Week 20

The other day K asked if we have a schedule at Grandma Bootcamp, which reminded me of a blog post by an elementary teacher friend who wrote about the summer calendar for her two sons.  She listed numerous activities they wanted to do then put as many as feasible on the calendar--play dates with friends, trip to the beach, a Giants baseball game, etc.  When our daughters were young I created a three-month calendar with daily squares large enough to list swimming lessons, camp, whatever.  We used a different color marker for each girl so we could quickly see who had which event.  I liked being able to see the whole summer at once. Little e is not ready for things like that yet, but I do try to spend time each day making music with her, reading her favorite books (and new ones), sitting outside listening to the birds, working on her physical skills.  K's query made me think about being even more intentional with what we do, to strengthen e's entire being.  She does go back to bed about 8:30 for 40-90 minutes, then again around noon; she gets three bottles, spaced about three hours apart.  I guess that counts as a loose schedule; I haven't tried to say at 10 we read, at 10:20 we sit at the keyboard, at 10:30 we play on the floor.  We flow from one activity to another as e loses interest.

As to a schedule for myself, I usually take some quiet time during e's morning nap.  For instance this morning after I put her down I read a chapter in my book on solitude, prayed, and now I'm writing this.  Next I will practice some of the music for Sunday, if she is still asleep.  As I eat breakfast and lunch I read.  She does not sleep as much as when she was younger, but I still have some time to myself during the day.

This morning I learned that e does not like me to run the vacuum cleaner unless she is being held!