happen; quite often the day results in some form of chaos or drama. I need to make some changes in my life before it runs me over completely.
If you think this story sounds familiar, or if you gave a little giggle inside as you read about Bizzy, you might just see a little of Bizzy in yourself. What does Bizzy do each day? Well, let’s just take a look at her typical morning and you will get the point.
A Typical Bizzy Day
5:45: Ugh, the alarm is going off already. (I am so tired… what day is it, anyway? Is it Thursday? No, it’s Tuesday.)
5:49: Roll out of bed and take the dog outside. (No matter how cold or rainy. Oh, yay, snow.)
5:58: Feed and water the dog. (I need to get one of those auto dispensers. I have to put that on my to-do list.)
6:05: Shower time. (Have to beat my teenager to the shower before she uses all the hot water. I need to buy one of those shower timers. That will teach her to take a 26-minute shower! Put that on my to-do list.)
6:12: Felt good to take a shower. Coffee time… (I love my coffee.)
6:45: Wake up the kids. Let the chaos begin! (Seriously, did I just think that about my kids?)
6:50: Make the kids breakfast. (Wish I could just throw some dry cereal on the plate. That would be just as easy as feeding the dog. Maybe they make automatic cereal feeders for kids.)
6:55: Round up backpacks, coats, shoes. (Why is this my job???)
7:05: Tell the kids to get dressed for school. (You would think they could figure that out. They do it every day.)
7:06: Run back to my room to get ready for work.
7:08: Ugh. Tell kids to get dressed again. (Seriously?)
7:09: Run back to my room to finish getting ready for work.
7:10: “Come on, kids… bathroom duty time, hair, teeth, deodorant, get it done.” (Want your friends to say you stink and have ugly hair? This is really not my problem; it’s yours.)
7:15: Did you do your bathroom duty, kids? Hair, teeth, deodorant…get it done or you are going to bed early tonight.
7:20: Finish getting ready. The bus will be here in four minutes.
7:21: Mom, I need you to sign my permission slip for the field trip. (Seriously, could she not have asked me this last night?)
7:22: Mom, I need $10 for a band t-shirt. It’s due today. (Again, why did she not ask me last night?)
7:23: Come on! You’re going to miss the bus. (Great, now I had to yell at them as they were leaving for school.)
7:24: Yes! The kids are at the bus stop.
7:28: Put the breakfast dishes in the dishwasher.
7:30: Take dog outside. (I feel so bad I yelled at the kids on their way out the door.)
7:40: On the road to work—finally!
7:55: And the work day has begun. (Why do I feel so stressed today? I really wish I had not yelled at the kids on their way out the door.)
8:00: Call from the school: “Mom, I forgot my tennis shoes for gym. Can you bring them? (Seriously?) “Sure, honey, I will bring them right away.”
8:20: Back to work.
9:00: Meeting.
10:00: Meeting.
11:00: Catch up on email.
12:00: Lunch hour. (Oh, I mean errand hour—grocery store, bank, post office.)
You get the picture. And the chaos and mommy guilt continue throughout the day. Look at all the chaos and stress created in just a mere 2 hours and 15 minutes before Bizzy even went to work. What a way to start the day! Back to Bizzy.
Whew, I made it through the work day. It would have gone a little better if I had not yelled at the kids as they left this morning. I have to hurry and get the kids picked up from after-school care; it closes in 15 minutes. I will not be that mom who is late picking up her kids.
I will be there in eight minutes and will have seven minutes to spare, so I am not one of those moms. Yay, me! Wow! Traffic is really backed up. OH?!/% A TRAIN! I did not build that into my timing. So I may be one of those moms running through the door of after-school care apologizing and making up excuses why I am late. Good thing I can blame it on the train.
Good, that was a fast train. I have made it to after-school care with one minute to spare…at least according to my clock. Hi, kids. I am so sorry I yelled at you this morning.
Who has homework? Hope it’s not too much. We have piano and football practice tonight. Oh, I forgot about supper. I am so hungry. I guess I forgot about lunch as well. Kids, what do you want from Zippy Burger tonight? Sorry, but we need to eat in the car again. (Oh, how I hate Zippy Burger).
It is so nice that football and piano overlap. I have 15 minutes to read my magazine in the car. Time to pick up the kids and rush home to finish homework. Kids, shower time, bedtime and don’t forget to brush your teeth. Oh, they are finally in bed. I am so tired. I need to start a load of laundry or there will be someone without underwear in the morning. Who needs that drama?
Flop! Finally I can go to bed. I wonder what I forgot to do. That big project at work is not going so well. Tomorrow I am not going to yell at the kids on their way out the door. I wonder if someone fed the dog. I really need to go to sleep. I am tired. How are we going to make it to football, conferences and dance all at the same time tomorrow? I really need some sleep.
BBBBBBZZZZZZZ! (*%&#) That alarm gets earlier every morning. Oh, guess I was wrong. It is 5:45. I really need to get up a little earlier and go for a walk in the morning. Whatever, I need the sleep.
I am so tired of being this busy. I want to read a book or get a pedicure or watch a movie I like. But my kids and work must come first. It’s okay that I am not part of my daily to-do list. I can just wish I had the time for a pedicure or to read a good book. My friend Ann always finds time to read books. I wonder how she does that. She must ignore her kids, and I bet her house is a mess.
When I first met Bizzy, her life was filled with chaos, worry, mommy guilt and excuses. She needed a change. She incorporated the strategies you will learn about in the next eight chapters into her daily routine, and her
