Why does it seem such a chore most days he works to get a meal completed? I cook for four adults in my house. It’s really not a big difference any day of the week. Yet if he’s at work I can almost guarantee that dinner time will be odd.

Right now we’re in the middle of another 24 day challenge so I’m being really good about food. I’ve also noticed the poor eating habits the teens have as I’ve let them slack. This is exactly how and when bad habits are formed. I have to change the habits in a positive way. Not easy with teens that could go cranky at any time for no reason lol

I tend to cook plenty of food when I make a meal. 1) I like leftovers for hubby and I for lunch 2) This way I can send food with him to work. Depending on the shift they may not have time to eat or they may have to snag what they can. 3) The kids and I have the leftovers on the nights he’s working.

Last night I made stir fry and it worked out well. Non-stop running so stir fry is quick and still healthy. I made a ton of it so I’ll be freezing some for later use. That is what I really love to do. Fill the freezer so I don’t have to worry about it. Our chest freezer was leaking so we had to get rid of it and now I’m having to contend with just two normal fridge freezers. Not easy after having so much room before. It’s going to take a lot of relearning.

What’s your fav or go to meal when they are working? Do you cook or is it almost always takeout?

I’m feeling spoiled, loved, happy and fulfilled with life. You know, all the things you hope and dream for. Is everything perfect? No, but it’s perfect for me right now and that’s all I can ask.

It’s all going so smoothly that I have to fight back that voice in the back of my head that it’s going too great. That negative voice in my head that tends to tell me I can’t keep everything this perfect for long. Yes, I fight negative demons, but I’ve gotten good at it and it’s not a daily thing I have to do anymore. I’ve also gotten good and making them go quiet and only pop up here and there.

Why am I feeling all these things? I’ve had an amazing few weeks with my family and the funny thing is it all started with our remodeling projects and me getting really sick from it. I was less my usual pansy self when I get my allergies and asthma that bad and just kept “trying” to battle through. I know I wasn’t much help as I was a walking allergy zombie but it was still good. Hubby and I got a few days alone to work on the house, go to lunch whenever and make dinner whenever. It was like a trial run for empty nesters. Since then the communication has been incredible.

Ever since the kids came back they’ve been getting along amazingly. Joking and harassing each other without it causing a big fight. Doing stuff around the house without complaint. Joking and talking with hubby and I and even wanting to hang out with us more. Hey, they are teens, I’ll take that as long as I can before the bubble breaks.

As you can see above, the weather has been beautiful. This is always a help for me. I definitely have the seasonal mood issue and living in the UNsunshine side of the state is a mood killer. The longer the sun is out the better I’m feeling. And the more I can look and see how I can keep feeling this way. Taking advantage of each moment is the key.

Hence the picture above. Hubby bought me a new laptop to work with. I have a 5 hour battery now! I’M SO BEYOND GEEKED! The sun was out, the kids had mowed and I set a goal to finish things up and go outside to blog. I succeeded at that goal. Not with this post like I wanted but that’s ok. I even ate my dinner out there. It wasn’t lonely today with the sunshine to keep me company and I didn’t feel guilty for eating outside the first time of the season without him.

I know some of you just went WHAT?! But yep, it’s a girl thing and it’s worse after the kids. Taking a step any direction brings some niggling of guilt. It’s stupid, but there it is. It’s not like feelings have anything to do with rational behavior or control. But I’m getting good at fighting them down and I just think it takes practice. AND putting myself first again. Which I haven’t been doing the last 5 years. When I put myself first my entire family always gets this way and I need to remember that. The adage, happy Momma, happy family is very true. Because you really set the tone for the emotion in the house.

This post has been all over the place I know. That’s how I am so you can tell this just spilled right out. I’m trying to figure out a good schedule for getting everything done. But most of all, I’m getting my priorities really straight and trying to add other important things in. Without letting that little nag in my head ruin everything. The one that tries to tell me that everything is going too well.

Do you battle with the feeling that everything is going too well sometimes?

My routine is to get used to a new routine constantly. lol No really, I swear that is how it goes. Just when I’m getting used to the schedule, he’ll have a spurt of vacation or K days come up. But over the years I have started getting into more of a routine that’s quite comfortable.

Since I work from home (except for my fitness class) I have room for the routine and schedule to change. Which has it’s definite downside. I allow it to change even though I really shouldn’t. Weeks like this last one really put a hurt on things and I do have bills I’d like to pay and things I’d like to save up for. Letting things slide are not going to allow that to happen.

A definite part of the routine is I get up with the kids, pack the lunches and make them breakfast. This way life is constant in the morning and I don’t have to wonder what they are eating and if they took everything they needed with them to school. No, I’m not saying I do this better than hubby, but I’m going to wonder most of the day about things if I can’t ask them first thing in the morning. I try to sleep while they are all getting ready if hubby gets up with them. I’m not a sound sleeper so it doesn’t work well. I’ve found I may as well get up and let him sleep.

The daytime is what changes the most. I am off to teach class 3 mornings a week and then on days he’s working I’m mostly online. I try to pack as much in on days he’s gone so I can shut the computer more when he is home. I’ve also learned I better cram things in or they won’t get done. If he’s home we could run off for the day doing errands, on a lunch date, shopping or going to the range. Or all of the above and then also hanging with friends that are off as well. We play his days off mostly by ear unless there is something pre-planned.

Of course evenings are always different. There’s no routine there at all. Are the kids in sports, is he working, was anyone hungry, do we have a doctors appt? Too many variables to even think about a routine. But right now if he’s home he’s been going and picking the kids up from practices so it’s a great trade-off for my always getting up with them in the morning.

But that is all up in the air at any moment of course. OT, drill I forgot to write on the calendar or any number of variables come into play just like they do for you. Not to mention the fact that maybe he didn’t get any sleep the shift before so any plans we may have will be canceled if he can’t stay awake.

Are you lucky enough to have a routine that you usually stick to?

Right? I mean, they sleep all night, that’s when society sleeps so they are just getting paid to sleep as well. ROFLMAO and wishing everyone could sleep at the station at least once so they’d understand.

I loved reading Extra-busy fire unit answers the calls nearly nonstop here except for the part that they eluded to this not being the norm for most stations. I really like firehouse.com but that is not where I’m going to go pull call stats. lol

Being able to take naps is the norm in most departments, because if they didn’t take naps when needed they’d get no sleep at all. Even while hubby was volunteer he was stuck in mostly nap mode, it’s why he could transition so well I think. He’d work all day (12-16 hours with commute) then go on calls when he got home. Some days that left very little sleep before getting up again at 5am to start the 12-16 hours up again. That was 6 days a week with only 1 day of recovery before starting again. Yes, we are ever so thankful to be doing just the one job now so he has 36 hours of recovery in there and we can spend time with him.

Since January he’s been at a new station. In the previous 4 years a full night constituted sleeping 5 hours. Now after moving to new station and the reconfiguring of the district he tells me he got a full night sleep when it was 3 hours.

This is where I step in completely. There is nothing we ever have going on that he can’t miss the day after working. I just don’t schedule it. If it’s kids stuff then it’s usually later afternoon/evening so there is no worry of missing it. But my priority is getting him sleep.

I get the rundown of his night usually and I gear how long his nap will be. Don’t judge me, he only gets less than a 2 hour nap if he wakes up on his own. lol He’s also very happy that I monitor it if I can because if he sleeps too long it messes him up.

So don’t think because my husband works a 24 hour shift that he is only working 8 of it. He’s working all 24, plus he’s using the next 24 to recover. This leaves me with 72 hours of shift and then 72 hours of recovery in a set. 6 days are spent this way, then we’ll have 3 days to enjoy some family time before another 6 days of adjusting occurs.

I don’t ask for pity. It is what we signed up for and we are so happy to be living it. It’s much better than the 6 days of 60 hour work week, then 12 hour commute, plus calls at night. I never saw him then and he never got down time. It was literally killing him. My job is to keep that from happening. My job is to manage his down time and make sure he gets enough rest so he can help you on your call. I’m not just his wife, I’m also your backup.