Changing

Pre run

Veteran moms tell me all the time that change is the only constant in mothering.  They're right.   My most recent change that I just love: running in the morning.

I used to hate running first thing because I was hungry and the house was a mess.  But now running in the morning means if I get up early enough I can go alone or I only have to take one child with me.  I don't get annoyed when kids wake me up before 7 now because I just get to run for longer and I wake up (like in the sense that I become a functional human being) sooner.

I understand why people exercise first thing.  But what about those people who read scriptures first thing?  Which first thing is first?  I can't read scriptures in the morning--I'd just fall back to sleep.  Kind of like how I currently read at night, until I fall asleep.  But I'd also fall asleep in the afternoon.  I just fall asleep when I read.

The downside of running first thing in the morning: I don't have the "I just got done running" excuse to not get ready.  Now I just have to admit that I'm lazy and hate wearing real clothes.  Well, it's out in the open now, so Spandex here I come.

3.7 miles of pushing Zora later

Our other new change came last week after Rex and Alice took a solid hour and a half to get their chores done.  Their chores: get dressed, make their beds, put in a load of laundry.  I was so fed up with their nonsense (I was done with my chores and wanted to play and was sick of nagging) that I took breakfast way.  No breakfast until beds are made, laundry is put away, a load of laundry is running and the dishwasher is empty.  Guess how long this takes?  Oh, about 15 minutes.  Just long enough to make a pot of grits.  I finally found the perfect motivator.

It was a rough few days after implementation--Rex still taking 10 minutes to get dressed, then requiring a 20 minute lay down before he could summons the energy to make the bed.  But today, Rex was dressed with his bed made before I got home from running.  Chores were done before the grits today.  I could have kissed someone.

Getting it done

Everyone pitching in