Summer 2015 DITL

I missed the spring Day in the Life but I'm back for summer 2015. This is the day of June 14, 2015 for our family of five. I am 33 years old, E is 34, Miss A is 5, Little J is 3.5 (don't forget that extra half!) and Baby C is 11 months. 

6:10am: I wake up with E. He gets ready for work and I iron a shirt for him. After I finish the shirt for today I iron a few more shirts for later in the week. I also get some laundry started. (As I'm writing this I think the Danielle of 10 years ago would be so confused. Up at 6:10am on a July morning? Why?!)

6:45am: I'm super hungry so I grab a bowl of cereal and head out on the deck to eat. Little J comes walking out, but looks so sleeping. The big girls were up late talking last night, so I decide to tuck Little J back in bed. If she stays up now she will be a wreck by mid morning. Luckily tucking her in with blanks works and she sleeps for another 2+ hours. Success!

6:59am: Baby C wakes up and I nurse her, then snuggle. I can't believe she's so close to being one. She still feels like such a baby though with her lack crawling/standing/walking. After about 10 minutes of snuggling my sweet girl I changer her diaper and feed her some food breakfast.

7:25am: Miss A calls from her room that she is awake. She gets up and joins Baby C for breakfast. Baby C is very happy that one of her big sisters is up now. I fold the mountain of laundry covering the table while they eat. Next I empty the dishwasher so we can start loading it up again. Miss A follows me around whining most of this time. She's doesn't wake up very happy (she totally takes after me in this regard, and so many others).

Found this Miss A selfie while going through the camera roll for the day :)

7:50am: I wash my face and get changed in to my gym clothes. I'm much better at actually getting to the gym if I get dressed for it early in the day. Baby C comes with me to get ready because she must be by me at all times or she gets very cranky. 

 

8:00am: Miss A gets coloring supplies and sets up at the dinning room table. Of course, after getting all of her supplies out she steals my coloring book and markers. She decorates a few eggs in my book while Baby C and I find some cards to send to friends (thanks for the challenge Healthy Living Blogs!).

8:45am: After coloring Miss A wants to watch a cartoon. She chooses Dora & Friends. I find addresses for the cards so I can get them out in the mail today. I let Baby C sit with Miss A. I know babies aren't supposed to watch TV, but I need a few minutes of not carrying a baby around.

9:00am: One of our neighbors, Miss L comes over and Miss A leaves the cartoon to go play. As Miss A goes outside, Little J wakes up. I help Little j get dressed and put a pony tail in her hair with a sparkly purple hair tie. So exciting! Little J then eats breakfast really quickly so she can run outside with the other girls. I work on touching up our front closet door.

9:20am: I start getting things ready to leave for the Y. I change Baby C's diaper and get her dressed. There is a window next to the changing table and she if I don't open it when she's laying there she pulls on the blinds until I get it open. She loves to look out that window. I put sunscreen on Miss A and Little J because they will be outside at the Y. I notice that Little J's shoes are two different sizes so we head back inside to look for two shoes of the same size. I grab water bottles, 'nacks and we're on our way!

 9:37am: We're off! And only 7 minutes after I had planned to leave, and still enough time for me to get to class. Yay!

9:52am: We arrive at the Y. The big girls are really excited to be there. We check in with Miss M at the front desk. She goes to our church and is so sweet to my girls every single time she sees them. She was on vacation last week and they really missed her. Next we head upstairs to the Kid Stuff area. I check in Baby C in the baby room, then bring Miss A and Little J to the big kid room. Some of their favorite teachers are working today which makes all of us very happy.

10:00am: I go to Body Step. I don't love this class, but it's a good workout, offered at a good time today and I'm pretty sore from Body Pump Saturday and Monday, so I figure I'm going to work harder in a class than if I go down to the fitness center. Plus I really like the instructor. I take a bathroom break in the middle of class and peek in the big kid room. Some teachers are helping the girls make fans out of their pictures. Anyone else remember doing that as a kid? The fans are prize possessions the rest of the day.

11:00am: Class is over, and I am so tired. I sit down outside the studio for a few minutes before going to pick up the girls. I pick up Baby C in the baby room first. She is so happy to see me. She's totally fine being with the Kid Stuff teachers while I'm gone, but as soon as she sees me she wants me to get her right away. Her little legs start bouncing and she squeaks. Makes me smile every time. Next I head outside to pick up Miss A and Little J from the playground.

11:15am: I give the big girls a snack in the car and write down a few notes about the day before we leave. On our way home we see a lemonade stand so I quick go home, grab some money and head back to the lemonade stand. When E started at his firm, one of the main partners, Ted, would say it's un-American not to stop at a lemonade stand. He died a few years ago, but I still think of him every time I stop. Miss A and Little J love lemonade, so they're very happy with my decision. Baby C fell asleep as soon as we left the gym, so this is giving her a nice little rest too.

11:50am: Finally home. Miss A and Little J play with the neighbors while I nurse Baby C, then make lunch. We have PB&J, carrots and peas. We're running some errands later so I tell the girls I'll bring a snack along.

12:30pm: I take a shower and get ready while the girls watch a cartoon (I believe Sofia the First) and Baby C plays with some toys. Note: this is the point in the day where my notes get very short, and I take far fewer photos. This seems to happen every time I do a DITL. Oh well, at least I have some record.

Getting ready, putting on a couple of my go to jewelry items right now, my Minnesota necklace from Primp and rainbow druzy earrings from Luna B Jewelry.

1:15pm: We leave for some errands. First up we have Staples to print invitations for Baby C's first birthday party. I'm still in denial that this is actually coming up so soon. We also go to Michael's to look for a few party related things and drop off one of E's suits at the dry cleaner on our way home.

2:45pm: We're home. Baby C goes down for her afternoon nap. The big girls run outside to play with their friends. I talk to my mom on the phone and do a few things around the house.

4:45pm: Baby C is up so I nurse her and steal a few more baby snuggles.

5:00pm: Time to figure out what to make for dinner. I decide on burgers and veggies from the garden. We split a cow with E's brother, so we have a freezer full of beef, which is awesome for days when I haven't been grocery shopping for awhile and/or haven't planned dinner. The burger patties have been a lifesaver so far. This is the last package of burgers, so I'm going to have to start figuring out something else to make. I send the big girls out to pick beans and peas from the garden. We've been trying really hard to offer veggies before dinner and it really seems to be helping to increase their veggie intake. That and the garden. They love eating things they pick. We also have raspberry bushes, but they are much more interested in the greens than the raspberries. So strange.

6:15pm: We're done with dinner, which is really early for us. The big girls run back outside with their friends, E feeds Baby C her nigh time bottle and I eat a mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwich. Yum! E and I play with Baby C, try tummy time and chat a bit. Baby C doesn't scream on her tummy which is awesome.

 

6:45pm: I clean up the rest of the dinner stuff.

7:00pm: E, Baby C and I join the big girls outside. The kids play, E plays with the kids and we talk to the neighbors. Little J tries to get a drink from the hose, but when she turns it on it sprays right in her face. So funny! All the kids get more veggies from the garden (win!). They play crocodile and the nerf guns come out.

8:15pm: Everybody goes inside. I get Baby C ready for bed and put her in her crib quickly. This is pretty late for her. Then I get Miss A and Little J focused on getting ready for bed. I help brush their teeth, then grab a couple of books to read in Little J's bed. E reads with us too. Tonight we have Josie the Giraffe and Extra Yarn. One book with each girl's name.

8:40pm: All the kids are in bed. E has a really early morning tomorrow so he starts getting ready for bed too.

9:00pm: E goes to bed. I have some other stuff to work on so I stay up. I do a little laundry, clean up a bit and get the invitations to Baby C's party ready. I watch Drop Dead Diva on Netflix while I work. Not a great show, but perfect to watch while working.

11:00pm: I get ready for bed. Goodnight!

Winter 2015 DITL: Friday, January 23rd

Time for my Winter Day in the Life (DITL) post. You can see more DITL posts over at Navigating the Mothership. For the Winter DITL I tried to pick a normal, non-preschool day. I am 33, E is 34, Miss A is 4.5, Little J is 3 and Baby C is 5 months. 

12:29am: Ahhh... sweet baby girl is up already. I feed her and put her back to sleep. Repeat at 3:30 and 5:30am. Sleep is not as good as it was a couple of weeks ago.

7:00am: I should really get up, but I don't really want to. So I watch a little of the CBS Morning News and check social media.

7:30am: I actually get up. I make smoothies for E, myself, and Little J if she's in the mood. The spinach is bad, so banana raspberry today. Super tasty. Love our Ninja. I sit down with my smoothie and make a list for the day. I find a sweet picture of our family that Miss A drew in my notebook.

7:45am: Little J is up. She takes a few minutes to really wake up on the couch. 

8:00am: Little J and I have breakfast. She has Raisin Bran and I have a bagel with cream cheese. Little J steals my notebook and pen to make her own list. 

8:15am: I hear Baby C chatting in the other room, so I get her up and dressed. I love watching her arms come up when I take her out of her swaddle. I also love the changing table area. Baby C is almost always happy up there, giving out all kinds of smiles. After she's dressed we take a quick selfie.

8:15am: Baby C lays on her play mat while I put away dishes and clean up the kitchen a bit.

8:40am: Miss A is up and ready for breakfast. She has Raisin Bran too. I try to get a little computer work done while she eats. I also make our lunches for later. When Miss A is done with breakfast both big girls get dressed.

9:00am: I feed Baby C and let Miss A and Little J watch a little of Daniel Tiger. I put chicken in the Crock Pot for dinner. 

9:30am: We get ready to leave for the gym. It's always a struggle trying to get out the door. Baby C is usually easy. I get her buckled in the car seat and blankets bundled around her. Miss A and Little J need many reminders to get their shoes and coats on.

9:42am: Everyone is in the car, buckled up and ready to go. The fact that it only took 12 minutes to get in the car is pretty impressive. And only two minutes after the time I had hoped to leave.

10:00am: Arrive at the gym. We check in at the front desk and say hi to Miss M. Miss M is at the Y most mornings when we go and she goes to our church. The girls love her, especially Miss A. We head upstairs to check in to Kid Stuff.

10:10ish: I leave Baby C in the baby room, drop Miss A and Little J off in the meeting room and head to Body Pump. Body Pump is crazy today (as it has been most of the month). I'm not totally loving the new release (92) but it's starting to grow on me.

10:55am: I take a break from Body Pump. My shoulder has been bothering me, so I skip the shoulder track today. This gives me a chance to spy on Miss A and Little J in their Little Lotus Yoga class. Friday is our favorite day to go to the gym because there's yoga. Miss A and Little J think they're super cool ;)

11:10am: Body Pump is done and I head down to the fitness center to run on the treadmill. I run a mile and a half while listening to Pop Culture Happy Hour, one of my favorite podcasts.

11:35am: I pick up Miss A and Little J from the activity center. Side note: one thing I love about the Y is the variety of things the girls do while I'm working out. In the hour and a half they were in Kid Stuff they did a craft, played with toys, had a yoga class and ran around like crazy people in the activity center. The three of us head back upstairs to pick up Baby C.

11:45am: The girls and I grab a table and eat lunch. I feed Baby C while we're eating lunch, and chat with some of the other moms having lunch with their kids.

12:30pm: We leave the gym and go to Target, which is conveniently next door. Before we go in to Target I write a few notes about the day and the girls color in their seats. Little J loses her marker cap so I search for the cap. It's the purple cap, Little J's favorite so I give it some effort but I can't figure out where it went.

12:45pm: We go inside Target for what will turn out to be a ridiculously long trip. I saw that Cartwheel had 40% off shoes, so we head to the kid shoe section to see what they have. As we're trying on shoes, Little J says she has to go to the bathroom. We drop everything and head to the restrooms. Then back to the shoes. Do more shopping. Pick out a birthday present for a 3 year old. Little J has to go to the bathroom again (why is it that my girls LOVE public bathrooms???). Back to shopping. Baby C snoozes through the store. We're finally ready to check out after what feels like forever, and just as I'm ready to pay the cash register crashes. I move everything to another register and repeat. The cashier gives Miss A and Little J a bunch of stickers. They become Sticker Mouth and Sticker Fingers. Silly, silly girls.

2:30pm: Finally back in the car. We drive by a new house listing. The house is nothing exciting. Bummer. Little J and Baby C fall asleep so we take a long route home. When we get back to our house I clean up the garage a little bit because the girls are still sleeping.

3:30pm: Baby C wakes up and she's hungry so I take all the girls inside. I feed Baby C and change her diaper. We also watch Peg Plus Cat.

4:00pm: Time to put all of the stuff from Target away. Baby C lays on her play mat again. The big girls and I have a little snack; trail mix and applesauce. Next up, I clean the bathroom. Miss A and Little J play babies in their room. I think they also play preschool too. I fold and put away towels and kid clothes. Miss A helps with her clothes. We wrap Little M's present for tomorrow and make a card because we lost the one we picked out at Target somewhere along our trip. The girls keep coloring after they finish the card. They are all about coloring right now.

5:30pm: I finally get a shower, ha! Baby C hangs out in the bathroom with me and the big girls watch Dora and Friends. After my shower, I shred the chicken and mix taco seasoning (I like this one).

6:00pm: I feed Baby C again. Miss A and Little J are WILD. 

6:30pm: I make quesadillas for Miss A and Little J. Miss A helps take care of Baby C while I'm cooking. Miss A tells her, "you're a delicious baby."

6:45pm: We finally eat. E is going to trial on Monday, so he's stuck at work really late.

7:15pm: After dinner the girls and I play some Frozen games. First Go Fish. E calls and says he's on his way home so I get Miss A ready to go out on her little trip. The girls had sticker charts and because she filled her chart up she gets to go for a special dessert with Daddy.

7:45pm: E is home. He and Miss A leave for their special trip. They go check out a pet store and get frozen yogurt. Little J and I play the Frozen matching game. Little J is really good. She recently beat Miss A and I 13-2-1. When she's paying attention she has a great memory. After the matching game we color and listen to some of her favorite songs, All About That Bass and the Frozen soundtrack. Then she wants to play her dancing game (Just Dance Kids for the Wii).

8:45pm: E and Miss A get home. They bough me some winter boots while they were on their adventure, how sweet! We play the dance game a few more times.

9:00pm: Time to get ready for bed: jammies, teeth and right to bed. Normally we read books before bed, but it is way past their bed time. While I get Miss A and Little J in bed E gives Baby C her night time bottle. After her bottle she goes in her room for bed.

9:10pm: Sit down to watch a little TV with E. I can't remember what we were watching, maybe Dateline or Parks and Rec.

9:15pm: Little J is up. Get her back to bed.

10:00pm: I pump. Not my favorite part of the day, but I only do it once now, so I can't complain too much. When I'm done I brush my teeth and get ready for bed.

10:30pm: We go to bed. E is going to work in the morning, so it's an early Friday night for us. Goodnight!