A usual morning here goes something like this:
- youngest son wake between 6-7am, once he's awake going back is not an option but he usually likes to get on with something quiet and not requiring much energy, so he will make his way up to my eldests bedroom (he is usually reading by this time and they quietly read stories, play lego until I am up and functioning at some useful level, I am not a morning person!!
- depending on how well my husband slept, he has chronic pain that is especially bad at night and has breathing difficulties which affect my sleep, and how well my youngest has slept, he also has a lot of night time pain that often requires attention and assuming that my daughter has not had any dislocations or movement of joints during the night, I begin my day with a cuppa and a quick tidy round.
- I then gauge everyones level of fatigue and pain and proceed from there.
This morning looked a little different!
Armed with note pad, pens, highlighters and my daughters computer (mine is at the repair shop, grrrr!) I spread the essential tools for my success across the dining room table before the kids woke up. One by one they appeared in the dinning room, looking on with curiosity "What on earth is my mother doing?". Gently I reminded them that for the next six month I will be studying my own course and that if they wanted me to continue taking them to evening clubs and helping them with their work then I would need time in the mornings to complete my assignments. Team work, I explain, was going to be essential if we are to all successed and be happy.
On hearing this my eldest son (12) goes to his work box, takes out his work folder, joins me at the table and methodically works his way through his latin, ICT and history study for the day. My daughter (10) grabs some tracing paper, she's the arty one, some drawing implements and my youngest son (5) and she proceeds to teach him how to trace. An hour and a half later and I feel happy that I have completed enough work, the kids have all been engaged in a useful activity and we are all ready to face the day!
A good first day of study!