what does your day look like?

[texaspeach]

I don't even know when my day begins at this point..

[adoremybabe]

All I know is that my days need to change soon. I think that they need some sort of structure or I will loose my mind. I am totally not a schedule person either.

I've been waking up at 8:30 for the past several days and let me tell you, it is soooo hard to get out of bed.

My dream is to wake up, get showered and ready for the day, get the kids dressed and fed, and then head out the door for a morning jaunt. Mind you, I have to drive about 10 minutes to a safe location to take a walk.

[Lacrymosa]

Monday-Saturday, I am with baby about 80% of the time by myself. John works nights and when he gets home he lets me take a short nap before crashing himself. When I wake up (11 a.m.) I usually end up watching movies while entertaining/playing with baby for the majority of the day. Now that I can take her for walks I usually do that around 7:30 p.m. because it's too hot and bright out right now to take her earlier. There is never time to cook.

She gets fussy around 10 p.m. and goes to sleep between 1 and 2 and wakes up a couple of times between then and 7 or 8 a.m.. So yeah, my day basically consists of me and baby hanging out in the front room ALL DAY watching movies and rocking and me being silly trying to get her to smile. I live on the couch.

Yeah, my days need more structure. It's just too hard right now to get into a routine..

[thorn]

my girls have been sleeping late and playing in their rooms in the morning, so the baby and i snooze until 9:30 or so (much appreciated since night feedings can take an hour or more with nursing, bottle top off, and pumping)

in the mornings after breakfast they usually play out on the back porch (sandbox, slide, playhouse, water table) for a while, then get a bath or shower, and lunch. then comes nap/quiet time.

after nap we try to do some activity, whether that is going out to a playground or store, going for a walk around the neighborhood, or if it's raining like today, crayons/playdough/other crafty thing. then daddy comes home and plays with them until dinner and bedtime.

of course some days they run around half-dressed and watch TV all day while I nurse the baby and manage to get no chores of any kind done and order pizza for lunch

[Flower of Bliss]

Today I got up at 7:30 and ate a protein bar and coffee while nursing Lyra at the computer. At about 8:30 I got up off of the couch and picked up the downstairs with Lyra in arms and bouncy (sling upstairs in my room with sleeping 3 year old ). We do every other week house cleaning for which I am very grateful. However, it means that every other Tuesday morning I have to get the entire house picked up (they can't clean floors, counters, and such with toys, clothes, etc on them). Somewhere in there I called the pediatrician's office to ask some questions about an upper GI test we were planning to do for Lyra that I'm having serious second thoughts about.

I sat down and nursed Lyra again at about 9:15. Then I carried upstairs all of the that had collected downstairs but belongs up, breakfast for Azalea, as well as the diaper bag and Lyra. I went in the girls room, picked it up, set out two outfit choices for Azalea (3 years) and Lyra (Azalea likes to pick Lyra's clothes too), took a return call from the pediatrician's nurse, and started packing the diaper bag for the day. Azalea woke up and came and joined us. I got dressed and picked up our bathroom with Lyra getting fussy in the bouncy seat. Azalea and I sang "Oh Lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz" (Azalea's current favorite song ) to help her settle while I quickly washed my face (no time for a shower), got dressed, and picked up the bathroom.

Then I got Lyra dressed in the outfit Azalea picked for her and put her in the sling - MUCH BETTER : Then I got Azalea dressed and finished packing the diaper bag, collected our 8 library books from 3 rooms, carried it all downstairs, with all of the stuff from upstairs that really belonged downstairs, and packed water (mine, Azalea's, and an insulated thermos full to refill), and drinkable yogurt for me and a couple of snacks for Azalea. I forgot to get Azalea's shoes on upstairs, and she was scared to get them on her own ("I think there's something in my closet, and I don't want to scare him" , so back up we all went to get Azalea's shoes on.

Rushed out the door with baby in sling, diaper bag, bag of library books, Azalea's backpack for Kindermusik, and all of our waters. Buckled both kids in car seats, and drove to the bank to get cash for the cleaning ladies, dropped it back at the house, and drove to Azalea's 11:20 Kindermusik class (for which we were a bit late ). I sat outside the class nursing Lyra and chatting with other moms, then the mommy's go in for the last 10 minutes (for which I had Lyra in a sling while singing and dancing with Azalea).

Back in the car, and to Starbucks where we got coffee, a sandwich for me, and greek yogurt with granola for Azalea. Azalea was thrilled to get to go inside. I stood swaying with Lyra in the sling while I ate, and Azalea ate, checked out all of the cups for sale, fell in love with the Starbuck mermaid, and generally behaved like a very sweet curious 3 year old.

Back to the car, and found a voicemail from the pediatrician (no clue how I missed that call . On the drive I spoke with DH at work about the test and the peds message. We got to the library, did diaper changes in the car, and went in for "Story Club" at 1:30. Did the 30 minute story time while nursing Lyra and then spent another hour looking at children's books with Azalea while Lyra was in the sling.

Back home finally at a bit after 3pm. How nice to walk into a clean house (with random furniture, rugs, etc strangely rearranged ). Diaper changes with an unhappy Lyra, then bathroom for me. Read Azalea two books while nursing Lyra, then put Azalea down for a nap. Came downstairs to eat a snack, and snuggle with Lyra (who is now nursing again).

This is a queit time. DH should be home in about 2 hours, and we'll do dinner and such. Likely I'll sit on the couch doing the evening clusterfeed while he does much of the prep and clean up from dinner. Bed time for all 4 of us is about 5 hours off.

Yesterday was just as crazy (Little Gym ay 11am, then lunch at park, then ped office). Tomorrow will be "calmer". We're hosting a playgroup with 5 other moms and 8 other kids. We tend to keep pretty busy. We did lots of staying at home this summer, and we're finally moving again. I'm pretty proud of how well I'm keeping up with all of this just 4 weeks post partum. Azalea and I are much happier being on the go, and Lyra's pretty happy nestling in a sling while we're out.

[mamaheids]

Originally Posted by Flower of Bliss

Back home finally at a bit after 3pm. How nice to walk into a clean house

Okay- thats it! LOL I've been debating calling the neighbor's house cleaner to see if she'll do a one-time, post-baby cleaning- now I'm going to do it!

[wombatclay]

I need more structure, but I know I need to wait till Tor is a bit older to really make it work. And right now I don't know how the flu may impact fall/winter options (very few places to take kids here in cold weather and it's usually cold/snow from late Oct till late April)... there is talk about closing things like the science center and tot spot due to the flu.

Anyway...

The basic pattern is to get up at 6:30, start the coffee, dh and I get dressed. He makes breakfast for everyone while I get the kids up and dressed (around 7am). Then he leaves for work and I go solo...

Mon- dd2 has therapy from 9-10. I try to keep dd1 and ds occupied. After therapy we watch a dvd, eat lunch, do random crafts/books/game till evening.

Tues- play group from 10-noon with "picnic" lunch. Then grocery shopping and random errands. Then, until recently, my belly dance class while dh takes the kiddos to my dad's for dinner.

Wed- dd1 has preschool 9-2, dd2 has therapy 10:45-11:45 so I get everyone into the car and make the morning rounds, then the afternoon rounds.

Thurs/Fri- dd1 has preschool 9-2 but there is nothing else routine so dd2/ds/I hang out at home. After getting dd1 we again hang out till evening.

Then the basic pattern takes over again. DH comes home around 6-7pm, we prep and eat dinner, the girls play outside with dh while he works on the addition. I get the kiddos and do their showers/jammies/teeth/bed routine. When the girls are asleep I bring Tor downstairs and dh holds him while I clean the kitchen and take my shower. Then I hold/nurse Tor, we watch a movie, drink tea, and chat. Then I go to bed (dh often stays up later to read or surf the web). Tor wakes 3-4x a night for a diaper change and nursing session.

((((sat- we sleep in a bit, pick up our CSA share in town, work on the house.

sun- church is at 10:30 so we make a bigger breakfast, and after church we again work on the house.))))

Then we repeat.

But I'd like to focus on more social activity for dd2 and more structure on our non-preschool days. And more of a house routine would be good too. I know it usually takes me 6-8 weeks to find a new normal when there's a big change (like a babe!) so I've got another 3-5 weeks to go before I'll really stress about being disorganized!

[Jilian]

My day is a major blur DS1 goes to school a half hour away so it is an hour round-trip twice a day to pick up and drop him off. DS2 decided he doesn't want to nap anymore, luckily the baby sleeps. But things are just insane at times. Making dinner is comical, really. It is amazing that these kids get fed. It is a 2 hour process to make a 30 min dinner. I so wish DH got home earlier! It will get easier. It will get easier. <where is the falling down with exhaustion smiley?>

[wombatclay]

meal ideas I use for every meal...

bagels topped with whatever I can find/spread with one hand while nursing baby
dry cereal with "milk" or put on top of yogurt
yogurt topped with ovaltine and/or raisins and chopped apples
apple slices with nut butter
rice (made in rice cooker and kept in fridge) topped with "milk" and raisins
oatmeal topped with "milk" and chopped fruit
rice cakes with melted cheese (30 seconds in microwave) and sauce/salsa
rice cakes topped with nut butter and jelly
rice topped with black bean salsa and cheese
odwalla bars sliced into "sticks" and served with fruit and yogurt

[ApplePieBaby]

Here's what I did Monday until about 230

Wake up
Change diaper
Dress baby
Change diaper
Dress baby
Feed baby
Burp baby
Feed baby
Burp baby
Wake up toddler & 7 yr old
Feed toddler & 7 yr old
Pick out 7 yr old's clothes
Make 7 yr old's lunch
Send 7 yr old to bus
Dress toddler
Pack diaper bag
Dress self
Put baby in car seat
Put baby in car seat
Put toddler in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Go back in house
Put baby in carseat in car
Go back in house
Put diaper bag in car
Drive
Get stroller out of car
Get diaper bag out of car
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get toddler out of car
Take baby out of carseat
Feed baby
Burp baby
Put baby back in carseat
Get pap smear
Take baby out of carseat
Feed baby
Burp Baby
Put baby back in carseat
Put toddler in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put diaper bag in car
Put stroller in car
Drive
Get stroller out of car
Get diaper bag out of car
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get toddler out of car
Shop
Put toddler in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put diaper bag in car
Put stroller in car
Drive
Get stroller out of car
Get diaper bag out of car
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get toddler out of car
Go to WIC
Take baby out of carseat
Change diaper
Strip baby
Weigh baby
Dress baby
Put baby back in carseat
Take baby out of carseat
Change diaper
Strip baby
Weigh baby
Dress baby
Put baby back in carseat
Take baby out of carseat
Feed baby
Burp baby
Put baby back in carseat
Take baby out of carseat
Feed baby
Burp Baby
Put baby back in carseat
Talk to WIC lady
Put toddler in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put diaper bag in car
Put stroller in car
Drive
Get stroller out of car
Get diaper bag out of car
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get toddler out of car
Eat two bites of lunch
Take baby out of carseat
Feed baby
Burp baby
Put baby back in carseat
Eat two more bites
Take baby out of carseat
Feed baby
Burp Baby
Put baby back in carseat
Eat rest of lunch
Shop at mall
Put toddler in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put diaper bag in car
Put stroller in car
Drive
Get stroller out of car
Get diaper bag out of car
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get baby in carseat out of car
Buckle carseat into stroller
Get toddler out of car
Go to Babys R Us
Pay on layway
Take toddler to potty
Put toddler in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put baby in carseat in car
Put diaper bag in car
Put stroller in car
Drive home
Get baby in carseat out of car
Bring in house
Get baby in carseat out of car
Bring in house
Get toddler out of car
Get diaper bag out of car
Go inside
Get baby out of carseat
Change diaper
Feed baby
Burp baby
Lay baby down
Get baby out of carseat
Change diaper
Feed baby
Burp baby
Lay baby down
Collapse when I realize it's only 2:30...

[wombatclay]

[slimkins]

dang.... ApplePieBaby!

[GradysMom]

yea.... DANG!