Quiet Time

One of the most commonly asked questions I get as a stay-at-home Mama to several little ones is, "how do you not go insane?" That's a question I have to often ask myself so that I make sure that I stay sane (even though, my priest once told me, "we are all a little bit insane". I love that.)

One of the main things I have tried to learn how to do in my almost 5 years as a mother has been to keep myself grounded and in a good psychological state so that I can be the best mama and wife that my children and my husband need me to be. One of the things that has become a custom in our house is "quiet hour", which is at least an hour long each day, immediately after lunch. This is the time when the toddler naps, and the older two children each sit on a couch within my sight. It is also the time I sit down at the table for usually the first time all day (not including our morning lessons, when we sit on the couch together). For our Quiet Hour, the rules for the kids are that they need to stay on the couch (or inside the teepee, or on their Anywhere Chairs), and do something quiet. I have always dreamed that I'd put together nice "quiet time boxes" like I see on Pinterest, but in my reality, this has not happened and I am ok with that. I kind of prefer they learn what to occupy themselves with, anyway, because I will not always be there to hand them a box of fun goodies (lol). So, they choose books or quiet toys and sit resting for a solid hour. Before I go on, please remember that my reality is far from perfect: so, the kids do not always sit perfectly silently, and there are always interruptions of one sort or the other. But the point is, I do not end quiet time until a full hour has passed because that is what all parties need after a busy morning. Some days are very successful, and other days, I need to remind the kids what "quiet hour" is all about.

My routine during this very beloved time of day is to clear off the table from lunch (which the kids help with), wipe down the table, and put everything away (food and dishes, napkins, etc) so that I have a clean kitchen to work with in the afternoon and evening. Once the kitchen is clean and the counters are wiped down, I make myself a nice hot cup of tea, or a cafe latte. This is my favorite time of day! I sit down and savor every sip of that latte, and usually I either read a book, browse Pinterest, or knit as I sip. This gives me the right amount of time to re-gain energy for the rest of the day, and also to get some mental quiet/peace time, which is always very needed. Some days, if the kids rested nicely, I let them watch 45 minutes of a TV show (99% of the time, something in Russian), and I continue my quiet time by knitting, or do quiet housework, or knit.

My husband recently sent me a surprise gift in the mail - a milk frother. This, together with my stovetop espresso maker, has been making the best afternoon lattes!!! Today, I tried something new: a tea latte. I LOVE it! I will post the recipe I used in my next post so that this post doesn't get all cluttered.