Just Doing It

The other day we realized the fruits of our organizational skills, which unfortunately translated into an incredibly busy day for us, or should I say, dad? One of the hardest parts of these sort of days is taking the first step of the long journey of all that needs to be done, because if I think about it enough, the overwhelming feeling of drowning in responsibility makes me want to cry... of course, being a real man in training, I would never do that.

The complications were punctuated by the fact that, and I hate to keep whining about this, A’s drama has such a irregular schedule. There was to be rehearsal that day, which kind of breaks up the morning, and then there was a trustee meeting in the afternoon. Plus, we were in need of bagels, which we not able to obtain at the bakery, so we were forced to make them ourselves. Granted, we could eat oatmeal or toast, but man do we love bagels for breaktfast.

R was also in need of her breakfast raisin bread (got to keep mom nourished), and we were going to attempt to make wheat thin crackers, which we love but contain high fructose corn syrup. Maybe that’s why we love them. The whole grain cookbook that we have had a recipe, so I thought I’d give it a try. How’s that for biting off more than you can chew?

I have learned one thing, however. You can definitely over-think things and psyche yourself out of even trying, but it is amazing, not to mention empowering, when you realize what you can really accomplish when you give it a try and just do it. I’ve also found that, in my situation, things would never get done unless I acted accordingly. Sure, it’s enough to drive me crazy, but think of all the fodder it produces for this blog.

Starting the bread is easy enough. I usually get the sponge going in the AM and let it sit for as long as I need to. The bagels call for an overnight step, but I skipped it because I have trouble following directions, anyway. With the sponges going, I mixed the dry ingredients for the crackers, got the kids fed both physically and mentally, and then carted A off to her rehearsal.

The difficult thing about rehearsals is that they are designed for kids in-between classes, so they are about 40 minutes long. Not really enough time for N and I to go off and do anything fun. That did not stop me from dragging him to the Green Mountain Smokehouse to get bacon (locally made and nitrate free) and then to the pharmacy.

I had about 4 hours before the library meeting, but N had asked if we could go XC skiing since the weather was beautiful. My first reaction was, “Are you kidding? I’m up to my ears in responsibilities,” but then I realized that a lot of it revolved around A’s stuff, and even though he was a good sport about it not happening, I felt like it was important to attend to his wants and needs, as well.

So, against all my better judgement, I told him that we could go for it, but didn’t have a lot of time to waste. A wasn’t feeling 100%, so she passed. We got home, put on our ski gear, and hit the trails. I have to confess, it was a lot of fun, and we all felt better for having some time in the fresh air. Plus, XC skiing is a lot of fun, and so darn convenient.

We got home, N stayed outside and played in the snow, and I got to work. I kneaded the bread and bagels, go them in the oven, and set about making the crackers, which are a complete pain in the neck to make. Very tedious, though I think deviating from the recipe would help, but more on that later.

I also had to have dinner made and ready before I headed off to the meeting, because it would end at 6:00 PM. I made a salad with some leftover chicken and broccoli cheddar soup, and we had fresh bread. A pretty simple meal that is enough to satisfy, and you have to have soup in this weather.

I finished the baking, carted the kids off the meeting, and then home for supper with mom. Afterward, it was Miller Time. I breathed a huge sigh of relief, and though it is crazy being the midst of all that activity, I really think you can’t get the things you need to get done unless you are a little overwhelmed. There is just too much to do, so just do it.

Sure, it would be easy enough to just pick up some pizza or fast food, but that would be too easy for two people who choose to parent the hard way. Besides, I think feeding kids fast food is akin to child abuse, but that’s just the prig in me.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to algiamil for the pic.