7 years 1 month 5 days

Day 2592. This is week 4 of school for the kids. On Monday they all went back to school while I was glad to be able to sleep in. Eventually I got up and cooked lunch, then I left an hour early to go to the gym before picking up Sammy. Randy left before 1 pm to pick up Tammy and Emmy, while I picked up Sammy at 1:30 pm. By 2:15 pm everyone was home. A few minutes later I was the one to leave the house, all by myself.

I've had an eye problem all my life but it was only rarely an issue until 6+ years ago. Tiredness with 3 newborns and the first Corona lockdown led to that eye problem becoming a constant problem making my life difficult. After all those years, I've finally decided it's time to see a specialist to find out what can be done if anything to take care of the problem.

I rode two subways downtown and walked to the address of that eye doctor. I arrived there perfectly on time. I was surprised to find that there was no one else in the waiting room but then it was not a free doctor but one that you pay for. Perfectly on time for my 3 pm appointment, the doctor called me into his treatment room. And then I had one hour with him. I explained the problem to him, he examined my eyes and gave me all the details of what can be done which is an operation to fix the problem. It will be about half a year before he'll operate me. I left there very excited that my problem can be fixed. I paid and walked back to the subway to go home.

It was nearly 4:24 pm when I got off the subway by our house. Randy and the kids were all on the platform, then Randy got the train I had gotten off of with Tammy and Emmy. He took them to their exercise class, then came home. I took Sammy back to the house and started making their dinner. At 5:30 pm I had a student until 6:30 pm, then another one until 7:20 pm. Randy returned home with Tammy and Emmy at 7 pm. Their fruit plates were on the dining room table for them to eat. Once I was done teaching, I took them downstairs for piano practice. They also still had to do their daily reading for school. All that took us close to 8 pm, so I quickly prayed for them, then they went to bed, while I sat down to teach from 8 to 9 pm. After I was done, I took them from my bed to their beds, then I sat down to teach my salad before going back to work.

Tuesday

On Tuesday I was once again glad to not have any morning students. We had leftovers for lunch, then Randy left to pick up Tammy and Emmy, while I picked up Sammy at 1:30 pm. Rand and the kids came home before 2:30 pm, and at 2:45 pm I left the house with Tammy and Sammy. Randy and Emmy stayed home until 4 pm, then Randy took Emmy to his soccer training that started at 4:30 pm.

The three of us took the subway and then the bus and got to Tammy's dance school a few minutes before Sammy's private dance lesson started at 3:30 pm. Sammy had been looking forward to it for a long time. His teacher was the dance school's founder and director who is also one of Tammy's two teachers. She's really young and still going to school but also training to be a dance teacher, and she wants to spealize in special needs kids. She has a huge heart for Sammy, and Sammy really loves her even though he's only met her a few times. Tammy was with us as her class with her was right after Sammy's lesson.

We went into one of the big dance halls where Tammy and I sat down on a bench to watch. She then did a great job working with Sammy for half an hour, and Sammy participated wonderfully, doing everything she asked. He was clearly having fun. And she even did his favorite song which he was really happy about. After half an hour, she had seen all that Sammy could do which is what the first session was all about. Now she's going to create a choreography that she'll start working on with him next week, and at the Christmas show, Sammy gets to do the dance with her on the big stage. 

Sammy and I left the dance school before 4:30 pm, while Tammy started her class at that time. We rode the bus, then walked to the subway, when we suddenly ran into Daddy. He had dropped off Emmy at soccer practice and was on the way to dance school to be with Sammy. He has to help her put her ballet clothes on after the first hour, for her second class that goes until 6:30 pm.

Sammy and I were home before 5:15 pm. I went to the kitchen to make his sandwich and cut up fruit as well as make my salad. Just after 5:30 pm the two of us left the house to ride the subway to the end and pick up Emmy from soccer practice. When we got there, he had already stopped playing. He was very upbeat after his team had just won 6:1. He was hi-fiving and saying good-bye to a whole lot of kids. It looks like he's starting to make friends with boys there. So far he hasn't been too happy with that soccer club; hopefully that's gonna keep changing.

By 6:30 pm we were back home, and he started eating his fruit while I was getting ready for my 8 pm student. Once Tammy got home at 7 pm, I went downstairs with Emmy to do piano practice, then it was Tammy's turn. After the bathtub, they got ready for bed, I prayed for them, and they lay down in my bed to sleep while I sat down to teach from 8 to 9 pm. After i was done, I took them to their beds and sat down to eat my salad before going back to work.

Wednesday

This morning I set my alarm for 10 am. I got up and made breakfast, then sat down to teach from 11 to 12 pm. Randy left the house about that time to pick up Sammy from school and take him to the company that makes his night braces so they could fix what was wrong with them. As for me, I left the house just after 1 pm to pick up Tammy and Emmy. 

After two buses, I walked to the grocery store to get a few items, then to their school where I had to wait for them to come out at 2 pm. Then we walked to the bus stop and took two buses home. It was 2:40 pm by the time we got home. Randy and Sammy weren't back yet. I did piano practice with Emmy but Tammy didn't want to. Then I sat down to get ready for my 3:30 pm student. I taught until 4:30 pm, made their sandwiches and gave them to them, and just before 5 pm Randy left with Tammy and Emmy to take them to their maths club. Randy then stayed there for the whole 90 minutes and took them home after.

And so Sammy and I had lots of time together. Sammy called two of our American friends, while I was making my salad and cutting fruit for the kids. At 7:30 pm the rest of the family returned home. They ate their fruit, then I did piano practice with Tammy, then it was bathtub time. As I didn't have an 8 pm student, we did not have to watch the time. And so it was after 8:30 pm by the time they were in bed. I then sat down to eat my salad before going back to work.