Monday 17 August 2015

#Microblog Mondays: The Winds of Change



I have most of a "day in the life" post written from last week. I wanted to capture a bit of our lazy (by comparison) summer life before it was time to go back to work (next week! Whaaaaaat!) and so many things change. I'll try to post that entry this week.

Meanwhile it's already feeling out of date. Sigh. AJ and I are trying out a new routine today. It wasn't entirely my idea. Oh, I knew we have to make some changes, but I probably would have put it off until tomorrow, or some other day. But at 6:00am AJ decided that she wasn't going back to sleep, and no boob or bouncy ball chair was going to change her mind. It occurred to my befuddled mind that hey, we're going to have to learn to start our day at 6:00am anyway, so why not begin now. So we got up and made some breakfast with whatever food is left in the house after a week away (not much). AJ of course turned out to be not interested in anything except being cuddled by mom and walked around the house, which is a perfectly logical thing to want at 6am, although not perhaps entirely amenable to our new schedule.

Stuff I've already learned: I need to find some way to have breakfast ready for us in the morning, with minimal (very minimal) preparation.  The majority of my "get ready" time is taken up with food preparation, and even a simple breakfast seems to have too many steps involved. But not eating breakfast is a recipe for disaster. I've been making freezer breakfasts for Mr. Turtle to take to work (that was his birthday present) but I'm not sure I'm into that. I think I would like to try slow cooker breakfast. I love the idea of something cooking all night and being ready and tasty in the morning.

I actually haven't been too sad or worried in the past couple of months about going back to work. There's a few reasons for this, I think. One, since I'm changing jobs I have a vaguer idea of how my first few weeks will look. Probably it will be quite similar to what it has been in the past (I hope so, actually) but still I can't imagine everything as concretely, which makes it all a little less real. Right now I just know I have an empty classroom with whatever stuff my new colleague saw fit to order for me or put in my room (everything she didn't want anymore, presumably). This week I will take a few hours to sort through it and make a list of a few other things I need to pick up. I will not be starting the year with a perfectly decorated classroom, but I'm OK with that. I'm not a classroom decorator anyway; I personally never put anything up that isn't student work or an educational tool. My old room had bulletin board borders and motivational posters and a paint job because the educational assistants at the time liked to do that sort of thing. (I find motivational posters annoying.) Also, I know very little so far about my new students, but apparently one of them likes to rip things off the wall when he gets angry at the world. So, minimal prettyfication. But still, there are little things that make the day go easier that it's good to have ready in advance: stuff like cleaning supplies, fidgety toys (for teacher as well as students) and easy activities such as playing cards, small jigsaw puzzles, etc.

I am also So. Freaking. Relieved. that AJ has a daycare spot for September. We didn't know if she would until the beginning of August. I am not looking forward to being away from her but I was so worried that our childcare plans would fall through, which would have just made everything more stressful and hassled. We went on the wait list for one daycare centre in January. It seems to be common practice now to go on a wait list when you are pregnant, but that was not where my mind was during pregnancy.  Some people even go on the wait list before they conceive. Of course if we had done that (four years ago) we would have been top of the list for sure (insert eye roll and sarcastic laugh here). We really liked this daycare, and although we meant to research a Plan B it somehow never happened. But we got lucky and despite not being the best planners ever, AJ has a spot.  My relief about this has made me feel better about the whole transition. What does feel weird is that the daycare reminds me so much of a school. How can I be sending my baby off to school already?! But I'm hoping that she will (mostly) enjoy the stimulating environment and being around other babies. AJ hasn't spent much time around other babies but she loves it when she does.

Well, so far I have managed to keep AJ awake for almost 3 hours, and put her down for a nap without breastfeeding her. Score. (She still gets bouncy ball chair and sleep sheep. Bouncy ball chair is the closest thing I have to a workout. Snort laugh.) As I work through my day I'm creating a parallel "ideal" schedule, not that I expect us to be on it right away, but I'll need something to give to Mr. Turtle next week when he starts parental leave, and to the daycare centre. Another way I'm coping with the transition is by focusing on minutiae. I have two sides to my personality; one is intuitive, spontaneous, dreamy (the abstract side of the abstract-concrete binary). The other side is the opposite: I organize, schedule, plan, and contingency-plan almost obsessively. I can stress myself out doing this but sometimes it's kind of soothing. Focusing on details allows me to sidestep my anxiety and sometimes over-active imagination and feel some personal control.

On with my day now! I'm caught up with my comment replies (see previous entries) and will try to find some time to read everyone else's updates. Because that's part of my routine too and I don't want everything to change!

More at Microblog Mondays

18 comments:

  1. Slow cooker breakfast sounds awesome!! I may have to look up some recipes! I am finding food preparation nearly impossible, without help from the husband, since some little bubby pretty much latches on at 6pm every night and goes until 11:30. Hoping that is a phase.

    I don't think people should be allowed to get on a waiting list for daycare before the baby is born. It just seems so wrong to me!! And before conception!!!

    Best of luck with the new schedule and going back to work! I am sure AJ will love getting to hang around other babies!

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    1. Here's a recipe I plan to start with: http://www.chow.com/recipes/30656-slow-cooker-steel-cut-oatmeal
      I'm sure there's lots more out there!
      Mr. Turtle has been helping extensively with food, even though I haven't been working. I feel a bit guilty about not being the perfect stay at home wife sometimes but I find cooking one of the trickier things to do with a baby. It takes a lot of coordination lol.

      There is so much competition for daycare spots and other kids activities here. I can't even get my head around it. I can't get my head around wait lists for babies not yet born either. I felt like it was a stretch to discuss the birth plan with my doctor at 3 months along, never mind going to a daycare. But that's the reality! we're just lucky we have somewhere and can afford it.

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  2. It's hard to be in that place to know that your schedule is going to change but not really know how everything is going to shake out. I hope it's a smooth transition.

    I've heard a lot of things about refrigerator oats (http://www.buzzfeed.com/samimain/overnight-oats-recipes-to-restore-your-faith-in-breakfast). I kind of want to try it.

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    1. thanks, I will check that out!
      It's always a bit difficult to transition to a busier schedule. I do like my lazy time. Oh well if I have less of it I'll appreciate it more!

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  3. I saw a recipe for slow-cooker French toast that sounded SO GOOD. That would definitely be nice to wake up to! I used to do froze breakfast burritos or sandwiches. Thaw overnight, pop them in the panini press while I get ready. (I hate the microwave.) Delicious!

    So glad childcare is settled. That's a relief! I hope your new position turns out to be an improvement.

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    1. Ooooh, so many possibilities for the slow cooker! I am looking forward to trying a few. I make breakfast burrittos and sandwiches for Mr. Turtle and he likes them, but I think that might be a bit to rich for me. Yes, the childcare piece is huge and it it such a relief to have a spot at a place that we liked.

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    2. I can't do sweet breakfasts first thing in the morning (though later, like on weekends, I looooove pancakes and French toast) but eggs and veggie bacon on an English muffin is just right, usually. I used to know someone who ate a nacho lunchable, complete with orange fake cheese, for breakfast every morning. And no, not when I was a kid--we worked together!

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    3. lol. Ew, lunchables for breakfast! Yeah, I'm not fond of sweet breakfasts early in the morning either. But don't like anything too rich or savoury either - what a princess I am LOL! I have the most luck with small portions of many different things.

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  4. Transitioning back to work is hard. New schedule, new routine for all involved. It's good you're starting early. I sincerely hope you find something that works for you (the slow-cooker breakfast is a great idea).

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    1. Sort of early! haha. I haven't been in a rush to transition. But I can't help thinking about it and it actually feels good to take concrete steps. Breakfast and a relaxed (as possible) morning routine makes such a huge difference in my day. I hate feeling hassled in the morning. I hope I can teach AJ happy morning routines so she grows up with morning zen LOL.

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  5. Good Luck with everything, and hoping the transition is fuss-free. Daycare challenges are so unbelievable!

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    1. Yeah, I'm crossing my fingers that it is the best (possible) experience. I really do like the centre we chose, but it's all new. We'll do our best and try to remember that life is ultimately unpredictable.

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  6. I'm in the same back-to-work mode - freezer meals, nesting, getting all life in order. I hope September hums along like a well-oiled machine!

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    1. I like well-oiled machines! Prior to baby I'd gotten quite good at managing the September crazies, including when I was 8 months pregnant. I was worried that would be challenging! now is much more so (but also much more awesome). Freezer meals are great! I want to do more of those, too.

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  7. Oh... I had an early day at school yesterday and it was a huge wake-up call to how unprepared I am for September. No real breakfast, rushed, crazy hair. :) I'm with you on classroom decorations being functional. Also, it's so hot and humid now that any posters you put up on a wall would likely be fallen down by the first day, anyway. Better to wait! I'm excited for my new science posters and stuff for my goal-setting wall. Periodic table poster? CHRISTMAS! :) You sound really zen about going back and getting ready. That's wonderful! So glad you got a daycare spot. I keep hearing scary stories about that, and ironically I just put us on a list ourselves. :) We tour next week. Good luck prepping for September, and let me know how those slow cooker breakfasts turn out! Is it like those overnight oats I keep seeing?

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    1. Ha, yes, the posters that fall off the wall - so annoying. My experience with my students is that unless a wall display is changing, and/or they have some input into it, they don't even notice it, at least not after they are accustomed. At my last job I had a whiteboard where I wrote people's daily jobs, and our schedule, and a weather display that the assigned team had to prepare every day. So they always noticed those. But the other things on the wall? I have no reason to believe they cared at all. Of course it looked nice, and that's not a bad thing (makes a good impression on parents, too). I'm going to focus on functional, however (that's enough work, I'm sure). It took years to get my last room "optimized" and now we'll be starting over. I'm trying to get slowly back into work mode by not letting myself sleep in, putting on real clothes every day, not procrastinating tasks :-) I'm sure you'll get into "September mode". As for the rest, I'm sure you will be the most prepared parent ever. :-)

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  8. There is just so much organization involved in going back to work. Not just breakfast, but suppers too. You don't want to start supper when you get home from work, because then you'd be missing precious time with AJ! I try to be as organized as possible, but it's not easy for me.

    So glad to hear you got a daycare spot and that you are feeling good. Best of luck to all of you on this new transition.

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    1. So true. I struggle to have supper prepared even when I'm not working, lol. This weekend I want to look into getting a freezer for the basement so we have more room for pre-made meals as well as staples that can be frozen. Organization takes time and energy, especially up front (of course being disorganized also takes time and energy, so I tell myself it's better to aim to be organized!) I know there will be some flailing about.

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