In Training

My leaving for 12 days in the near future has put my little family into serious “training” mode. When we think about how all of us work together to make our home run, and then add in the missing mama… well it makes all of our heads spin.

One of the issues with Caroline is her inability to plan. It’s called motor planning and she struggles with this quite a bit. The “what comes next” factor is really hard for her and it effects every area of our lives. Common questions are, “What should I put on first?” when getting dressed and “When are we doing that?” even when it is a part of our everyday routine.. like after homework she needs to know what we are doing next even if it is to get ready for dinner and bath every. single. day!!! One of the reasons that she loves school is because they do the exact same schedule everyday and she knows what will happen (for the most part) without even thinking about it.

The past few days I have had her clothes ready and I’ve told her what to do and walked out of the room.  Most days, for the sake of time (and lack of whining) I just stay in her room with her while she is getting ready and if need be I just do it myself. When I leave for Africa I’ve told her that I will have all of her clothes matched up and instructions for each day so that she will know what to do while I am gone. It is going to be up to her to get herself together while daddy is getting ready! Oh boy! This should be interesting!!

There’s also the morning routine of breakfast and making lunches. I usually help both my hubby and Caroline get their meals together! You think they are going to starve?? I think I have decided that I am going to put together lunches (sans the sandwich) and have them in baggies. That way they can just make the sandwiches and put the rest in their lunch boxes and GO! Or they can just eat out or in the cafeteria at school, right?

Even yesterday, as I did laundry and talked to my mom on the phone she asked, “Does Steve remember how to work the washing machine?” Ohhhh… well, he hasn’t in quite a while! Wonder if he does know what to do? Twelve days is a long time for wet towels and wash cloths to sit!! He is so good and helps me so much around the house, but I typically do laundry when I am off and he is working. He has had no reason to worry about that until now!

My friends and family have been extremely supportive and encouraging, including the two that live under this roof with me. They seem to think that they will be JUST FINE and that if I just have them organized they will be able to make each day a success. Boy, I hope so! Who is going to remind them that they “BETTER HURRY UP!?” They are running late??! Or what about for Caroline? “YOU BETTER BRUSH YOUR TEETH SO THEY DON’T FALL OUT!”  and “You HAVE to wash your hair and your body so you don’t run off all of your friends!?”

Ok. Maybe they will be GLAD to have some peace and quiet for a few days!!