My Day...

      Before we moved here, someone said, "So the girls will be in school and Kevin will be at work.  What are YOU going to do with all your time?"

     So, here is my day:  I get up at 5:30, so we can have family prayer about 6, then we go down to breakfast so the girls can be on their bus by 6:30 pm.  It doesn't look like we will be able to do Early Morning Seminary.  But the girls could do their Home Study manuals on the bus, so they could have a daily morning experience.

     So!  I have "free time" from 6:30 a.m. until the girls get home at 4:30 pm.  TEN hours!  That's two more hours than I am used to, but I've been finding enough to do.

• I do name indexing.
• I study Chinese with Rosetta Stone.
• I do some hand laundry.  (I don't want the hotel doing underwear, and I need something active to do--something that feels like what a mom should be doing!)  And Deborah, this is the kind of drying rack I was looking for.  

• I read.  I finished the first book in The Wheel of Time series and have begun the second book.  This was a series I've been wanting to read for about 10 years, but the books were so thick I knew I didn't have the time.  Now I do.  And thanks, Adam, for letting me take the 2nd book.  I've also been finishing up Justin's book.  I like the changes he's made.  It's a good book!
• I work-out in the exercise room and finish off with a swim.
• And I do cross-stitch while I listen to podcasts from the radio station back in Iowa.  That helps me keep in touch with the political situation, especially this past week leading up to the Straw Poll.  The cross-stitch is getting to the point of doing the back-stitching.  

• And thank heavens for the internet.  It takes a while keeping up with email and blogs.
• Then there are days with appointments.  This evening, we have the hour-long ride into Tianjin to attend the high school open house.  Sometimes I wonder if we should have lived closer to the school!

       Once everyone gets home, we walk to a restaurant, or if trying one that is further away we have the driver take us.  We actually enjoy the walk--and it is often a mile or so.  It was really hot when we first got here, with a lot of humidity, but the past week has been in the 80's, with a nice breeze, so it's pretty comfortable.

      In the evening, if the girls' homework is all finished, we often watch an episode of "Psych".  Then it's family scripture reading, family prayer and off to bed about 9:30 pm.  

It's a little different from what I'm used to, but it's alright.