As we wind down from our weekend and try to gear up for next week I finally have a minute to get some blogging in. The weekend just flies by and I spend most of it trying to catch up on the rest I don't get during the week. More on that later in this post.
I don't have to tell most of you that it has been BLAZING around here lately. If you are a reader and don't know us IRL, just know that we live in the Southeast and the heat index today is 112. It has been about 100 every day for a full week and the humidity is unbearable. Any usual outdoor summer activities (parks, pools, spray grounds, etc.)are out of the question in this heat.
During the week we stay super busy and Justin doesn't get to spend a lot of time with the boys. On Saturdays (even with tons of laundry, yard work, house cleaning, etc.)to do, I feel like we should do at least one fun family activity. This Saturday we decided to try a movie. Grayson had never been to the movies, but has been enjoying an occasional movie at home lately. He doesn't make it all the way through the movies we watch at home, but we thought the novelty of the theatre might keep his interest longer. Baylor is still pretty much eating and sleeping so we figured he would probably being doing one of the two during the movie.
It was a blast. We went to Toy Story 3 and Grayson was in awe. He loved the giant screen and loudness of it all. We sat him in his own seat between us and let him hold the popcorn. Well, we sat the giant tub between his legs. He just sat there happy as a little clam munching away and grinning from ear to ear. At any particularly exciting part he occasionally let out a gasp or a "wow". It was adorable to watch him take it all in. Baylor did just perfectly and even woke up for a bit and watched about 30 minutes of the movie. So, our first trip to the movie was a success. So much that when he woke up this morning he asked to go the the movies again today.
Now here I sit on Sunday afternoon and have a ton left on my weekend to-do list that isn't going to get done. I wouldn't trade our movie time for the world, but I feel like I am falling further and further behind on all of my responsibilities. That leads me to my "mom questions" part of this post. Adding a second little one to our family has been an easy transition in most ways, but has been a tough adjustment when it comes to my time management. I constantly feel like there aren't enough hours in the day and with any extra time I have I feel too tired to really get anything done.
So moms, I know there are several of you who read fairly regularly and most of you have two or more kids. Some of you home school, some work outside the home, and some are home engineers with kids the same age as mine. I am curious to know what your daily schedule looks like. When do you get up and start your day? When do you go to bed at night? When do you have time to yourself? When do you have quiet time with God? When do you exercise? When do you pay the bills, do the laundry, and get shopping done? How do you make time to really enjoy your kids? When do you spend time with your husband? Although I know the getting up during the night stage will not last forever, I need to know how to survive it now that I can't nap when baby naps. This time around I have another little guy around. I am EXHAUSTED to the point that I have headaches and blurred vision by the afternoons. I am useless after dinner. I can't do anything but crash. I want to know how you all do it even those whose responsibilities are a little different from mine. I don't care if you have two kids or six. It doesn't matter if you are a stay at home mom or a full-time career mom. I want to know what your day looks like. I have got to figure this out. Between work, home, wife, mom, and me responsibilities I am drowning.
You can leave your daily routine and any tips in my comments section or e-mail me at nicole (dot.) caldwell (at@) southeastfamilyservces (dot.) com. Thanks ladies!!!
Awesome Parenting Advice
7 months ago
2 comments:
Typical day @ Sprouse House...(I'm working p/t - 20hrs/wk)
5am - get up - pump (I donate) & feed James if he is up. I workout from 6-7 (alternate video, running & gym). Todd gets up 5:30-6 and worksout. He gets Alex up and she takes a bath in our bathroom while he showers. Then he feeds her before he leaves.
To make bkfst easy I make up a big batch of Alex's oatmeal (recipe from Super Baby food - oatmeal, lentils & flax seed) and freeze it. Then we keep a thing in the fridge & heat up a portion each morning then add her vitamins & applesauce. She gets a banana/fruit (while Todd makes his lunch she feeds herself) and if she wants more it is a cheese stick or eggs (which I also make in a big batch 1x a wk and heat up).
We are ready to go downstairs when Todd leaves about 8. We do our activities in the morning (park, pool, errands etc...) Then wat lunch about 12 and Alex naps about 1-3pm. I try and get James to nap at least part of that time so I can sleep some too.
I try and keep dinner easy. I buy frozen veggies (we like Steamables) and then I do chicken or fish with a mariande (or other easy options like turkey tacos), or I buy the pre-marinaded fish (Trader Joe's BJS and Wal-Mart have good options). That way it is pretty healthy & easy too. Alex eats what we eat.
Alex goes to bed @ 8pm and then we head upstairs by 9pm. James has his last feeding 9-9:30 and then we are asleep usually by ten. We have quiet time & reading after he goes to bed. (We don't watch much tv these days!)
I will say James does not really have a schedule the way Alex did. He just gets carted around to whatever is going on and naps on the go or at-home, often in the swing. Since he started sleeping all night at 6w I don't worry about it too much. He's almost 4m & I think we are getting to the point where a scheduled morning nap would be nice, but I know it isn't always going to be do-able or else Alex wouldn't get to go and do her stuff.
We do date night awaps 3x a month w/ the Powers & Gilberts so that and out time after Alex goes to bed is really our time alone. Wish it were more, but we know as they get older, it will get better.
When I work, it is usually in the afternoon so I don't miss too much time w/ the kids, but again we make it work whenever. Right now James is not a huge fan of the bottle so I try not to miss more than 1 feeding at a time.
I hit Trader Joe's about every 3w and stock up on healthy snacks and even things like hot dogs for Alex (they have some turkey ones that are nitrate free, no preservatives etc...) - and then we do a lof of fresh fruit (I buy a lot at BJs).
Hope some of that helps! I think once Baylor hits 8w or so it will get easier.I was really blessed that my in-laws paid for 2m (every other wk) of housecleaning for us and I had meals 3x a wk for 2m thanks to neighbors & friends so that helped a lot, but we are getting back to normal now. Some days are better than others, and some days the house is in better shape than others too! Mostly I try and remember that this is just a season and it won't last forever!
Okay, my life looks NOTHING like the commenter's above. Wow. She's like super organized.
For me, I keep reminding myself that THIS IS A SEASON. We are exhausted, our houses are a wreck, laundry gets piled high and on and on and on. But, in 3 or 4 years, when our babies aren't babies anymore it will be easier to have the house that we desire to keep.
Often, OFTEN, I trade folding laundry and instead spend time just playing w/ the kids. Yes, that means our couch is over run w/ laundry. Yes, it drives me nutso. But, I doubt our kids will ever remember the laundry piled high on the couch, but hopefully they will remember me playing with them in the floor.
As for your QT w/ the Lord. I do mine at night after everyone else is in bed. But that's just me. I'm NOT a morning person so getting up at 6:00am isn't beneficial for me b/c I can't comprehend what I'm reading anyway.
Bottom line, cut yourself some slack and remember that God created this season of your life for a reason. Enjoy your babes while they are still babies and remember that cooking and cleaning and nicely groomed houses can wait, at least for a little while.
Let me know what you figure out!
Post a Comment