A Week of Money: Where Yoga Makes My Body Ache

DAY ONE

6:11 a.m. — I get Baby Bun ready for school and get ready for work.

7:15 a.m. — We get there without a problem and I kiss him goodbye. This is getting easy.

11:45 a.m. — I end up working without a stop for the entire day and am bombarded with work. I want to go to yoga but can’t make it, I’m too swamped. Dang it. It is one thing after another.

1:45 p.m. — On the way up for a drink run and to wash my lunch boxes, I am sort of pulled into a conversion with a random guy who seems very eager to know who I am, what I do, etc. I quickly mention I have a baby and a partner which is why I am even here in this city to begin with. Phew.

3:05 p.m. — My back is still killing me on the left side. I need to stretch it out if I can, and if it still hurts, I’ll book a massage to work it out. It really is giving me pain the whole day.

4:45 p.m. — I pick up Baby Bun and we head to the park to play.

5:25 p.m. — He starts losing it not wanting to share the public slide with other children and I have to forcibly pull him off to make him learn and give other kids a turn. He pushes a little girl and she falls on her (diapered) bum. The father is more amused than upset and tells his kid to “get up”, not letting her cry but then Baby Bun loses it and screams about not wanting to share.

5:45 p.m. — I pack him up, sobbing and kicking, shove him in the car (he is too strong for me to even lift and heave over my shoulder if I want to, I have zero strength when he is angry), and I strap in just the shoulder strap and drive home. He has to learn there are consequences to pushing and not only that Mommy won’t tolerate no sharing when there are other kids around. The problem I face as a parent is how much do you intervene? When Baby Bun fights with other kids, I sort of let him get pushed and let him push a bit as long as they don’t get hurt too badly. Where I can’t figure out how to draw the line yet is how far do I go to step in before it becomes a blood bath? I don’t want him to be a bully but also not to get bullied. Very trying.

6:17 p.m. — By the time we are home, he has stopped sobbing and screaming for the park. I explain how we share and he can be angry and feel selfish but that is not how we act and I don’t ever want to see him hurt his friends again. Sigh.

6:44 p.m. — At home, we get organized, I clean up, and I think about going through my clothes and culling what I no longer wear.

7:17 p.m. — My partner rolls in late due to traffic. It is wings tonight.

7:22 p.m. — We eat and I do dishes while he rests and Baby Bun plays quietly alone, creating slideshows on the iPad.

8:12 p.m. — We eat some homemade rice pudding (so good!) and then do our bedtime routine and sleep.

Saved: $0

Spent: $0

DAY TWO

6:00 a.m. — I wake up and my partner informs me that he wants to stay at home (feeling under the weather), and I’m immediately excited because it means Baby Bun will stay home too (which he loves!! He now always wants to stay at home with Daddy and say BYE BYE MOMMY).

6:50 a.m. — I get ready and go to work.

11:30 a.m. — At work, I don’t stop until it is time for yoga. I’m so excited, my first class!! I go a bit early to scope out the situation and it is PACKED. I had no idea so many people were into yoga. I unfurl my mat and just do some quick stretches.. this is gonna hurt tomorrow.

1:10 p.m. — After yoga I feel AWESOME. I love this. I’m probably coming back on the daily if I can, even if it takes 1.5-2 hours in total .. I’ll just stay later and come in a bit earlier.

1:20 p.m. — I get back to my desk a bit sweaty and wipe myself down. She worked us hard, just like my favourite studio in NYC. I like a good push in yoga so I get some exercise and stretch as well.

5:00 p.m. — I finish working and then am about to sign off and there is a new change to be done. Areegh!!!!! All my hard work down the drain. I have to redo it all.

5:20 p.m. — I get home a bit earlier than expected and I run into my neighbour who invites us over for a play date the next day. Sure why not? She asks me why my eyes are so red and I tell her that we will catch up tomorrow on my vanity (it’s that EyEnvy stuff I was overzealous with).

5:27 p.m. — I rush inside because Baby Bun and my partner are out getting food and I leisurely unpack, remove my makeup and get ready to organize my budget.

5:47 p.m. — I hear the door turn and Baby Bun giggling in the hallway. No idea why. Don’t care. Am quiet as a mouse.

5:55 p.m. — It takes him about 5 minutes before he realizes I’m home and he comes charging out like a baby rhino towards me, squealing.

6:15 p.m. — My partner preps the pork ribs and it just smells weird. I ask him why it stinks. He doesn’t know. Maybe we’re not used to meat any more. He checks the date, and it expired 4 days ago!!!! No wonder. Doesn’t he use his nose?!? I think what happened is that he wasn’t paying attention as much as I was and frankly we are a bit out of touch with dealing in meat lately so it smelled correct … ish? All I know is that meat isn’t supposed to be THAT funky.

6:35 p.m. — He packs it up and goes to return it, in exchange for some eggs instead. I play with Baby Bun and try to quickly finish balancing my budget. I need to pay myself this month but have to do the math. I’ll do it this weekend.

7:15 p.m. — My partner comes back and we have smoked salmon for dinner. Noms anyway.

7:51 p.m. — I do the dishes and chat with my partner while Baby Bun desperately begs us to stop talking and SHUSHES us because he can’t hear his iPad app tell him what the name of the flag is so he can pick the right one for the quizzing. It is kind of cute and annoying. “No talking!! Too loud!! Mommy no do dishes with water! Shhhh!!!!! No thank you!! Shh!! No more this!! NO THANK YOU!!“…LOL

8:39 p.m. — We all end up going to sleep and I pray he doesn’t wake up and make me lose more sleep. He has been waking up a lot lately this week and I’m not sleeping well. We do our routine.

Saved: $0

Spent: $0

DAY THREE

6:00 a.m. — I wake up at 6 on the dot, exhausted. He had two nosebleeds last night.

6:10 a.m. — Baby Bun wakes up just a bit after, checks the clock and says: “Today is Wednesday, stay at home with Daddy and say BYE BYE MOMMY!!!”. My partner hears him and laughs, telling him “Not today, tomorrow.”, as he already stayed at home yesterday.

6:17 a.m. — He doesn’t want to go to school but I tell him if he goes, he will have a play date with my neighbour. He agrees happily because my neighbour always has homemade food and treats which Baby Bun stuffs his face with every time he and her son play together.

7:19 a.m. — He goes to school readily but hesitates a bit at the door saying: “Mommy?!“… but I firmly sit him down, kiss him goodbye and leave like a boss. I’ve got this. No tears!

7:28 a.m. — I get into work and start working. Huge emergency issue arises and derails my project deliverables — I don’t think people have a deep understanding of all the pieces at play here and I’m sort of the intermediary in between all of them. Both at the ground and the higher up level. I just.. work. But I really like doing a good job.

11:48 a.m. — I head off to yoga (so excited!!), I am taking the beginner class today (only one available at this time slot), and get there early to snag a nice spot. I need to find a cubby hole there to put my mat because I hate toting this thing along. I do a few stretches to warm up and then just rest. The class is 50% full unlike the day before. Hmm. I also took the beginner class with a new instructor to see who I like and who I will avoid, and I want to see what they consider beginner and advanced.

12:19 p.m. — The instructor starts and after about 15 minutes I decide I will not take her class again if I can help it. She mixes up right and left, her instructions are unclear she talks way too much wasting valuable time and there is too much meditation at the start which I don’t care for. I am there to stretch, not reach nirvana.

1:02 p.m. — I finish the class, I still feel good and refreshed and I get back to the office within 15 minutes. I speedwalked this time. I am STARVING. I pushed myself in the class because I still want to get something out of it but my muscles are aching from yesterday.

1:22 p.m. — I finish my lunch, wishing I had another helping or three. I need to be more organized to do mid morning snacks otherwise I’ll be dizzy and sick again.

1:37 p.m. — I start back on my deliverables and end up delegating tasks, and organizing the team. I’m bossing people around like my true nature as a Commander (which personality are you?) and I just inform my manager of what I’m doing as a courtesy. He nods, either resigned or secretly relieved that I’m like a mini project manager and SOMEONE knows what’s going on. I suspect no one has ever put all the pieces together for each section and they work in decentralized silos, so it is awkward. I’m the central point now, and people have just started emailing me directly.

3:00 p.m. — Oh!! A BABY!!! Someone brought in a 1-year old and she is ADORABLE. I spend 10 minutes cooing over her. I get back to work and finish the bulk of the tasks, leaving a few for tomorrow morning. I want to hit my deadline and I’m going to make it.

4:30 p.m. — I pick Baby Bun up early and he goes to the bathroom by himself and had NO ACCIDENTS TODAY!

4:35 p.m. — I check my email before leaving with Baby Bun and my neighbour warns me her son has a cold so I cancel the date (I do NOT want to get sick).

5:08 p.m. — I take Baby Bun to the park instead but get caught in a knot of traffic which takes 45 minutes instead of 15 for the same stretch. Yuck.

5:48 p.m. — It is freezing at the park so I grab a blanket and wrap up at the park. Summer is OVER. Time to break out the coats I love (yay!)

6:25 p.m. — I finally get Baby Bun back home. We could have spent more time at the park but that traffic ate up all the time. Inside, we get ready and change into house clothes for the night.

7:11 p.m. — We eat dinner and chat about our respective days, while Baby Bun stuffs his face. Full, he goes and plays on his iPad. I think he might be getting sick though. He is extra clingy.

8:47 p.m. — He and I get ready for bed, while my partner is already dozing off. Some nights I do it to give him a break, but most nights, I force Baby Bun to do it with Daddy so that he at least has some sort of nighttime routine with him.

Saved: $0

Spent: $0

DAY FOUR

6:50 a.m. — I get ready to go to work and pack Baby Bun in the car. I think I’m starting to get sick. I’m sniffling a bit. I have to drink more tea and honey.

7:08 a.m. — As we drive off, my partner waves goodbye on the way (we take the same route but then he does one way and I go another), Baby Bun in the back says: “BYE BYE DADDY’S CAR” and waves from the backseat as my partner rolls down the window and waves back.

7:28 a.m. — At preschool, he gets bribed with a rice cake to sit and eat, and I head into work.

11:38 a.m. — I don’t stop working until it is time for yoga. Right now my work day is divided into: Pre-Yoga and Post-Yoga, and I love it.

12:00 p.m. — The class is GREAT and she works us hard. I have to remember to go earlier the next time and wipe down my mat.. I never have time afterwards because I’m running back to the office.

1:05 p.m. — On the way back, I make a note that I also need to buy a lot more yoga-appropriate tops for this. I’m looking for a high-neck, mid-hip, tight but not too tight, loose shirts to work out in. I also need more yoga pants, I can’t be washing this stuff daily.

3:09 p.m. — Back at work, I try and finish everything then get monkey wrenched with a new urgent issue that takes me off the rails of my work. Sigh. I have to rework the entire presentation after this change.

4:45 p.m. — I leave and pick up Baby Bun, and we stop by the park before going home.

5:02 p.m. — It is SO COLD, I did not dress for this, and I bring out my spare blanket in the car and wrap my legs in it. Good thing I’m prepared, I have spare jackets and everything…

6:15 p.m. — We finally go home and have a meal of duck confit with some fresh baby tomatoes, green onions and basil. I do the dishes and start searching online for tops and pants. I find a few options and will go see them on my Mommy Day Off.

8:44 p.m. — We get ready for bed, read our books then go to sleep.

Saved: $0

Spent: $0

DAY FIVE

6:21 a.m. — I wake up and Baby Bun immediately proclaims it to be The Day He Stays At Home With Daddy and he runs to the door, and opens it to wave Bye Bye to Mommy and shove me out the door to go to school without him. I laugh and tell him I have to get ready first!!!

6:25 a.m. — I make a tea, get ready and dress in button down chic today – just a white shirt and jeans. Boring but classic. I add my Rag and Bone boots for something new. It is FREEZING today and I happily whip out my Ted Baker coat in the best colour ever.

7:25 a.m. — I head into work, drop off stuff, answer a few emails, and run off to pick up a baguette. $2.95

7:45 a.m. — I get back to my desk and eat it slathered in raw almond butter. Oh so good. I have to eat in the morning if I am doing yoga in the afternoon or else I’ll faint if I try and go too long without eating and then working hard.

9:11 a.m. — I get an email that a cubby space is available for me at the studio. YAY!! No more lugging!

10:29 a.m. — I somehow get sucked into the Lululemon We Made Too Much site and buy two more leggings in high rise on sale because the prints are too cute and I am sweating A LOT. $181.66

11:09 a.m. — I do need more tops however, I’m not washing clothes daily for this and I sweat way too much in these classes to reuse my gear. I just want to find a comfortable, padded tank that has wide straps and is NOT racerback that I can wear, sweat in, then change back to my own clothes and underwear. I also plan on buying more months until my contract is done and going daily. If I do that, each class is only around $5. It is more that it forces me out of the office and makes me exercise which I sorely need.

11:49 a.m. — I work all the way until yoga and sprint off, happy for this class. The instructor is great, she is NYC-style as I call her and my back is already feeling a tiny bit better.

3:49 p.m. — I rush and finish all of my work for the long weekend. There’s no work on Monday so I need to make sure we’re ready to go on Tuesday as we’re losing a day.

4:15 p.m. — The director leaves… and the whole office pretty much empties after he’s gone. I’m outta here too.

4:28 p.m. — At the library, I log in and schedule a few posts and try to clean up my laptop. I need a few days to really get this done and Baby Bun’s naps are getting shorter and shorter!

5:35 p.m. — I finally log off and head home.

5:49 p.m. — Baby Bun isn’t home!! YAY!! I rush in and happily continue blogging to finish off my posts.

6:27 p.m. — Baby Bun saunters in the door and we end up having a yummy meal of some fried sausages on bread.

7:29 a.m. — I do the dishes after dinner while Baby Bun plays with flags and reads / picks them out in a quiz (it is his favourite game) and plays with a world puzzle.

8:37 p.m. — Bedtime.

Saved: $0

Spent: $184.61

DAY SIX

6:20 a.m. — Today we have a special activity. We’re going to a farm! The only thing is I can’t even move I am SO ACHE-Y from all the yoga. In major (good) pain today.

7:11 a.m. — We get Baby Bun ready and then take Baby Bun tomato picking early morning, after drinking my cup of matcha tea and some leftover bread from the day before (I won’t last without a mini meal in my stomach). We drive out to the farm which is quite far away and get there at 8:30.

8:30 a.m. — We start picking our fresh tomatoes and struggle to fill 50 pounds worth (we needed a lot to do the sauce this weekend). And we go up and down the rows of vines, looking for red tomatoes, not rotten or converted in mould or holes. Or overripe. We finally finish two big boxes and it is almost 11 a.m. We head back to the farm to pay. $30

8:30 a.m. — Before we leave we get caught up in their farm market and we pick up a few mini tomatoes to try as well. We taste tested two and loved how sweet they were. And a LOT of strawberries. $12

11:23 a.m. — In the car, I’m exhausted. Baby Bun conks out after 20 minutes. He had been running up and down the rows, helping fill the baskets with the red tomatoes from the field and basically got himself soaked up to his knees. I’m glad we put his old shoes on, and I brought a change of clothes but forgot the wipes.

12:45 p.m. — I take Baby Bun out of the car and he wakes up. We go inside and have a quick lunch of bread and cheese. Baby Bun refuses his nap but I have to go and find some yoga tops for this week or else I’ll be doing laundry nightly!!! I peel his screaming, red-faced wailing self off my legs and push the door closed, careful not to slam his fingers.

1:15 p.m. — I drive downtown to park and beeline to Lululemon where I thankfully find a top on sale that is loose and just what I want. $39.10

1:47 p.m. — I go by the pharmacy and pick up some tissue papers (I need some spares for my wallet) along with more Refresh tears. I somehow lost my bottle from last week. Gah. It was $10 and half done!!!! Grrzz… oh well. $13.17

2:18 p.m. — I go through my list and realize that I need a few more tops. I head into Lolë and get suckered into buying two tops at $65 each. Before I leave she tells me I’ll get 10% off my next order if I sign up for their emails. I give her a look. Why didn’t I sign up first then get the tops?!? Argh. I keep them anyway and decide to do the switch next weekend and return them if I can’t find cheaper options. $149.50 (definite return)

2:58 p.m. — My friend tells me that Aritzia is having a sale so I head in and end up finding two very high necked t-shirts that are super soft for only $30 each. Still pricey for a plain cotton T but they’re a little tight, soft, yet loose and ideal for what I want. I don’t want to fight for anything better. I’ve tried plain Gap shirts and they’re a bit too see through and not the same softness. I will return those other tops though!!! $80.83

3:38 p.m. — I head to Sephora — I need makeup wipes because I suspect I’m now breaking out from my sunscreen because liquid removers don’t do jack. I need a wipe that actually WIPES. I also tried one of Baby Bun’s wipes but it was way too rough on my skin. I need actual makeup wipes. I go around the store trying out all the wipes before I settle on Ole Henriksen. $21.85

4:11 p.m. — I head to the pharmacy and pick up a range of cheaper makeup wipes to try from all the brands I can find. If I can find them cheaper then why not? $32.76

4:31 p.m. — I check the clock. Still have an hour left. I head home early anyway and am pleased to see Baby Bun out with his father. I have a blissful 2 hours to myself watching Game of Thrones and finishing a few blog posts (mostly my August Budget Roundup where I head closer to the $550,000 mark).

6:23 p.m. — I hear the door and am quiet as a mouse. Baby Bun and his father bring in boxes of tomatoes, a basil plant and some dinner.

6:27 p.m. — I greet Baby Bun after he washes his hands and we cuddle. He had a hard time when I left but he is fine now.

7:11 p.m. — We eat dinner after my partner pots our new basil plant (I think he secretly wants to become a farmer now LOL).

7:51 p.m. — I do the dishes and continue searching for appropriate high necked tops for yoga but come up short. Oh well. 5 is good enough and I’ll do laundry weekly.

8:23 p.m. — I go through my receipts and update my budget with my notes so I never miss a credit card payment (I have never paid a penny in interest on cards in my life), and organize my notes and thoughts for next month. I need to stick under or at $3000 a month to meet my $600,000 net worth goal for this year.

8:53 p.m. — I go to sleep, suddenly extremely tired after our nighttime routine. I’m starting to feel dizzy which is a sure sign that I need to sleep more or I’ll get sick again. I hope my blood test comes back positive.

Saved: $149.50 — a definite return pending

Spent: $379.21

DAY SEVEN

5:00 a.m. — I wake up and groan. Not only did Baby Bun NOT sleep like a baby (I hate that phrase.. sleeping like a baby.. MOST BABIES DO NOT ACTUALLY SLEEP SOUNDLY), it is raining. I was hoping for sun to take Baby Bun to the park in the morning while I chat with my friend.

5:12 a.m. — I shove a bottle in his mouth after trying my best to get him back to sleep and failing.

5:20 a.m. — I pat him bum back to sleep and fall back asleep.

7:00 a.m. — I wake up when Baby Bun bounces up, from his nap. Ugh.

7:23 a.m. — I end up adding 1000 minutes to my phone and plan on using them to call my friend and my mother this week a lot. $23

7:29 a.m. — I also buy more minutes for my long distance card. $34.49

7:33 a.m. — I call and have a great chat with my friend until her phone dies (they’re out of electricity where she is and she was on her last bars!!). We make plans to talk tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. And I hope they get power again.

10:01 a.m. — We wander out of the bedroom after my long chat, and my partner cuts up the last of the strawberries. We gobble them down, and then I feed him his soup with some olive bread.

10:23 a.m. — I decide to take Baby Bun out to the toy store. Before we go to play with little trains at the toy store, we go for a quick snack of sushi. $13.79

10:33 a.m. — Baby Bun eats all of the raw salmon sushi and I eat the rest (nigiri and spicy salmon). We are both full and happy now.

10:47 a.m. — He goes go the toy store and I pick up two small dishes — one is to hold my dirty tea strainer at work (I have been putting it on napkins and it is gross), and the other is a small plate for when I snack at the office. They’re brightly patterned and pretty porcelain. $14.12

11:31 a.m. — I finally drag him away from the toys when it is time for lunch and we head home. I eat leftover pasta and Baby Bun eats more olive bread while my partner finishes his soup. He is exhausted as he has been cooking 25lbs of tomatoes — taking the skin off, pitting them then cooking them down to make a paste to freeze. He has to do the other box tomorrow and it will take him about 6 – 8 hours. He is DEDICATED.

12:45 p.m. — We talk about going back to the farm next week for more because he isn’t sure he has enough but can only cook one box of tomatoes a day. If we go back, we can get more of those yummy mini tomatoes, I tell him.

1:05 p.m. — Baby Bun goes done for his nap.

1:35 p.m. — ….and within half an hour he is up.. WHAT?!?!? UGH.

2:15 p.m. — I stall him for as long as I can, and finally dress and take him back out to play with the toy trains in the toy store.

4:45 p.m. — We get back home and my partner is out.

4:55 p.m. — I play with Baby Bun and organize the place. Then I start doing dishes.

5:15 p.m. — I try to get Baby Bun to take medicine (he is starting to get a fever). He angrily vomits up the Tylenol all over the bathroom floor. The whole place is slippery and stinks of vomit. Great.

6:07 p.m. — My parter come in as I am wiping the last of the vomit up. He helps me finish cleaning while I wash Baby Bun.

6:45 p.m. — Exhausted. I ask him what there is to eat, and it’s wings tonight and he bought a ton of strawberries, having visited some other farms nearby. YAY!

7:07 p.m. — We settle down to eat, and Baby Bun refuses the food except for some bread, and a few bites of the chicken, and keeps hassling us for the strawberries.

7:37 p.m. — We feed him his strawberries, I do the rest of the dishes.

8:01 p.m. — My partner starts portioning out the tomato sauce to freeze and put away.

8:15 p.m. — I go for a quick shower. I really want to get back into yoga tomorrow.

8:21 p.m. — My mom emails me and I log in to buy more things for my aunt. $256.14

8:51 p.m. — Bedtime. We’re all exhausted.

Saved: $0

Spent: $341.54