My husband, Adam, is the kindest person I know. Every morning he wakes up early with our crazy and loud kids and lets me sleep. He comes downstairs with a cup of tea to wake me, giving me enough time to read for 10 or 15 minutes in bed before I join the party upstairs. One day he sheepishly admitted that he considers what my day will look like then tries to pick the mug that he thinks will best encourage me in that day. This day he opted for a small white cup that says "Today is the perfect day to start living your dream."
While we work hard to create a life we wouldn't want to retire from. Each week is a bit of a gamble. I think that's just life with five little kids. Kids get sick; appointments, work, and volunteer obligations fluctuate. But I was hopeful for this week.
We went to the gym together which we do most days. Normally I work out with my personal trainer two times a week, but I spoke at a conference a few weeks ago and said I needed a break. After seven days of extreme extroversion, my introvert heart needed a slower pace to recover. It had been a wonderful week with friends, fans, and new faces. I had loved every second but came home worn down.
After we left our jobs three years ago to start a mini-retirement, Adam doubled down on his health and strength. He puts in a solid 90 minutes in the gym five days a week. I basically cap out at 60 minutes, so I get 30 minutes of coffee and journaling time in the gym lobby.
After, I head to the dentist for a cleaning and $25 copay. Having the time for these kinds of appointments something I still appreciate. Simple blood work or teeth cleaning use to be a huge inconvenience when we both worked full time. Now they easily slide into our rather flexible days.
Adam had some video editing to get done for a new course I have coming, so he dropped our youngest off to play at daycare for a few hours while he worked at a coffee shop across the street.
I had an hour or two of work that afternoon then picked up one of my kids for an doctor's appointment. Again, these are the kinds of appointments that used to take a somewhat manageable day and turn it into a big ball of stress. Today it was more a fun solo outing with my kid. It's a rare treat when we get alone time to chat and hang out. We had some great conversations before meeting up with Adam to pick up all the kids from school.
I set out to try a new gym class I'd heard about called Ula at 5:30 but showed up at the wrong place and wrong time. Trying new things is hard. After a call to my friend I realized I was an hour too early and found the actual location. My parents live just down the street from me so I opted to go spend an hour with them and attempt this class again. This is the first year since I graduated high school that I live in the same town as my parents. Being able to stop by for a bit to chat is still such a treat. For years we were a 20 or 30-hour drive apart.
I paid $5 for the Ula class. It reminded me a bit of being in grade school and dancing along with my mom to Sweating to the Oldies with Richard Simmons.