What's the plan?

By Published On: September 21st, 2012

Written by: Josh Conley September 20 2012 Nobody in this […]

Written by: Josh Conley

Nobody in this household works right now. I mean, not really. My wife’s on maternity leave and you would think that would make things easier around here. But it’s been kind of a struggle. I have to share the TV, put on pants—it’s been hard on all of us.

You see, my wife likes working. A self-described “worker bee,” she likes to be tasked. She likes having things on her plate and then licking it clean. Most of all, though, she likes structure. While I could just as soon skip all the working parts, I also have problems with unstructured time. And now we collectively have a big old pile of it, and are going a little nuts.

We are trying to take advantage of it. The beautiful weather, openly mocking our homebody-ing, has been helpful. Though easier said than done with nap schedules and breastfeeding, it’s not impossible to get out. Why, just last week the four of us went out to feed the ducks. We spent a morning at a functioning urban farm. And a couple days ago we all went apple picking. Good, wholesome family fun.

But of course these were the shining exceptions. Usually we’re too disorganized, lazy or just flat-out exhausted to nurture such aspirations. Communication has suffered. We’re always talking about “the plan.” So, what’s the plan for today? What’s going on tomorrow? Like it’s some calculated, proven formula that will result in unending familial bliss if we can just figure it out.

More often than not, our conversations enter some sort of unseen sleep-deprived void, where they linger for a minute, and then disappear forever. We can never seem to focus on more than a day in advance, though we love to talk about the whole week ahead. Calendar use has degenerated into items like “go to playground” and “brush teeth.”

My wife asked me the other day what we used to DO before we had kids. I said that was an unfair question, given that I can’t even remember what I did yesterday. This is a much more accurate representation of how our daily talks go:

W: So, what’s the plan for today?
M: What is today?
W: Umm, Monday, I think. Why?
M: I don’t know, you asked me.
W: Asked you what?
M: I don’t remember. Didn’t you just ask me something about a day?
W: What day?
M: The one we were just talking about.
W: What were we talking about again?
M: I don’t remember.
W: Okay, I’m going to sleep.
Very Animal Crackers. I’ve got to get some sleep, it’s part of my new plan. I should put that on the calendar before I forget. Now what was I talking about again?

If anybody has any suggestions, I would LOVE to hear them. There must be more effective ways to plan and communicate here in The Baby Blur. I mean, right?