I've been trying to do a little reorganizing of my schedule and priorities lately. I spent two days last week taking naps after dinner due to stress overload and that is just not me.
So, I've been looking at the activities I want to be involved in, how involved I can really be, making sure I have down time, and being sure that I remember my children are my priority.
The schedule I've worked out isnt perfect, I didnt write in time for working out (which I desperately need do due to the 11 lbs I have gained since arriving in Korea), and I still havent mastered a busy life AND making nutritious and delicious meals for my family every night. We've been eating far to much take out, too much crap.
(And yes, I do see the connection between the weight gain and the onion rings I had for lunch.)
I've had a big dry erase board monthly calendar that I've been using, and I write up my weekly schedule on my fridge (literally ON my fridge), but it wasnt enough so I bought a day planner.
(And they should really have 2009 day planners on clearance at this point in the year, but whatever I needed it)
So, here's my weekly schedule:
Monday
Nothing during the day. A free day to host or attend play dates, go on spontaneous field trips, do whatever.
6:30 pm - Emma goes to AWANA which is like Vacation bible School during the school year. It starts at age 3, and she'll do bible activities etc for about an hour or so. She'll be staying up later on Monday nights, seeing as her bedtime is 7pm, but I think she'll love it. And Daddy can get some bonding time in with Jackson.
Tuesday
Walk Emma to school, to arrive at 8:15am
Jackson stays home with May (the nanny) and goes on his own adventures)
While Emma is at school, I will have ME time. But only about twice a month, as I am leading storytime at the library once a month on Tuesdays and attending a luncheon once a month on Tuesdays. During my ME time I intend to get an occasional pedicure, shop, drink coffee at starbucks while editing photos on my laptop, do whatever. BUT- it MUST be by myself. I've really need ME time, and that is separate from friend time.
Walk Emma home from school at 11:15am
Wednesday
9:15- 11:30am Attend Protestant Women of the Chapel (PWOC)
This is a women's fellowship and bible study on Post. They provide childcare (nursery for Jax, more structured activities for Emma). We start buy enjoying breakfast together, singing songs, and brief socializing. Then we break off into several different bible studies. I signed up for "Parenting with Purpose and Grace". Today was the first session and I LOVED it. There is a big range of ages in my bible study group and a big range of ages in our children. I can tell this bible study will really help me to keep my children as my priority and to raise them as children of God. To parent with Love.
6-7:30pm Young Couples Bible Study
You can never have too many bible studies right? This is new, and Jason and I will start attending next week. You bring a dish to share with the group, there is child care provided, and I will assume the bible study is designed to strengthen our marriage and remind us that we are a Christian couple. I am very excited to have a bible study that Jason and I can attend together. And it is fantastic that they are providing child care. Again, this means the children will not make their 7pm bedtime, but it wont have them to bed unreasonably late.
Thursday
walk Emma to school to arrive at 8:15am
some weeks I will have May come watch Jax and some weeks I will not.
For example tomorrow I am volunteering to unload a shipment truck at the gift shop on Post while Emma is at school, so May is coming to watch Jackson. But some weeks Jackson and I might go to the playground together and then go grocery shopping or something.
Walk Emma home from school at 11:15am
6:30pm - 8:30pm Praise Team practice at church
I joined the Praise Team at church about a month ago. It is a group of up to 7 people that start the Sunday morning service off with upbeat Praise songs. There is a keyboard player, a drummer, a guitar player, a bass player, and a few singers. And one leader who plays the guitar and sings. I am like his back up singer, and I generally lead one of the songs during the service. This type of service, as well as this type of singing is TOTALLY out of my comfort zone. I am a trained opera/classical singer! This contemporary Praise Team stuff is total opposite of all my training. Not to mention a contemporary church service is not what I am used to as well. Why am I doing this?
- Sometimes it is good to get outside of our comfort zone
- to help build and strengthen my relationship with God. Singing on a Praise Team is not about performing, it is about communicating to God and helping the congregation communicate with God.
- I miss singing.
Friday
Nothing, so this day is open for play dates and other adventures
On the weekends I generally schedule my photo shoots with clients and of course we have church Sunday morning. Other than that its playground time, family movie time, maybe a field trip out in Seoul, possibly a date night.
Other involvements, that are not necessarily weekly:
- Story Time at the Library. As I said earlier, I will be leading this once, sometimes twice a month. We are using the alphabet as our guide this year, this week I had the letter "B" and did a birthday themed storytime. We read birthday books, sang Happy Birthday to several kids with September birthdays, made birthday hats and paraded around the library singing the alphabet song. Fun times. This summer storytime stressed me out because I did it nearly every week, having a team of us to rotate weeks takes the stress out and just makes it fun.
- Armed Forces Spouses Club (AFSC)- this is the club that runs the gift shop on Post. They host elegant monthly themed luncheons, have a variety of smaller clubs you can join (book club, fitness club etc), and use their membership funds and gift shop earnings to help Korean organizations in need.
- Family photography sessions. Since I went "professional" a few weeks ago, I have done 4 photo shoots. I learned quickly that I can NOT do more than 2 a week without getting backup in the photo editing. I promise my clients a photo CD within 5 days, and I want to adhere to that. I have 3 more shoots scheduled in the next two weeks.
- Groove magazine food reviews. I had a full page review in the September issue of Groove, and I have three articles due for the October issue. I've gotten lucky that my meals for these 3 restaurants were covered by the magazine. I don't get paid for this work, but I love it. I love the food, I love the writing and photographing of food, and I love the experience.
- Vegetarianinkorea.com website- I would like to be writing about 4 posts a week on this site, but I havent been able to keep up with that with everything else lately. I have a backlog of food photographs from several different restaurants, I just havent had a chance to write up a review for the website. It's really important that I try and keep up with the posts, because Groove magazine puts a byline on all my articles mention my name and my food website. I get a good bit of new readers from that and I want to keep them!
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I'm officially done joining new activities. Both the PWOC and the AFSC have smaller clubs within, but I know I don't have room in schedule to participate more, much as I might like to.
There you go. That's my life. Now that you know my schedule, you can stalk me!
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