We have some new routines in 2011. Roo-tines. I have been able to pick up some regular freelance work (yay!), so we have arranged for Roo to go to a nearby daycare three mornings a week. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday HPR drops her off at 8 and I pick her up at noon. The daycare center relies on video a little more than we'd like (during transition times: drop-off, pickup, and between lunch and naptime), but the teachers are great and it's nice for Roo to get some social interaction with her peers.
As it turns out, I don't get much more that 3 hours of work in on each of those days, because I drop off Shmoo at Kindergarten between 8:45 and 9. But the divide/conquer kid dropoffs make for much less stressful mornings for me.
The other new thing in our schedule is an intro to dance class for Roo. They run for 45 minutes on Wednesday afternoons. The setup is genius: The kids go into the studio with the instructors and the parents can view the session on a monitor in the lobby. (No chance for kiddos to cling to their parents in lieu of participating.) Roo loves class. She imitates the teacher with flamboyant and dramatic flourishes. It's hilariously cute. I also love how the hand-me-down leotard she wears (thanks, cousins!) really emphasizes her 3-year-old belly.
HPR's days off during the winter have been Sunday-Monday. It's so nice to be able to have at least one family day per week.
I'm enjoying using the parts of my brain and skills that I worked for so many years to hone. I have had to be a bit creative when the time I've carved out from my schedule doesn't suffice to complete my work, but so far (adding some evening hours and relying on HPR to do solo care at times) it has evened out pretty well.
Win!
Hooray!
Posted by: ratphooey | February 12, 2011 at 05:28 PM
I would love to see Roo dancing. Would she be willing to perform for the video camera?
Posted by: SteveO | February 13, 2011 at 12:08 AM