50am. I work out hard. I get a shower alone. I get to shave my legs sometimes.
Then we go home and eat hard. Sometimes for over :30. Last week I texted a “true confessions” to my friend: “I’ve been eating nonstop for :37. That’s minutes.” Ten minutes later I had to tell her it was actually :47 before I was full.
Then sometimes while XS naps, I nap. Hard. Elam gets iPad time, a movie or sometimes naps too. Or else he and I play a game, read books or just hang out on the sunny deck.
Once Calista is home we play. Hard. Until dinner where we eat a lot of food again. Maybe bathtime.
Bedtime starts with Elam at 7, Calista at 8 and XS at 8:30.
Then repeat.
Sometimes I get to go to a noon class without any kids!
Sometimes I go grocery shopping ALONE!
Sometimes I stay up after Brian has drifted off and finish my Jane Austen or Noah Strattfield Dancing Shoes.
Sometimes I eat a brownie for breakfast.
Sometimes I buy a caffeinated iced tea for a treat.
Brian and I weekly have a date night now and I look forward to it every, single, week.
Sometimes we spend the whole day at the zoo, from 9-4, just because we can and they loved touching the sharks. My daughter Calista has a panic attack around dogs. But she couldn’t touch the sharks enough at the touch tank at the MN Zoo Friday.
It was brisk but we had a blast!
Sometimes I think we in the Church don’t talk about it enough. But taking care of what I eat, how much I exercise and sleep is a deeply important, impactful discipline. Much like the Bible study, prayer times, theological reading and conferences I once attended as a campus pastor.
What I do impacts others. So for now, taking care of myself, without being too self-focused, is an important part of following Jesus.
I’m so glad these feet are well taken care of while I walk with Him.