The morning begins with the perfect yellow breakfast blanket, bagel, & OJ.
Sometimes the dishes remain from the night before.
Often he needs his "crazy hair" sprayed with water and brushed before he heads off to school. Dad is good at this but Simon never likes it.
If she is up she loves to be up on the couch to see him off to school.
Her current carry-around & snuggly loves.
Sometimes he takes care of those morning-after dishes. Lily is never far if someone is doing just about anything in the kitchen.
She was helping me again today.
She plays. Takes them out & puts them back in & sneaks them into her mouth. Sometimes a mark is made in the coloring book.
Laundry. Again.
Up from her one and only nap of the day. Just about an hour.
Sometimes he works from home too. Anna likes to help campaign.
Lunch for her.
Lunch for me.
Back from school. Lego time. Anna and I spent some time in his room today – her pulling things out and me working on organizing the legos. Current organization idea is by color in small plastic drawers (smaller than the ones he is kneeling next too – those there will be for bigger pieces). When something comes up with our childcare I often end up organizing toys, going through clothes, etc.
Love.
Love this too.
They play. They chase. They giggle and screech.
She pokes.
Heading to a late afternoon & dinner meeting.
Dinner @ 5pm. We are early eaters.
Baked potato, cheese, & broccoli.
After her bath. She's in bed most nights by 6:30pm.
Watching the popcorn pop.
Wednesday was a challenging day for me.
I think I usually have a harder time on Wednesdays with this project. The initial excitement has started to ware off and I have to constantly remind myself to grab the camera.
On top of that our babysitter unable to make it today (jury duty) – making it two days so far this week that I have been "not working" in my official professional capacity…instead "working" in my Mama capacity.
Know that my life is full of ups and downs and ins and outs and grumpiness and dirty diapers and laundry and dishes and whining and spills (and laughter and goodness and more blessings than I can count). The realities of being a work-at-home parent and working out the balancing act of kids and work and childcare and expectations with a working spouse can definitely be a challenge. This is all part of my everyday life.
As I was ending my day I came across this quote from Emerson:
Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.
HA! Seriously. I needed a big time attitude adjustment.
So Hello Thursday! I am welcoming you with open arms and a "spirit too high to be encumbered."
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That is one of my favorite quotes of all time. I want to print or paint it big and put it above the garage door into the house to read when I get home from work.
Wednesday was really yucky! Must be middle of week blues and I don’t even have children! Am loving this project and the fact that you are so willing to share of yourself with us. Thank you for this class, Ali, and the digital downloads, they are awesome.
Glad to you know that I’m not the only one that was lagging a little yesterday. A long (busy) day, a tactless comment left of my blog to be found (and deleted), leaves me a little dry. Love the quote.
(And after your food posts, you have me hungry for cantalope!) : )
My Wednesday: http://herdofsteph.blogspot.com/2010/04/week-in-life-wednesday.html
I LOVE this quote. It works especially well for some of my students.
Thanks for the quote…needed this today!
I LOVE your quotes – was just thinking a similar thing with yesterday… and I love your leftover dishes – about to do mine now… and I love your shower curtain! random eh? really do love the quotes most though…
I started Monday but yesterday felt the same as you. We are having (and will continue to have) such a busy, event-filled week this week. I thought it would be a great way to document all these milestone events, such as birthdays and school plays but I was so busy yesterday I really struggled with remembering to take pictures. But I snapped a few and am trying for a fresh start today. Still really enjoying this project and I can’t wait to see how it all comes together.
i hope you have a nice thursday. when you write i can relate to so much of it. in some way we are all juggling, our homes, the routines, our families, jobs, things we enjoy and some days just go better than others but in the end there is also so much to be thankful for.
I, too, want to thank you for the quote. It is much needed here…not only today…
I know you surely have your own difficulties, sorrows, and hardships – but at the moment I would definitley love to have a life like yours…but working on my attitude will have to suffice ;o)
Oh i love this quote! I too want to print it out and hang it somewhere so i can see it every day. I love the quotes you put on here…they always help me put things in perspective.
Yesterday I was absolutely fried and my kids were wholly uncooperative. Go figure.
Either way, it’s a NEW day and I am so grateful to you for the inspiration to see it that way!
Thank you for ALL you do, Ali!
I, too, had a harder time of it yesterday. Took plenty of photos but just didn’t have the time or maybe energy to write anythimg down. But today is a new day! Thanks for the inspiration.
Thanks for this Ali. I saw your tweet yesterday of “taking a really deep breath”, and figured you were having one of those days. I think I have at least one really big sigh a day, as I sometimes less than graciously accept the reality of my less than perfect life. I’m really glad you showed your kitchen in the morning. Love that – and how one simple sentence or word with a sequence of pictures beautifully told the story of your day.
Wow, I also feel like that….. But I have kept on. I must still do the documemting.
I added that quote to my diet tracking journal. It’s good for the days when food becomes an emotional crutch and I can’t concentrate on the “why” of why I’m making changes to my eating habits.
It’s also good for those days when I’ve been extremely grumpy for no good reason.
I’m glad it’s helping you too.
I just want to say to you Ali and to all the moms out there. Having young adult children 19 & 23, I can’t tell you what I would give to go back in time for just one week and do this project. My daughter always used to watch out the window for Daddy to come home from work…my son and all his thomas trains & legos…and the books…wow we always read books. When you all are having a bad day and as Ali said ” life is full of ups and downs and ins and outs and grumpiness and dirty diapers and laundry and dishes and whining and spills “, please remember it all goes by too fast…I know it sure doesn’t feel like it at times but believe me it really does. This is an awesome project and a big AMEN to that quote!
Have a GREAT day today!
Enjoy every second!
It must be hard to have a baby
that young that only naps one nap
and only an hour long. My two
girls NEVER napped, unless I napped
with theM! and I couldn’t do that every day.
they mostly would take a 15 minute “cat nap”
and be done. so I KNOW that’s rough!
hang in there! have fun with it!
your pictures are turning out awesome!
I LOVE when you do these weeks!
I am doing mine next week!
tara
I havent been able to do this this week but I am so excited to give this a try! I like the idea of a mini book but LOVE a full 12×12 book of ‘Several Weeks in the Life’! Thanks for the inspiration and the guidance on it!
I too had a bad day yesterday, so I really appreciate the quote. But it wasn’t a bad day in terms of Week in the Life – I took way more pictures than usual (151 vs. 31 on Monday and 4 on Tuesday). I also journaled a lot more. Trying to embrace the positive!
wednesday was hard for me too. . . felt like my life is sort of being left by the curb. not many pictures. some tears. more about the journaling and paper gathering today. here’s to a brighter thursday!
LOVE it…I love an ordinary day. As someone who doesn’t “work” (HATE when people whoe don’t know my circumstances say it’s because I’m lucky when, truly, it’s because I’m ill) it’s nice to see that people I ADORE and ADMIRE are ordinary too! WHERE do you get the quotes? I would LOVE a source. Thanks!
Wow, I so needed that quote today!
What a lovely family. Thank you for sharing and inspiring:)
Hi Ali, I love your photos, the composition and the way they tell a story, but I have a question. The ones you show on your blog are landscape but 2 pages (baseball card protectors) of your daily spread will be portrait. Will you crop these photos to fit or do you take others in that orientation? Just asking because I’m using those type of card protectors and I’m trying to take a lot of my photos portrait, including balancing my camera for self-timer shots. Thanks
Somes days are just like that and very long!! Each day is a blessing
Loving the project, wishing I was tagging along this year but so busy at work right now!!! Still totally inspiring and hoping to do a week in the life maybe in the summer this year!!
This is interesting. It was a bit of a challenging day (or rather evening) for me, too, so I can fully relate. Have a great day!
Sigh. You have just brought THIS work-at-home Mom’s life to a screeching halt, to stop and smell the peonies. Thank you, Ali.
Ali, I LOVE this post. And that quote is something we all need to hear. Thank you for sharing so much of what is real in your life.
I bet Anna is GREAT at campaigning – so is so cute!
I’ve also started losing momentum for this project and need to pick up the camera more. Thanks for the inspiration!
Wow, that picture of Simon is perfect. Perhaps the day was worth it just for that photo. Love that you blog the not so great every so often. That is life, good reminder for all of us. Reminds me of…
“you take the good
you take the bad
you take ‘em both
and there you have
the facts of life”
I’m an 80′s girl. Hope Thursday goes better!
I totally relate to the dishes still in the sink and the “crazy hair”—my son has that every morning.
Awesome quote!
I don’t think that I got that many pics yesterday (I’m uploading now to see the amount). I’ve definitely noticed that after dinner, my habit of grabbing for the camera comes to a screeching halt…I did manage one or two pics last night though. Going to try harder tonight to capture our nightly routine.
Thanks Ali for everything!
Definitely can relate and thanks for sharing. It is a new day, isn’t it?!
Thanks for the words of Emerson. Really needed that today. Putting things in perspective. Regrouping. Finding joy in the everyday and in those I love. Just thank you…
Great quote! I really like how you always find something to be grateful for in each day. Thanks for sharing your terrific talents!
I love that quote. It’s particularly appropriate for my Wednesday as well. Thank you for sharing it.
Today is the last day for my Week In The Life and tomorrow I start the process of going through everything to see what I’ve collected. On one hand, I’m excited to put everything together; on the other, I’m a little nervous to see the story that emerges.
Emerson’s quote is just perfect! I need to write it down and have it on show somewhere I will see it often.
loving this project and all that you’re sharing with us. and the quotes you’re sharing are a perfect fit into your day!
Cannot wait to see your pics everyday. Awesome to see how many people are participating and I can agree with the fact that you cannot always predict how your days will pan out. Thanks for sharing all the joys with us
Hi Ali. I’m not doing WITL–though I’ve thought of doing a DAY in the life–but I wanted to tell you two things:
1. The idea of WITL is enough to make me reflect more on just how I/we live our life/lives in terms of what goes into our every day.
2. You are so inspiring in your honesty and authenticity. Your example encourages me to also be true to myself, but at the same time as to set higher standards for myself and my relationships.
You’re the real deal and it’s wonderful that you are out there for the rest of us.
Love all the pictures that include YOU! How do you make this happen? A timer? Another person? What works best for you?
Me too Carolyn. I think partly because it is so dark in our home (even with the lights on) and partly because I am just tired. I need to remember that one of my favorite layouts I have is one that documents our evening routine with very imperfect photos…that was from a few years back.
One of my favorite parts is looking at it all together…there’s magic in the heft of it
.
Glad to see we aren’t the only ones that sometimes have those left-over dishes in the sink from the night before
And “real” popcorn is the always the best. It’s the only thing served in our house!
Have a wonderful Thursday!
Thank you – I really appreciate that
.
It’s all about the timer (and the husband every once in awhile). The more you use it the better you get!
Oh Ali, I undertand you so well, being a work-at-home mom of two kids (3 and 5), with a workaholic loving husband…everyday life is not always easy, but we love them so much, don’t we?
Thank you for the Emerson quote- I needed to read that today.
Love the Emerson quote. Love the popcorn popping. Love the dirty dishes. Love that your enthusiasm was flailing a bit – validates that mine was, too.
Love that I am discovering what JOY there is in our house on a daily basis. Love that I am DOCUMENTING a slice of life. Love that THIS IS LIFE and it’s all good.
Thank you for being real and sharing and spurring us on!
Now – what camera/lens do you use? I am still envying some of your shots – although I did get a nice one of ME sitting on the porch yesterday by propping a brick on the railing. I’m learning! =) Just wondering your lens as my indoor light still suffers….
THANKS ALI! Happy Embraceable Unencumbered Thursday!
-pennyscraps
Wednesday was fun for us, crazy April weather in Southern California.
Got a really strange look from a young dude coming out of nowhere just when I snapped a picture of my cart contents at Fresh & Easy. That made my day. I felt like a mystery shopper.
Although I am not participating in this project this time, I am enjoying reading about your week. I giggle at the similarities and the reality of life with a little one. I loved the picture of your daughter looking out the window at her brother. It reminds me how much my daughter (7 months) loves her big brother (16 years). Thank you for sharing your Week in the Life! You are an amazing woman.