The most common question we answer from family and friends is "What do you do all day???" The answer is this: "Lots!"
We don't usually set an alarm clock, so the day starts when we are ready to wake up. We go to bed fairly early, so morning comes anywhere from 4:30am (for Tim on some mornings!) to about 8:00. After we are up - we have breakfast. If Tim has to wait for us to get up, he usually reads. After breakfast, on an ideal morning, the dishes would be done right away, otherwise they might sit until after lunch - remember I have to heat water - sometimes melt snow - to wash them!
After breakfast, we do school. We usually do that 3 or 4 mornings a week and it takes about 2 hours. After school I usually go for a walk and then it is time to make lunch. Tim spends this time outside puttering around. There never seems to be a shortage of things to do out there. The kids also head outside after school for about an hour before lunch. Sometime throughout the day we also split wood to fill the box inside the cabin.
After lunch the kids play outside and I usually use this time to do something I need to do inside like bake or clean up, or even just read a magazine. On a well planned day, supper is started mid afternoon or so, and the rest of the time is spent working on that recessed with some time spent outside. Although we have gained some daylight here in the last few weeks, up until now we had to turn the lantern on around 4:00 to finish supper. After supper, the dishes are done and the kids play with Dad. At bedtime (usually between 8:00 and 9:00pm) the kids are read a story (or 2 or 3...) or we make up stories, each child taking turns adding to it. Last night Nola's character in her story was "Princess Flying Rockstar" and she drove a pink dirtbike, and was being chased by wolves or bears (vivid imagination!)
On a day where the guys are checking traps, they are gone from about 8:00am until nearly suppertime. On these days after school is done the kids usually watch a movie (using the generator or battery backup on the laptop) and I get a break. Checking traps takes two days of the week up (changed to one starting today.) The days they are checking traps are usually saved for baking as well. Each day after checking traps is spent in the shop skinning and stretching the animals. One day a week, weather permitting, (always a Wednesday) is spent going out for mail and visiting. We are travelling by snowmobile right now so everything takes a little extra time. We also spend one or more days of the week doing something like getting wood, or taking a little side trip with the snowmobiles.
We also get asked a lot if we eat our meals with Heather and Paul. Not all, of course, as we each have our own houses, but we do share quite a few, either wiener roasts in the yard or on the trail, there also seems to be a birthday or other special occasion that we share each month. We also play games pretty often like Crib, Joker's Wild, or the favorite right now - Mexican Train. On these nights we often throw together snacks and finger foods so we don't have to cut our game short.
There seems to be little time leftover for crafts and hobbies, of which I brought a lot of supplies for and have spent next to no time using.
As you can see - it doesn't take long to burn through a week - and the weeks are going way too fast in my opinion...
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