Life is great after our move to the south of France. We are finally settled and enjoying this small village. We could not tour around outside of the village because Juliana was wearing a hip brace and could not fit in her car seat with it. Working at home with baby can be challenging at times – not only because she needs me constantly throughout the day, but she is just too darn cute to put down!
For the month of February, I spent every spare moment I had into working on a book. I thought if I could focus all my energy into it, I could finish it by the end of the month. Sometimes life does not go as planned and my book is about two-thirds finished. If I only had a week where I could work on it full-time, I know I could finish it quickly. As it stands now, I am trying for April 15.
I have been working out on average 5 days a week since living in Provence and have already lost 6 kg. I have more energy than before, do not crave sugary foods and finally fit into one of my pre-pregnancy pants. I could not really work out after giving birth because I was sick for months because our house was infested with black mold. I still have a little pouch in front and people think I am pregnant! While it could be convenient for getting in front of lines, I would prefer to be back to my regular shape.
Over the past months, I have tried to create schedules.Things always popped up that would throw me off. So now, I just created the most flexible schedule ever for getting the bare minimum of work done. I hope I can stick to it longer than 2 weeks.
Monday through Friday –
Mornings – spend at least 2 hours on book
Afternoon – workout for at least 1 hour
Evening – spend at least 2 hours on blog
Saturday –
Mornings – spend at least 3 hours on book
Afternoon – go for a long run
I also spend at least 2-3 hours a day in the kitchen cooking. I love to cook and enjoy making all our meals from scratch. I am starting to try new varieties of vegetables and fish that I never had in the US. I need another French cookbook since they are great for learning how to cook the local products. I am too frustrated with trying to find ingredients for my American recipes.
My husband takes Juliana throughout the day when he gets work breaks. Since his schedule is constantly changing, it is impossible for him to say that he will take her every day at a specific time. I usually wake up around 6am to get in at least 2 hours of work before she wakes up. My husband is usually able to take her before lunch for an hour, so that is when I exercise. Then in the late afternoon or early evening, she naps for 1 to 2 hours.
We know someone who has a baby about Juliana’s age and she has a babysitter come two mornings a week. She receives this free through CAF to allow her to get things done around the house and search for work. This is a great idea because I could work solidly those two mornings a week with Juliana under the same roof. We are going to try and get more information about this. Of course, I will update you on the details.
I hope I can find some balance between baby, book, blog and body… there is so much I want to do!
Gertie K Costello says
I live in the south of France as well! I love living here and escaping to the Var or Provence when I get the chance. A really good website for ‘French’ recipes is http://www.marmiton.com. The search function is not the best (you can’t whittle down your search easily) but there are thousands of recipes. If you have an iPhone there is also a Marmiton app!
French Mamma says
There are so many places here to escape to, I cannot wait to go exploring. Thanks for letting me know about Marmiton.com… that is exactly what I was trying to look for last week.