Wake up...It's time for school!

I used to stay home with my babies, but I would always get up at 5am with Jerrid and start my day just like I was going to work (or so I thought). I loved cleaning the house, preparing for the day, showering, all while sipping my coffee, and then the kids would wake up HAPPY one at a time. It was the life...and the good thing is that when I was a stay-at-home mom, I knew I had it good, and I can say that I enjoyed every minute of it. I would sometime cry on the way home from school at night, and then when I would get home I would tell Jerrid, that even though we were broke, I felt like these were the days that I would look back and long for one day. And I just never wanted to take them for granted.

Test...I think my favorite video from stay-at-home days will be below...new to this, so hope it works...

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But now I am a working mom, and before now, I didn't really know what it was like to get ready for work with 2 kids. I had worked with people who had kids, and they always show up dressed, hair fixed, shoes on, coffee in hand. But until I became a working mom myself, I had no idea what a triumph it is to show up to work dressed, hair fixed, shoes on and coffee in hand. So in case there are any mom out there who read this who have not experienced this triumph, or there are mom out there who could give me some pointer...I'll describe my working mom morning.

4:45am-burmp burmp burmp..."shut it off, shut it off!"

4:55am-burmp burmp burmp..."okay okay, I'm up...Jerrid get up!"

5:00am-walk downstairs (with the lights off preferably) turn on the coffee pot, put waffles in the toaster and set out the juice plus for everyone.

5:10am-Jerrid better be out of the shower, I am coming back up stairs and your shower time is up buddy.

5:25am-I better be half dressed and at least getting the hair fixed

5:40am-I better have the teeth brushed and make-up on. This is just about the time Jerrid wakes the kids up.

6:00am-I better have the rest of my clothes ironed and at least on (buttons are optional at this point on is the goal here) because Lana, Tristan, or both have realized there are awake, and at least one of them is not happy about it, so we may need some remember God gave us this day intervention.

6:10am-Somehow (most of the time, thanks to Jerrid) everyone is dressed and we all move downstairs, we make coffee and Jerrid leaves for work, and both of my sweet little babies realize they will soon be going to school, so someone is crying about that by now, but no time for crying, the waffles are ready and we need to focus on eating them and the juice plus I set out.

6:20am-Load the car in 2-3 trips, trip 1- kids (hope they have shoes on) and the remainder of their waffles, trip 2 -my oatmeal, lunch, coffee, and book bags, trip 3 - anything else I forgot (workout bag, check for daycare, Motrin, tissues, shoes...yes occasionally we leave without shoes, soooooo annoying)

6:30am-Quick prayer with the kids and leave the house

6:40am-get to daycare, get out of the car "Lana, why do you still have a waffle in your hand? Eat eat, come on, eat while we walk."

6:45am-hang up the book bags in the empty room, do the ritual secret hugs and kisses (somehow doing this in the empty room gives them better confidence to not cry in the room where all the kids are)

6:50am-walk to the drop-off room and hope and pray that no one crys...please don't cry please don't cry

6:55am-hope hope hope the lady at the front desk doesn't stop me on my way out, please lady, no time to talk, in a hurry here

7:00am-back in the car, leave for traffic, call Ashley and see if she has had any morning hiccups, try really really hard not to stop at Bo jangle's. Why does traffic always make me sit in front of Bo Jangle's and have a war with myself about whether I should eat the oatmeal I packed or have a yummy ham biscuit. WHY WHY WHY do I always have to sit in traffic in front of Bo Jangle's????

7:30am-(7:45 if Bo Jangle's wins)-arrive at work, make the oatmeal, turn the computer on, say hello to everyone and act like I am rested, ready to go, dressed, hair fixed, shoes on, and coffee in hand.

For a brief time, in Indianapolis, I worked and Jerrid stayed home, so I would get up get ready and go to work, while my house slept peacefully. I would drive to work and sing in the car while I sipped my coffee. That was awesome, I loved being a working mom when I had a stay-at-home dad. But once you throw in the 3 hour morning gauntlet, being a working mom just doesn't seem so appealing.

I know now, why I cried and said I would long for those days, wow do I miss them. But always looking for my glass to be half full, I have to say the brief time in the car with my kids in the morning, those few moments where we get to listen to the radio and all sing along...those are priceless moments that I hope they to will never forget. And I know someday I won't have them in the back seat cheering me on as I run the gauntlet, so I should not take for granted that they are a part of my chaotic mornings.