When Plans Fail Us

One word strikes fear in the heart of any work-from-home mom: INSERVICE.

Ahh, yes, it never fails. On Sunday night after preparing for the week, thinking through the lunches I'll pack, the fruit we have on hand for snacks, and making sure the backpack is handy, I suddenly realize about 10 minutes before bedtime that Spark has Monday off from preschool because it's inservice. I reaize this fact after I've thought through my Monday to achieve the best possible productivity, after I have devised a hard schedule for me and Flower.

5:30-Martia wakes up, nurses Flower, showers, checks email/work schedule
6:30-Martia does yoga for one hour
7:45-Buzz takes Spark to school
8:00-Martia feeds Flower breakfast cereal and fruit
8:30-Flower takes a nap while Martia works
10:30-Flower plays in floor while Martia continues to work
Noon-Martia and Flower eat lunch, go for a walk
1:00-Flower takes a nap while Martia works
2:45-Martia and Flower to get Spark from school

Everything must be reconfigured at this point because we have thrown a full day of Spark into the mix. Also, today is the day when I host the lunchtime Bible study, so the house needs to be straightened up a bit (including sweeping, vacuuming, mopping, and wiping down the toilet).

Here's what today's Inservice schedule looks like:

6:00 - Martia nurses Flower
7:00 - Spark jumps in bed with Martia and Flower while Buzz showers
7:25 - Martia feeds the kids breakfast and races to shower before Buzz has to leave for work
8:15 - Buzz leaves
9:00 - Martia tries to get Spark to clean his room, resorting to bribes and threats
10:00 - Martia's panic sets in as she realizes she will have visitors in one hour
11:00 - Visitors arrive, Bible study commences, Spark eats lunch vittles from Maddie
12:15 - Visitors leave
12:20 - Flower eats lunch, nurses, falls asleep
1:00 - Martia reads Spark a story and he falls asleep
1:15 - Martia glories in the simultaneous nap and works
2:55 - Flower wakes up
3:00 - Martia awaits the return of Buzz and makes plans to work late into the evening