Guest Post: A Day In Josephine's Life

Meet our Day In The Life guest writer, Josephine! She a wife, mom to 3 kids, and a travel advisor!

A Little About Josephine

Hi there! I’m Josephine Hauser and I’m thrilled to be a guest for Christina! I am a 40-something year old wife to Allen and mom of three – almost 18 year old Jackson, 16 year old Nat and 12 year old Hollins. My most important job is as a wife and mom but I’m also a travel advisor specializing in luxury vacations for families, couples and groups around the world. I have been a travel agent since early 2017 and I love so much about my job and the people I am lucky enough to work with.

A Day in Josephine’s Life

Traveling the world keeps me happy and sane. I love being able to show my children some of my most favorite places and we love experiencing new places together. We have a large family “bucket list” of places where we want to go together. While every day is a little different especially with my job, here is a typical Wednesday during the summer in the Hauser house!

***I’ll add that my oldest, Jackson, is living his best life out in Lake Tahoe, California attending summer school while camping, hiking, mountain biking and in general having a great time.

4:30 Alarm goes off… snooze for a few minutes, obviously

4:35/4:40am get out of bed, get dressed for barre3 class, wash face, brush teeth, fix water bottle.

5:00 am leave home

5:15 am arrive to class and get my spot and all gear (weights, bands etc..). If you would have asked me 3 years ago if I would work out at 5:30am I would have laughed in your face. I found barre3 and realized that I enjoy working out if I can get it done and have my whole day ahead of me. You can really tailor each class to your level and ability. It is so great for moms who need to get it done early because you never what the day will bring!

6:15 am class ends. I have met some great people through class so usually we chat for a few minutes after and catch up.

Head back home. I usually get home around 6:45 or so and make lattes for me and Allen. Sit and catch up with him for a few minutes. Allen travels some for work but he sometimes works from home. It changes day to day.

7:15 Make sure Nat is awake. Fix his water bottle. He won’t eat before practice because he tends to get sick if he does.

7:30 Take Nat to football practice at school.

Back home.

See if Hollins wants to go to Trader Joe’s. Our TJs is so crazy I have to try to get there pretty close after they open which is 8:00 am.

Grab all of our favorites and whatever I need to prepare meals for the rest of the week.

On our TJs list this week:

Produce/ Bag salads
Maple Pancake Puffs
Gluten-free Waffles
Various Cheeses
Crackers
Yogurt
Kombucha
Half N Half and Almond Milk
Organic Frozen Jasmine Rice
Gummies/ Snacks
Nuts

After Trader Joe’s I try to go to one of the open farmer’s markets around Charlotte. There’s one at Robinson Woods on Rea Rd and one out Providence Rd towards Waxhaw as well. In the summer we always have lots of peaches, blueberries, blackberries, okra, corn and tomatoes for BLTs around our house!

After then it’s back home to get some work done!

This week I’m finalizing some client trips for this summer as well as quoting a few fall and holiday trips and even some spring break family vacations for 2025.

Alarm goes off at 10:45 am to remind me to pick Nat up at 11:00 am.

Back from school and back to work! Whoops – not so fast! Hollins wants to go to Target and Sephora to spend gift cards that are burning a hole in her pocket plus it’s her summer break and she really doesn’t ask a lot from her chauffeur (haha). So off we go. I give her 1 hour so that I can finish up work so I don’t have to work late.

12:15/ 12:30 Kids fend for themselves for lunch and now I’m really back to work! When I am finalizing trips I make sure all details are taken care of including dining, transportation, excursions and activities and more. Final emails are sent out reassuring clients that I am here if they need anything. Some of these trips include a family of four’s vacation to Lake Como, the Italian Riviera and the South of France. I’m also finalizing a private boat charter for two families who are heading to the Bahamas in a few short weeks.

Next, I am working on a Christmas Market River cruise for two and a holiday in Morocco and Spain for the new year. After some quotes have been sent out I decide I can come up for air and have something for lunch around 2:30. I either eat leftovers, make a quick salad or eat a buffalo chicken cauliflower crust pizza. After lunch I check my email then decide it’s time for me to start packing for one of my upcoming trips to Costa Rica. It’s good for me to get up and not be sitting — around this time I usually hit my mid-day slump and start wanting to take a nap. I should be a great packer but I’m really not for myself. I constantly overpack and I’m not sure I’ll ever stop! I have an unrealistic fear that I won’t have exactly what I need or what I want to wear when I am away from home. It’s crazy, I know! After packing for what seems like forever I check my emails and jump on a quick call with a client to talk through specifics for their trip.

Then around 6 pm it’s time to start dinner. I’m making a family favorite…Fusilli with Spinach & Tomatoes. I make it all year long but it’s especially yummy when the tomatoes are local from the farmer’s market.

Here’s the recipe:

1 lb. whole wheat fusilli (or gluten-free) pasta
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of garlic- minced
1 1/2s pint grape or cherry tomatoes- sliced in half
2 bags of baby spinach
juice of 2-3 lemons
1/2-3/4 cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese

Cook pasta al dente according to package directions. Reserve 1/4 cup of startchy pasta water before you drain the pasta. In a large skillet or pot heat olive oil on medium heat. Add minced garlic. Heat for 1-2 minutes. Add halved tomatoes. Cook for two minutes. Add spinach. Stir constantly. Cook until spinach is completely wilted. Add the fresh squeezed lemon juice and reserved pasta water. Remove from heat. Add cooked pasta and stir until combined. Add grated parmesan. Serve with extra parm and lemon if you like.

We eat dinner together and then some portion of us watch Jeopardy as a family. Nat is off to play Xbox or be on his phone because he is the typical teen boy right now. Hollins and I might watch a show that we both like or she also heads off to catch up with her friends as well.

Hopefully around 9:00 pm or so, Jackson calls to check in and tell us about his day, school and any activities that he was able to participate in.

Allen and I catch up with each other about our days when the kids are doing their own things. We have been watching a few different shows that we switch between… Eric, the Bear, or Bridgerton. Then I usually fall asleep around 10:00 pm.