Thursday Threesome
I seem to be addicted....

:regularlyscheduledmaintenence:

:Onesome: Tell about your morning routine. What time does your alarm clock go off? Do you hit the snooze button more than you should? Do you head straight for the coffee or the shower?
Ahhh... the morning "routine" is never routine... the "alarm" (Jordin) crawls into my bed like clockwork every morning at about five thirty. By six-thirty, she is talking up a storm to her very sleepy mommy, who is usually incoherent and just agreeing to whatever Jordin says. Soon, the chatter becomes annoying and after several "tuck ins," (Jordin tucking the covers around my neck... yes, cute but annoying after the fifteenth time) we get up. Sarah Beth is *not* a morning girl... it takes a while and several wake up calls to get her rolling. Up the stairs we go for breakfast - even though PopTarts are the breakfast of champions - I try to make them eat a *hot* breakfast at least once or twice a week. They are amazed that I can boil water... so, instant oatmeal is a plus. I shower, they dress and brush and priss - and we're off. This all must happen by 7:35, as my oldest child breaks out in a sweat if the threat of being someone besides the first person in her class each day looms.

:Twosome: What's on the schedule for the day? Do you schedule every minute or just go with the flow?
Hahahaha... what does "schedule every minute" mean, anyway? Since quitting my work-like-a-dog-sixty-hour-a-week-job in the *city* (Buckhead for all you Atlantans) we have forgotten the word "schedule" at our house... and it's just plain fabulous. I used to squeeze twenty five hours out of the normal day, calling for doctors appointments and teeth cleanings on my lunch, between this bride and that.... now, I keep a paper planner and a pencil, and the world is ok with me.

:Threesome: What do you do to maintain your sanity in this hectic world? Do you find time to yourself each day to meditate, or wait till everyone's tucked in for the night to log onto the computer or settle in with a book? Or, do you run off to the gym and maintain your body while maintaining your mind?
Since becoming a single mom - meditation is found in the most unique of places... watching the girls eat breakfast while I sip coffee from the handpainted preschool mug I've had for eight years, sitting on the porch swing and listening to my eight year old read aloud... watching Jordin pirouette and shuffle step during dance class... those are the everyday moments. On my walks (when they are asleep or away) I do most of my "getting right" with the world - cry - pray- figure out where to go next... and, on vacations - I sit on the beach with my favorite book and my camera - and watch my five year old dance on her stage, with her favorite audience (the ocean). I don't need a "time" each day for my zen - I find it in the everyday moments of life. That keeps me sane.
I am, however, known to always have two things - which somehow have come to "identify" me ... my camera and my notebook... in it, I am always writing the next thing - the old story, the new mommyism, or another email to an old friend... :-)

OK!!! I promise! No more "canned" posts for a while. I will try to go back to the business of being Rachael. Whatever that business is, I am not quite sure. Let you know when I find out. :-)

Rachael