RHYTHMS

First of all. The word "rhythm" must be spelled wrong. If you stare at it long enough, you'll go crazy thinking it is not right.

Second of all... I've been thinking a lot about rhythms. I've been thinking that I need rhythms. And ever since we left for Uganda, it seems like I've been jacking with my rhythms in life.

Here's a few it's been good to restart and a few I'm still trying to get back in order:

RHYTHMS THAT ARE BACK ON TRACK:

• DAD BONDING: Meeting with TJ every wednesday for some breakfast and bonding has been good again. Tomorrow is my re-entry into the world of field trip Dad. Tyler and I are going to Mission Trails.
  
• SCHOOLING: Becky and Billy finally have a school rhythm. We ended up pulling them from the public school scenario and home schooling them so that they can finish Kindergarten this year and begin 1st grade next year. Hopefully next week they'll start to go to the kitchen table in the morning with Shannon and spend the afternoons at our local elementary school getting acclimated to new peers and group learning structures
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  • BILLS: I hate bills. But I finally got back on track with them after being wacky from being gone for a month and prepaying them and yatta yatta.
  • READING: I've gotten back on track with a reading plan. Still a little sketchy, but it's way better than the non-existent one I had going there for a while.
  • BASIC HOME LIFE: I make breakfasts and lunches. I drive the kids to school. I come home for dinners as often as I can and do baths and stories and watch episodes of Planet Earth and yatta yatta. It's enough of a rhythm that Becky and Billy can even start to tell you what is next and how it works with some measure of predictablity.
    
  
  RHYTHMS THAT ARE STILL OUT OF WACK:
  
  • EXCERCISE: I've been able to catch a run or play some indoor here and there, but I've still yet to figure out how to get back into a consistent excercise rhythm.
  • DATING MY WIFE: Our date day was Monday mornings. Yeah, well now we have 2 kids at home again on Mondays. We need a new date day. Maybe Monday afternoons will work if the kids go to school in the afternoons. If not, we need to figure this one out. The whole childcare thing is just plain too expensive. Our dates become paying a sitter so we can sit somewhere without kids. It's refreshing at times, but not all it could be.
    
  • SCHEDULE: I've come home to a wacky work schedule of weekends and conferences and such. Part of that is wacky and part of that is normal if I'm honest with myself. Saying yes to the right things and no to the wrong things is even more critical these days. It still feels like some stuff is out of rhythm here.
    
  • WRITING: I had a writing rhythm going for a while. It's about time to kick that one into gear again too.
  • BUDGET: 5 kids and Shannon not working this Spring means we need to rethink this a little.