I'm still tied to the M-F alarm clock because the kids need to be driven to their bus stop at an ungodly hour. (They're school starts at 7:25, and we're the furthest bus stop for this magnet school - so it's truly EARLY when they leave the house.) I compensate for that by taking the dog with me and going for a walk on the beach on the mornings I don't have my Italian class. Taking Italian and walking the dog on the beach are both pleasant "me" activities compared to work.
But - the comment about reading really hit home. I'm having to manage my wish list/request list at the library to make sure I always have a few books in the queue. It used to take me up to 4 weeks to go through a book, with 5 minutes here, 10 minutes there.... Now I finish books much faster because I can spend time reading while waiting for the kids bus, while they're practicing piano (because I'm not multitasking with dinner because I can pre-prep dinner), etc.
A big adjustment is changing up my routine as far as grocery shopping, laundry, etc. I used to cram it all into one day... now I spread out the laundry through the week, and do grocery shopping on one of 3 days, depending on other commitments.
But - the comment about reading really hit home. I'm having to manage my wish list/request list at the library to make sure I always have a few books in the queue. It used to take me up to 4 weeks to go through a book, with 5 minutes here, 10 minutes there.... Now I finish books much faster because I can spend time reading while waiting for the kids bus, while they're practicing piano (because I'm not multitasking with dinner because I can pre-prep dinner), etc.
A big adjustment is changing up my routine as far as grocery shopping, laundry, etc. I used to cram it all into one day... now I spread out the laundry through the week, and do grocery shopping on one of 3 days, depending on other commitments.