About once a year I decide to grab my camera as often as I can to document just an ordinary day. A “Day in the Life.” Or DITL, if you will. It seems to happen late December or January. Each year I think I will make this happen each month, or at least each season. Unfortunately, I haven’t done it more than once a year. Maybe this will be the year?
Regardless of how I often I do this or what my intentions are, I am glad I do it. I read a book in high school, or maybe it was a play, but there was this quote that I obviously have forgotten and will butcher. But something about: if I could go back in time I would choose just an ordinary day to go back to because those are the days when nothing but everything happened.
So here is an ordinary January day that I can go back to…
The twinkle lights make the dark mornings cozy. The falling pictures on the wall remind me that Parabo Press never should have stop selling their sticky magnets. They are about five years old and are worn out. But I still hang everyday memories on the wall.
Feeding the chickens and goats.
One bonus of homeschooling is we can start our day however we need or want. Most snowy mornings, sledding is part of the schedule.
The time between coming in from outside and when breakfast is served is used differently by everyone. Some are studious and squeeze a few minutes of a hobby in while others just brush their hair, change their clothes and may or may not annoy someone else in the process.
After breakfast we do a quick fifteen minute clean up. Dishes washed. Floors swept. Bathroom cleaned. Living room blessed. (Side note on the snowman plates. My mom gave them to me one Christmas. They are something I never would have bought myself but so happy to have.)
We are traveling around the world through books and youtube videos this month. Each day we pick one animal or landmark in a country to read and learn about. Then the girls each draw and write about it. It is fun to have the different ages. The oldest’s entries are more factual and organized while the youngests’ are funny and a bit ridiculous. For example, “Hello! My name is Tiddles. I love, love the rainforest. It has Amazon trucks and everything can be delivered in two days. It is 100 degrees and always rains. I love my beak. I love throwing my food up in the air and catching it. No one else really does that.” There is always a hidden bit of truth mixed with the fun of being seven.
This melts my heart and has become a daily occurrence: the middle reading to the twins. It might be because she has “read aloud - 10 minutes” on her daily to-do list and she doesn’t want to read to me, but I will take it. Everyone is winning here.
Everyone wants to snuggle with the cat. Everyone wants to be in the bed by the window that looks out at the bird feeder. The cat tolerates it all. Sometimes the sister tolerates it too.
Lunch is usually a picnic on the living room floor and we watch the daily World Watch news for kids and maybe another video on something they are learning about or interested in.
Art happened. Made animal carnival masks.
A quick look at the birds. We have a wood pecker who visits the tree right outside the window. A pair of blue jays along with a bunch of other birds are thankful for the sunflower seeds in the bird feeder.
Then it’s back outside with the snow.
The dinner makers.
A game of Clue Jr with the littles while the olders played rummy with their dad.
Some night time reading.
So thankful for these ordinary days.