Getting it all done

"I don't know how you do it..." 

I hear that a lot and I'll share the secret of how I get it done.  But first, some background.  Three of my children are homeschooled and we're lucky to live in a school district that offers a homeschool resource school.  According to the district, my children are public school students attending an alternative school.  They get funding from the state for my children, which allows them to offer the school and pass some money along to me to buy curriculum and music lessons.  For the three children, I receive $1400.  The school is K-12 and children attend part time while also receiving instruction at home.  Parents select which classes they want their children to attend.  Things like: foreign language, lab science, lego robotics, math, PE.  By participating in the school, I am obligated to file monthly progress reports of what we've worked on at home and the biggest cost to me is, while my children are attending classes, I have to be on site at the school since I am their official teacher.  Jacob is able to attend without me being there because he is in high school and is on a "independent contract".  But, for Isaac and Elizabeth to take classes, I have to be at school with them.  The school provides a family room with tables to sit at and a small play area for the little ones and I spend six hours a week there. 

arriving at school, heavily laden

On Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:30-1:30, I am at school in the family room "getting stuff done".  I don't have to feel guilty that I'm taking time away from my children because they're busy in classes while I: read great books, plan and organize day camp, research family vacation ideas, pay bills, buy gifts, prepare my Relief Society lessons, sew, craft, read the news, etc.  Six hours a week are mine to use at my disgression.  There are definetly times when it feels like a burden to be sitting there when I could be doing something else, but if I treat it like a blessing and plan for how I'll use the time, it allows me to get a lot done.

our home away from home

a table in the family room with...

computer, sewing machine, mini DVD player, lunches

Another thing that I think really helps me find the time to take care of the many responsibilities in my life is the lack of tv reception in our home.  The only tv I watch is the 45 minutes it takes an hour long episode to stream on hulu.com which I watch each morning at 6:15 while I exercise.  Not having tv frees up my evenings for playing with the kids and getting stuff done.  I'm also a really fast reader.  I can chew through a novel in just a few hours.  Sometimes I feel a little guilty considering how quickly I can consume something somone took years to create.