On the day Bill works from home he pretty much always offers to pick me up from the station when I am getting home from work, even when it is late. Bill is that sort of person, kind and generous. But also he is like me after a hard day alone with the kids – desperate.
The first thing I do when I get to the car in the dark and find everyone in it waiting for me is to put the groceries and my work bags in the boot. I shop for our fruit and vegetables at the markets in my lunch-break and then I lug it all back to work with me and at the end of the day I lug it home with me on public transport. It is quite a feat, this ‘hunting and gathering’ business for one’s family.
The second thing I do is get Cormac out of his baby-seat and into the front seat where I can breastfeed him. He just can’t wait five more minutes until we get home.
The third thing I do is ask everyone about their day. Tonight everyone was bubbling with stories of misadventure – how Cormac smashed his face into something at the playground and Lauca had to be held down to take her medicine. And Bill has already bought a bottle of wine so we don’t need to stop at the pub on the way home, because there was only a glass of wine each left in the last bottle and he didn’t know about me but he knew he was going to need more than that tonight. When everyone is done with that I can strap Cormac back into his baby-seat and we can drive home.
Me: What is that all over Cormac’s foot? Is it blood?
Bill: No, don’t worry. It’s just pen, he drew all over himself.
Me: Oh, Bill.
Bill: That’s nothing, you should see what he did to the couch.
Me: Oh, god.
Bill: I tried to keep on top of things today but it all came apart when I started cooking dinner.
Me: Oh, Bill.
Bill: Really the house actually looked quite good right up until last thing this evening.
Lauca scoffs and says: Mummy, I kept an eye on Daddy all day and that guy didn’t do any cleaning at all except stacking the dishwasher.
Me: Oh, god.
(We all laugh, Lauca is a card).
Kids love to rat out their parents. When asked what my father usually cooked for dinner I replied ‘fish and chips.’
I -thought- I was looking forward to that stage when my toddler can fully partipate in conversations. Maybe not.
Fabulous that you have that sort of arrangement — even if it is only one day a week. Seems like it’d be something quite difficult to pull off.
hehehe. My partner may be a stay at home dad, but he is NOT a house husband. He does not cook, and rarely cleans. Nonetheless I have come home to some… interesting situations. At least he keeps the little guy entertained while I cook dinner so I don’t have to worry too much about pen on the couch.
Ah the funny little stories of the days of our lives. go Lauca and her honesty hah!
I really hear you on the groceries-on-public-transport thing. I suppose we could order groceries online… but it costs more and you aren’t guaranteed to get what you want and you have to be at home at times you can’t be at home… which is why I’m still trying to save time by getting groceries in my lunch hour, which is when I don’t have my car. gah.
my first thought when i read this beyond – yeah- i get that! was get your organic fruit n veg cheaply and direct from farmers via http://foodconnect.com.au. A socially progressive organisation which makes fruit n veg really easy. Your in Brissie- there’s probably a city cousin pick up close by! love the bloke in car with kids with wine. best.
I love how you have to unclip and extracate Cormac, and then feed him and then replug him in. Well not *love* obviously, but I can see this happening to me at some point so can understand the time and effort and love that would go into this.
And yay for wine.
[...] It is Bill’s work-from-home day of the week and I am leaving for my work when I remember that it is Halloween dress-up day at preschool. As I run out the door I give Bill a quick briefing on the challenge that lies ahead for him. None of Lauca’s dress-up clothes much fit her anymore. She wants to be something scary, NOT A FAIRY. Oh, and Lauca has already been a witch, a black cat, and a wizard for previous Halloween parties so you can rule them out straight away. Feel free to use a bit of old face paint if you can find some at the bottom of the painting box. You have about ten minutes before you need to take her to school and she hasn’t done her reading homework yet so don’t forget that either. Good luck. [...]
[...] there and Bill had to tell me the story on the phone when I rang from the office to ask how his work-day-from-home was going. He was feeling a little exasperated but I thought they both sounded sweet. Absence and [...]
[...] other kid-related tasks, by himself. He cherishes that day but also finds it utterly exhausting. (Its aftermath is frequently chaos). Working from home while dealing with little kids is no picnic. But for me, it is the most [...]