The New Normal?

I’m a few weeks into what I’m tentatively calling a mini retirement, so it’s time to give you an update on how it’s going. My family went on a trip to Wisconsin right after my last day at work, so my new situation didn’t really sink in at first since I felt like I was on a regular vacation, albeit with less time pressure and no checking my work email. When we got home, our littlest kid started preschool and I was suffering from an ugly sinus infection, plus we had family visiting and preparations to take KidSense back to college were in full swing. But things have settled down somewhat and I’ve gotten into a routine. 

I still hop out of bed between 5:15-6:00 to go on my morning run. Even though I don’t have a job to be at, I’ve decided to continue doing my runs bright (or these days, sort of dark) and early. I meet up with friends to run a couple times a week, usually at 6, and I don’t want to vary my sleeping hours much day to day. Plus, I enjoy the sense of accomplishment of having an exercise session under my belt first thing. I’m typically out the door in ten minutes from when my alarm goes off– no point in brushing my hair or doing anything else when I’m going to be sweaty in a few minutes. I’m generally done with my runs by 7-7:20, and Mr. Sense is making me breakfast when I walk in the door. (Friends, find a husband like this. I’m so blessed that Mr. Sense makes me avocado toast, bacon, eggs, and coffee every single morning, and he promises he’s going to keep doing it even though I’m not heading into the office anymore– yay!). 

PreSense now attends morning preschool four days a week. Mr. Sense and I work together to get her dressed, fed, and transported. We’ve been pretty good about picking her up from school on the cargo e-bike, but we’re still getting into the morning groove and have been taking her via car. Hopefully we’ll improve on this, but when it gets chillier I don’t think I’ll be dragging her out for all-season biking at the tender age of three. 

With the house kid free, I have most mornings available for my creative work. My number one priority for this time is an hour of piano practice. Back at my musical peak, I spent much more time practicing, but I’m finding an hour to be about the sweet spot for me for now when it comes to more complicated pieces– enough time to make progress, but much longer would be difficult for my concentration and physical comfort. I expect to be able to extend this over time as I get better at focusing and keeping my hands and shoulders loose. 

Mornings are also when I have time to write. People have different times when they’re most mentally sharp, and I do my best work before lunchtime. So after my piano practice, I can write, handle tasks that require focus or are easier to knock out without a kid tugging on my shirt, and start thinking about dinner– what we have on hand, when I’ll need to start prepping, etc. 

I pick up PreSense and it’s time for lunch. I’m big on avoiding food waste, so leftovers are almost certainly involved. Mr. Sense taught me that almost anything can go inside a taco, so we have a lot of leftover spare rib/breakfast sausage/ground beef tacos, as well as whatever-vegetables-are-oldest egg scrambles, and little-dibs-of-chicken-over-pasta-and-cheese left under the broiler for a couple minutes.

After lunch, PreSense takes a nap– or at least some quiet-ish time in her bedroom. This is nap and reading time for me as well. By 2ish, it’s time for me to do some house cleaning or yard work and by 3, PreSense is reenergized and ready to get involved. I’m working on some decluttering of the house and deep cleaning of the kitchen and bathrooms, so I’ll get some work in there with PreSense tagging along. Then we usually do something more fun for the rest of the afternoon– yesterday was a family bike trip to the library. Visiting my parents and hanging out at the park are other PreSense favorites. 

Around 5:30, I’m getting hungry and starting to put dinner together. This is new for me; Mr. Sense has been the primary chef for our whole marriage. But since he’s working part time in a restaurant, I’m taking over a lot of the home cooking so he doesn’t get too tired of kitchens between work and his bagel making. 

We try to get PreSense to bed at 7:30, so the bath time and book reading process usually begins by 6:45. We are very fortunate that she goes to bed without much fuss as long as we stick to our regular routine: bath/shower, tooth brushing, book, prayer, and singing. Mr. Sense or I handle this while the other person does the dishes. 

The rest of our evenings are pretty relaxed; we read, play games, or just talk until it’s time for lights out. I’m being vigilant about getting enough sleep so I can be the best runner, pianist, and parent possible. 

It’s cliche to say I don’t know how I got anything done while I was working full time, but it sure feels like each day speeds by. I expected I’d get a little bored, but so far I still feel like I have so much to do that I would need years like this to accomplish it all. I’m happy with the balance of family time, rest, and productivity I’ve landed at so far.