Although the end of a long spring or summer day can spell mayhem, tired and cranky kids unable to contain their sobs and a mama who just wants it all to end, it also can be my favorite time. The shadows lengthen across the yard and a cool breeze nudges at the curtains. I swing the baby up into my backpack and start dinner. I like to do a quick pick up of the downstairs, send kids upstairs with their various belongings that have migrated during the day, maybe run the vacuum, wipe down counters, clean up. Now is the time to put away those statuesque skyscrapers of laundry to free up the table for dinner. In some ways it is to give my husband a calm, clean place to land after a long day. In other ways it is to give me a fresh start for the morning. Whatever the reason, it has become tradition, part of the rhythm of daily life. It signals the end of a long day well lived. It brings out the anticipation of Daddy coming home soon.
Later, once dinner is finished, plates cleared away by the kids and the baby put to bed, I'll do one more walk through before settling into my evening with my husband. In the morning I'll appreciate the wiped counters, clean dishes, swept floor. For now it all just helps me relax. The house quiets and time slows and I can truly relax before doing it all again tomorrow.
What is your end-of-the-day rhythm?
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After way too long of a break, I finally finished that quilt top I was working on. I literally refused myself any new projects until it was finished. All it needs now is batting and backing to be procured tomorrow. Don't mind the small one with no pants in the picture....
I love the quilt. My end-of-day ritual is nothing like yours, sadly. It involves me scraping the various piles of research off my bed, closing my laptop, listening to a soothing .mp3 or talking to Jason and trying to get a very necessary 6-8 hours of sleep before starting the whirlwind that is my life all over again. Thankfully, my life isn't that messy these days so my counters stay clean. The towers of laundry, on the other hand, are everywhere. I keep telling myself that someday - after the bar exam - my life will be orderly again. :)
ReplyDeleteSurprisingly, your end-of-the-day-rhythm sounds all too familiar to me. Mine is very much the same. The laundry sometimes doesn't end up getting folded until after the kids are in bed, but after dinner, for me, things have got to be cleaned up. It's part of who I am I guess. I just like things orderly and clean.
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