May 04, 2009

ONE simple question no. 3

May 04, 2009/ molly balint

I have a lot I need to get done, which subsequently always seems to lead to some sort of procrastination. Tonight it took the form of blog-fussing and the creation of this little button. It's because I really love these simple questions I've been posing to all of you lately. The one of about the library and what methods you use to avoid fines and overdue charges was full of great ideas and advice. (as well as a few of you who commiserated with my "issues".) And I thought it was fascinating to read all of the different approaches to, and styles of family dinners.

Tonight, Dan was reading a bedtime story to the girls and I headed outside, just as it was getting dark, to lock the chickens in their coop. We've been trying to get out to them a little earlier these nights because we are getting a little suspicious that there might be some fox activity around here. Last night, we lost a whole nest of eggs that our one female guinea had been sitting on, and then, well....there's Rosie.

After I locked in the chickens, I took the long way home, walking around the back field with a trail of cats and dog bounding along behind me, listening to how deafening the peepers are getting, and straining to recognize the last few birds that were singing in the sycamore trees.

It was a much-needed time for me. I needed to get away for a few moments. Step back.

Tonight, as I often do, I was feeling the press of time on my shoulders. Feeling like our evening was slipping away too quickly. That by the time we were finished at the dinner table, I was already feeling like we were running late for bedtime and stories, and out of time for my planned baths for the girls.

During the work week, Dan gets home at 6:15, (on a good night) and we quickly sit down to dinner. Before we know it we're shuffling the girls upstairs for pajamas, tooth-brushing and stories. And sometimes, it all feels like it's happening too quickly.

So here's my (not so) simple question for all of you: How do you slow down and savor your evening family time? How do you keep things from feeling rushed? Do you organize or plan your evenings to make more time for enjoying each other?

I really enjoy hearing from all of you and interacting with you through these questions. I hope you are enjoying hearing from each other and learning from each other, as much as I am.

April 20, 2009

another simple question

April 20, 2009/ molly balint

Since my last simple question was such a success, I have another one for you this evening:

What is your dinner style? Buffet? Family style? Serve yourself?

Let me explain....for me, the moments right before we sit down to a meal can be pure chaos. Kids are whining for dinner, Dan is walking in the door, I'm still counting out forks and napkins, and realizing I forgot to put out everyone's drinks.

And I'm notoriously guilty of calling everyone in for dinner way too early--so that they're champing at the bit, mulling around the kitchen, and I'm still running around getting things together. (In my defense, it seems like the days I wait until every detail is taken care of, "people" lolly-gag too long and end up sitting down to a table full of cold food.)

I used to be a fan of the "buffet style" dinner, where I'd serve everything up from the stove and pass out plates to people sitting at the table. But sometimes, this gets a little crazy--the lack of counter space, the ones waiting for their plates to be fixed, hungry little ones digging in (and sometimes devouring) before we've even said grace, the getting up and down every time something is forgotten or someone needs more.

So lately, I've been bringing everything to the table and serving it up family style. It makes for a full table but it seems to make for less trips up and down and a smoother transition into dinner. I *think*.

But I'd love to hear your style.

How do you get everything on the table, get settled and enjoy a family meal?

March 03, 2009

one question

March 03, 2009/ molly balint

I'm going to put off the post I had planned to write this evening, with one simple (apparently in our family, not-so-simple) question:

What is your system for staying on top of (and not losing!) checked-out library materials?

Because seriously, I'm ready to put a ban on all library borrowing around here. If we don't get a system that works in place soon, they'll be dedicating a reading room in our honor.

I tried to create a little central gathering place for all the library materials to live--this nice little basket in the front hall. But darn if my kids don't want to read the library books! And carry them to secret nooks and crannies around the house; leaving my sweet little basket completely empty about two days after our library trip. Today I walked passed it, saw it empty, and tossed some mail in there, just so it wasn't so bare.

My no-nonsense husband says, "Well, they're in the house somewhere." True. I know they're not in the garden shed. I know they're not in the chicken coop. I know they're not on the front porch. They could be in the car. But obviously there is some black hole, perhaps under the girls' beds, that is swallowing up library books, and has a particular hunger for movies about baby deer and soccer tips from the 80s.