But it's so hard to make things easy.

At preschool pick-up today, one of the moms was congratulating me on the pregnancy. She already has three kids and so I asked her, as I have been asking many moms lately, if she had any advice for me on managing three. She said she had received one piece of advice that was invaluable: "Never let a day go by . . . " I'm going to stop there and note that I was nervous that she was going to end the statement with something like ". . . without telling your kids you love them"--a sentiment I totally agree with and all but not the kind of practical wisdom I was seeking.

Instead, she said, "Never let a day go by without doing at least one load of laundry." Now, that's pretty sweet advice, considering that I waste time each day finding clean/semi-matching socks for the boys, clean pants for myself (even harder when pregnant), clean washcloths for bath time, a onesie to go under Little Bit's footie pajamas, and a decent top and bottom combo for Bub to wear to school. And then there's hubby with his pesky news bulletins like "Honey, I only have two pair of underwear left." For some reason I tend to save the laundry until there's almost nothing to wear. Then, I attack the huge mound and start sorting and end up with about seven or eight loads worth. That's silly.

My life would be easier if I tried to do one load of laundry a day.

I've brainstormed a list of other things I could do that would make my life easier.

My life would be easier if I . . .

. . . put the little potty into storage.
Bub does all his bathroom business on his own these days, and I am no longer abreast of all his movements. Literally. He pees into the regular potty but prefers the little plastic one for number two. That's all fine except that he fills without emptying. And, since he does it all on his own,* I don't realize that there's been poop resting in potty until I open the bathroom door and almost pass out from the stench. I know he can use the real toilet for all his needs so I should just put the little potty into storage. But what would I use to sit on (lid down) during bath time?

. . . ran the dishwasher every night before bed.
I prefer to delay running it until I can fill every last nook, cranny, and crevice.

. . . emptied the dishwasher first thing every morning.
Then, I sometimes wait to unload it until there are so many dishes waiting in the sink that they practically fill the newly-emptied dishwasher.

. . . were stronger about removing toys that threaten my sanity.
After two or so days of picking up 300+ MegaBlocks multiple times a day, I get a little testy. I tell myself, "Tonight, when the boys are in bed, I will re-hide the MegaBlocks." Then I forget about it until the big box gets dumped all over first thing in the morning. The tunnel thing that takes up the entire living room when unfurled creates a similar state of irritation and chaos that I often fail to troubleshoot effectively. These toys are good for one or two days at a time. Then Mama needs a break.

. . . took some time over the weekend to plan my meals and grocery shopping for the following week.

. . . kept a typed piece of paper in my purse that lists ingredients for the dishes in our weeknight rotation of family favorites.

. . . developed a weeknight rotation of family favorite dishes.

. . . emptied the recycling every evening.
If I did that then Little Bit would not spend a good portion of each day scattering items from the bin--junk mail, wine bottles, pop cans, newspapers--all around the house. Had I emptied the recycling last night though, Little Bit would not have been able to entertain himself with an empty (but, unfortunately, unrinsed) gallon of milk for over thirty minutes.

. . . graded 5-10 papers each day instead of saving all 42 for the night before they absolutely need to be returned to my students (which, in my mind, is before their next assignment is due so they can "learn" from the feedback from the previous paper).
My failure/procrastination in this area is just as frustrating now as it was in the late nineties when I had 80-something papers to grade at a time.

How am I doing?
I have a load of laundry in now.
All the dishes are in the dishwasher, but it's not nearly full so I can't bear to run it.
The tunnel and MegaBlocks are both currently in hiding. The Diego puzzle may join them if I remember.
I graded two papers this afternoon.

You know where this is headed . . . what could you do to make your life easier? Or, even better, what do you do, NTB, that makes your life easier? Please share in the comments.






*You may be thinking, "But, MEP, shouldn't you be wiping him?" No lie, it's a clean break every time. Kind of amazing, NTB.

Don't you forget about me.

I may be setting a record for the longest lapse between NTB posts. I'm glad to be teaching again, even on a very part-time basis, but I have been tired and overwhelmed lately and not in the right frame of mind to do anything but whine about being tired and overwhelmed. I'm actually making things sound worse than they are because the teaching is going well. I just kind of forgot how much work it was. And yes, I'm going to keep making excuses until regular posting resumes. Right now, I'm hungry and eager to watch Top Chef so here's all I have to offer:

Chuckle at it. Bub goes in and out of an obsession with watching old Tom and Jerry cartoons. When I asked him what he liked about the show, he thought for a couple of seconds and then answered, "I like the music when Jerry be's bad." It is good music.

Read it. I'm only two chapters in, but I can already tell that Jonathan Tropper's This Is Where I Leave You is going to be my favorite of his novels. And I've loved them all. I'm forever grateful to my friend MSH for introducing me to Tropper. Check him out.

Listen to it. I was nosing around on itunes and found a song called "Look at Miss Ohio" by Gillian Welch that I just kind of dig, especially since I am always a Ohio girl in my heart.*

Tell me about it. Have you read Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse books? Do you watch True Blood? I am not really a vampire fanatic or anything, but I am curious if I should check out the books. Also, are you watching Drop Dead Diva? Is it as good as Entertainment Weekly keeps claiming?

Consider it. Which shows are you going to try to watch or DVR this fall? I'm thinking yes on The Biggest Loser, The Office, 30 Rock, Project Runway, and Top Chef. I'm also going to give Glee a try. I don't think I have the time to commit to Dancing with the Stars, especially since my heart was not in it last season. I'm considering dropping Ugly Betty and Desperate Housewives since I still have episodes from the spring in my DVR that I haven't made time to watch. There is no freaking way that I'm watching the new Melrose Place.

Admit it. I absolutely love looking at back-to-school pictures on facebook. The fresh-scrubbed faces, the shiny backpacks, the uniforms and special first-day duds, the optimism, the hope. These photos just make me feel happy.


More. Better. Later. Sorry.





*a State of Ohio girl, but NOT an Ohio State girl, just to be clear!