It's the end of my second week back to work and I'm doing my best to employ little tactics to keep a grip on all my duties. I'm keeping up with work. That's not the challenge right now. Instead, there are vaious house chores, meals, etc. that have me concerned.
One thing that has been very helpful is meal planning. In part to keep our grocery/eating out bill down, as well as eat healthier, we've been building a list of meals for a week on the weekend. This has helped with grocery shopping, and making preparing it easier. We've also been using the crockpot about once a week to ease the prep time. I also have to say I'm a fan of the meal planner that Betty Crocker sent me. It has a tear off grocery list attached, which we can keep a running list of needs and also make note of what we need for the recipes we right on that week's planner.
Another little "trick" we've been using is the 10 minute pick-up. Around 9 p.m. each night, after the boys are in bed and out, we've been setting a timer for 10 minutes to pick up. It has been making a big difference in keeping things in order. I'm so appreciative that John has been willing to do this with me. Then, I've been doing my daily cleaning at lunch, making the evenings a bit calmer.
In general, we are settling in to life with 2 kids. Last weekend, we had a wonderful time visiting with friends in Champaign. I think we all enjoyed it and we were relieved that the boys traveled so well. The time in the car also brought the opportunity for reflection and discussion about our life path. I admit that I was a bit taken aback that some of my own feelings surprised me. They surprised me so much, in fact, that they confused me a bit. It is certainly time for more self-reflection of my goals and vision for our family, personal and professional futures.
Oh, one last thing. John and I are staying true to our commitment to date night once a month. This month's date was an adult outing to an Illinois basketball game in Iowa City. We had outstanding seats, compliments of one of John's board members, in the first row. It's nice to be able to focus on enjoying the evening with each other without distraction from our kiddos.
