How do you find time? - Page 2

[CarrieMF]

I agree & disagree with the others.

Yes your currently expectations change, however it gets MUCH, MUCH easier when they get older. My kids are 7, 8 & almost 11. Everything got easier when they got out of the really needy stage around 2-3. My youngest was very needy but even by 3 she was better & I could get other things done.

Now that they're even older I have alot of my own time to do my own things & be me again, not just someone's mom/chauffer/cook/cleaner/etc

We're busier than we were when they were younger, especially when their activities are running but I still have my time. Mondays & Thursdays when my oldest is in Judo I'm either in Spin class or up on the track. Tuesdays have been a me time at night since my youngest was 3months old. They're in school full time, I work part time in the mornings. I'm in physio 2 afternoons a week, I go to the gym another 1 or so a week. I also do other me stuff then.

The days we don't have activities or they're later we have more full homemade meals, otherwise it's quick stuff but we rarely eat out as a family. They're all in bed by 8 & I don't go to bed until 10-12 so I have plenty of time to do other stuff just for me.

[Carley]

Originally Posted by mommytoavery

Love this so much. Thanks!

For those of you who freeze - I know this may make me sound so "not smart" but how do you do it. I am a ditz when it comes to cooking but I do make a lot of soups and I do a great lasagna. If I was to do extra, what kind of containers do you get and do you have to get all the air out first? Also, with things with meat, I am assuming you are putting cooked meat in them. How long will these things last in the freezer.

I LOVE Pyrex! I've bought sets of different sizes when they're BOGO. My favourites are the rectangular small and large sizes - they stack so neatly in the freezer & allow me to freeze family size and individual sizes.

I like lasagne (& enciladas) best assembled but not baked for the freezer, but everyone's different. I'll do servings of leftovers in the small sized containers so they're like a frozen ready meal for when I don't feel like cooking (or for lunch).

I don't know about raw meat - can you give an example of a recipe? I freeze raw meat plain, but I can't think of any meals I freeze that have raw meat in them... regardless, I'm sure it would work as long as you do cook it eventually

[Llyra]

Originally Posted by CarrieMF

I agree & disagree with the others.

Yes your currently expectations change, however it gets MUCH, MUCH easier when they get older.

Mine are still a lot younger than this (5, 2 1/2, and 2 1/2), but I have to agree-- it does get so much easier once they're past being babies. One thing I've noticed, too, is that while with the first kid, them getting older might not have made too much difference (my DD1 was MORE work at 3 than she was as an infant), with the subsequent kids, they have each other to play with and interact with, and that makes a huge difference.

I have to agree with eloise24, too, that with patience and persistence, it is possible to gently teach them to be more self-sufficient and to play by themselves, once they get to an age where they can sit up and crawl and explore. Babyproof the heck out of the place, and get them used to you being busy with some adult task nearby, and you may find you can get a lot done even while being good company for the kids.

I myself have resorted often to strange contortions like propping a book on top of the stroller sunshade and reading while pushing babies around, or propping the twins on a nursing pillow to nurse and reaching way out to knit behind their heads. And once my kids learned to sleep through the night, I found that I was a lot less exhausted all the time, so that if once or twice a week I stayed up late or got up really early to do some fulfilling project, I still had enough energy to get through the day.

[Carley]

Originally Posted by Llyra

One thing I've noticed, too, is that while with the first kid, them getting older might not have made too much difference (my DD1 was MORE work at 3 than she was as an infant), with the subsequent kids, they have each other to play with and interact with, and that makes a huge difference.

I am so glad to hear that's a possibility! My daughter has been "high needs" "spirited" "completely awesome and exhausting" "whatever you want to call it" from the beginning. I'm better at drawing boundaries now that she's older, but I also choose my battles.

I know it's not surefire, but I sure hope with more kiddos around, more focus will be on each other instead of me. Don't get me wrong - I'm not completely foolish about the craziness of many voices capable of screaming - but it will be nice when I'm not the only other warm body in the house

[dahlialia]

Originally Posted by mommytoavery

Love this so much. Thanks!

For those of you who freeze - I know this may make me sound so "not smart" but how do you do it. I am a ditz when it comes to cooking but I do make a lot of soups and I do a great lasagna. If I was to do extra, what kind of containers do you get and do you have to get all the air out first? Also, with things with meat, I am assuming you are putting cooked meat in them. How long will these things last in the freezer.

I tend to freeze in ziplocs. We have something like a 2-3 week rotation of meals, so if I freeze 3 meals worth of a dinner, they will be used within 2 months. But I think they will safely freeze for longer, probably 6 months.

Most of what I freeze is cooked meat in dinners. But I will buy a few meals worth of pork tenderloin when it is on sale, mix up a batch of honey hoisin sauce, and freeze it raw in portions. Ditto for chicken in whatever marinade/sauce we are liking at the time.

For lasagne you could get foil pans at the grocery store. They can be used several times, but eventually they will lose their shape or end up with holes. Or pyrex dishes as a pp said.

[~Katie~]

I'm a mom doing it all without a DH at the moment (deployment), and a lot of it has to do with adjusting expectations. I don't put a ton of pressure on myself to be all things otherwise I would go insane. Except for a very brief 2 weeks, I've spent the entirety of my DD's life by myself and learning to juggle two is definitely a challenge no matter who you have around. I do all of my housework while my kids are awake. The baby is either playing or in the carrier and DS is occupied with something, or he helps me if it's something he's able to do. I try to involve him in household chores as much as possible because that turns into one on one time. The expectation of me being able to sit and play with him for long periods of time has had to be adjusted because there's only so much of me to go around.

Once they're asleep that's "Me" time. I don't do chores, I either relax or focus on something that I like to do such as sewing or watching a show or using the computer. They go to bed at 8 and I usually get 4 hours or so to do something I want and then I go to bed. When cooking the baby goes on my back and she normally takes a nap. It has really helped to have a day-to-day routine. Exercise has also proven to be very relaxing and refreshing for me, every evening after baths I load them into the double jogger and we take a 45 minute walk. It's quiet time for me and I REALLY enjoy that.

[PuppyFluffer]

I've enjoyed the ideas in this thread. I'm in a similar spot. My dh has a 2 hour commute to work - one way AND he takes college classes three nights a week. He is also in the Air National Guard and has to serve drill one weekend a month. His time at home is very limited.

We have three children - 7.5 years old, 3 years old, and 16 months. I homeschool. The two oldest are in dance and gymnastics and they LOVE it.

I work from home doing pet grooming occasionally for friends.

We have a house and 2 acres to take care of.

I have no relatives close and all my friends have children too. I don't employ any help for anything and I am beginning to realize that I am going to have to. We just cannot take care of the physical things around the house like the gutter work that is needed, staining the deck, you know, the maintainence stuff. We are stretched very thin here and it's stressful.

[mommytoavery]

This thread has been awesome for me. Sundays are good days for me so I am going to make some casserole dishes and freeze them that day. I bought a box big enough to hold my daily scrapbooking project and plan on starting that tomorrow. I know that my dd2 will sleep really well for about 30 mins and then I have to hold her for the rest of the nap so I plan on doing scrapbooking right after she goes to sleep - well except for using the Cricut because it is too loud. I pretty much have dd1 help me do the housework or certain projects if it is something she can do. Now I just have to figure out how to incorporate the sling more at home. We use an Ergo all the time when we are out and about but never at home.

And kudos to all you moms doing it by yourselves or with dh working a ton. You are awesome.