A Day In The Life Of Coach Debbie

Every day is a different form of crazy for me.  I’m nearing the 11 month mark of being a widow.  Sometimes it seems my husband passed away 5 minutes ago, sometimes it seems like it’s been years.  Nonetheless, our boys’ demands have stayed the same and they STILL want to be fed and cared for HOURLY!     I am adjusting to being a single mom as well as entering the world of work again.  Here’s a snapshot of a typical day for me.

4:30-5:00am WAKE UP (and kick myself for staying up too late the night before)                                   

5:30am Instruct Group Exercise in my basement with awesome ladies while my kids snooze.

6:05am  Bathe.  I am so high-maintenance it takes me an hour to get ready for the day.

7:00am Kid Pandemonium.  My 4 sons (ages 9, 7, and 5 year old twins) are awake and act like they just pounded a couple of Red Bulls.  Think high energy and empty stomachs.  I feel like I live in a fraternity house.

7:30/8:00am Breakfast.  My go-to breakfast, now that I am aware of my food sensitivities (I really miss daily omelets), is some kind of chicken/turkey sausage with some frozen berries I defrosted in the microwave.  Or bacon.  I love bacon and eat half a pack at a time.  That said, it’s not the most figure-friendly but my body seems to do okay with it a couple of times a week.  The boys often have scrambled eggs or a fruity protein smoothie.  I’ve learned to be Chef BoyarDEB and try to make the presentation of food more appealing to my little men.  Don’t think I make fruit smiley faces, let’s bring it down about 84 notches.   I put smoothies in “fancy” glasses with colorful straws or I set out a “buffet” of oatmeal toppings so they have choices (raisins, berries, cinnamon, vanilla, etc).

8:30-8:55am Dishes, laundry, replace batteries in toys, put kids in time-out, feed the dog, make my bed (no, that’s a lie), check emails.

8:55am Thank the summer babysitter (she’s a gem) for watching my boys as I drive with a Jeep loaded with hundreds of pounds of hand weights to a nearby park to lead a GROUP WORKOUT.

9:30-10:05am Blast techno music as I instruct a GROUP WORKOUT (on a side note, you may not be exercising right.  Have you checked out www.momsanitysisterhood.com for quick and effective workouts that actually change your body?).  It’s super energizing and fun!

10:10am Race over to physical therapy for my injured ankle, decrepit shoulder and back pain (apparently repeatedly reproducing does a number on your body).   I’m usually cramming in a fistful of almonds as I walk in the building.

11:30am Drive home and swap out the Jeep for the Minivan that the babysitter used to take my kids to a nearby Vacation Bible School.  I want my boys to get into their heads and hearts that we are here on earth because of Jesus.  I want them to know Him better, love Him endlessly, and serve Him daily.

12:00pm Pick up my rascals from VBS and go back home.  I should seriously log how many miles I drive in a day; it’s close to sixteen hundred.

12:15pm  Lunch.  Oh the lunch dilemma.  Every kid has a different palate (can you hear them whining right now?!).  Every day is different.  Last week it was kielbasa sausage and broccoli.  Some days it’s a cheese stick, fruit, yogurt, and pepperoni.  My kids don’t eat perfectly….there, I said it.  My lunch is often leftovers (like kielbasa and broccoli) unless I had time to pick up a take-out salad (loaded with veggies and protein) somewhere.

1:00-1:30pm  Zapped.  By this point I’ve been up 8 hours and I’m just d-o-n-e.  I often throw in a video for the kids (don’t judge) and ask, “What are the rules?”  They all chime in, “Don’t wake up Mommy.  Be quiet.”  The TV coma starts and I go nap for 30 minutes.  It’s blissful and gives me energy to finish the day.

1:30-5:30pm  Time moves in slow motion.  I have mountains of paperwork to do, countless emails to answer, more laundry, more dishes, and usually something has been broken in the house.  The kids play outside, have a spoonful of peanut butter for snack, and we run errands.  Oh, and I sometimes snack on some turkey jerky since I seem to live in the car.

5:30pm Realize my kids probably want to eat again today.  In my old stay-at-home-mom life meals were planned out and meat was defrosted by 5pm.  In my “new” life, I am forgetful and overwhelmed and attempting to be a mom and a dad.  My goal is always to give them a protein and a vegetable.  Call me crazy, but I give them frozen mixed vegetables straight from the freezer.  Solid, frozen veggies.  Seriously.  They seem to think it’s candy and anything you get to eat without utensils is every little boy’s dream.  So we may have rotisserie chicken and salad, asparagus and bunless burgers.

6:15-7:15pm Get the kids showered and in bed.  I put my kids to bed around 7:00/7:30.  Call me mean, call me crazy.  But when you have four children whose sole purpose in life is to drive their mom crazy, my finish line is 7:00.

8:00-midnight or so:   Computer for way too long doing emails, writing fabulous Momsanity articles, reading my Bible, planning group workouts (some days I do 4 sessions a day), exercising, cleaning up my house that looks like a tornado hit, and flopping into bed.  Every now and then I get to watch a movie.  And I’m not opposed to an occasional glass of wine.                

So there you have my life in a nutshell.

What’s your day like?