a day in the life... (a mamawell exclusive)
come in!
you’re always welcome here! i’m sharing on @themamawellinstagram account, but wanted to invite you over here to the neighborhood. i write regularly about urban life, family life, church planting life, and writing life! you can click on the about page and read more. what i want to do with this post is show you a day in the life of our family!
L to R: Samuel (age 13) me, Asher (age 11), Ben (married for 18 years), Kavita (age 13), and Elijah (age 15)
we moved to San Francisco in 2010 to start a church in downtown where we now have 3 services with over 60 nations represented. we left family on the east coast, but have created a community of friends and family. our four kids are at three schools: charter, public, and catholic. we have one car and even that’s a luxury in the city. our kids ride in the mini-van, bus, and train to school and ben gets to work by foot and train. our city is transient so we say just as many “hi, my name is” as we do, “good-bye.” our kids see everything here. it brings about conversations that i wasn’t having until college and is growing compassion, empathy, and a faith that is all their own. i wouldn’t want to be anywhere else doing any other thing! it is all by the grace of God, a community of believers, and the power of prayer that we are thriving as a family in one of the most influential cities in the world.
how we do life in the season we are presently in:
5:30 ben and i study the Bible on our own and pray together in our favorite chairs. we prep the night before. coffee is set to brew at 5:30. candles are lit. we choose this time because the house is still quiet. we consider this our best gift to our day. getting up to pray before the kids awake is an act of worship. (and sacrifice!)
6:45 during the school year, we wake the kids and they get ready, have their personal time with God, make breakfast, and pack their lunches.
7:20 we leave for school and work. we always pray on the way to school. (10 years and counting.)
{8:30 but during the summer, i wake the kids at this time to get stronger, better, and closer. closer to God. stronger in physical activity and exercise. and better at a skill, art, or subject.}
8:20 i’m done with drop-offs and at the gym then home to write and invest in my city, church, and community.
3:30 kids reappear at home! we accomplish homework, run errands, play on our sidewalk slab, and snack.
5:30 we meal prep and make dinner together. partly because i don’t love cooking and because it’s more fun and faster when we’re all involved. ben gets home around this time.
7:30 bedtime ready. it’s a phrase we have coined and know and love. it practically means: shower, brush teeth, floss, comb hair, pick out clothes for tomorrow. it sums up all we need to accomplish to be ready for bed and ready for tomorrow. then we read and hang out.
8:30 tuck-ins begin. we are learning that age doesn’t matter, but quality time does. our teens treasure this one on one time they get with us to share things they prefer not to share with everyone. we hear their hearts as they intercede for their friends and what is heavy on their thoughts.
9:30 ben and i connect again in the chairs we started in!
some values we have as a family:
Be you. Don’t hide you. Be you.
Everything has a home.
Better. Stronger. Closer.
ICNU. We name strengths we see in our kids and ways we can compliment them.
some resources to share:
I’m more than happy to give more details, so ask any questions you have!