Day In The Life: Winter 2014

I'm participating in Laura's quarterly Day In The Life series again. Thankfully, she chose a time frame nine weeks into my life with two kids (how thoughtful of her!), so I had a chance to document what life's like these days. Blogging Free time comes in ebbs and flows. Sometimes, I'm granted a few glorious minutes to myself during the day and others, I'm rocking greasy hair and counting the minutes until 5 o'clock wine time. So is stay-at-home-mom life, right? Anyway, most days I feel like I got this parenting-two-kids thing in the bag. Here's Thursday, January 23, 2014. (It only took me three days to type all this up. Heh).

Tory is 2 years, 5 months old

Aden is 2 months, 4 days old

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2:15am: Tory calls out for me for the first time tonight. When I glance at the clock perched on top of our dresser, I'm shocked (as sad as that is) that she made it this far into the night. At 2 1/2 years old, she really should be sleeping through the night every night, but that's not our little girl. Andi and I have come to accept it. I go into Tory's room next door to ours, re-start her Sleep Sheep sound machine and take a seat on the little pink stool beside her bed until she falls asleep. It only takes a minute and she's back to dreamland.

2:20am: Once Tory's asleep, I crawl back into my own bed. Aden, who's sleeping in the bassinet near my side of the bed, stirs almost immediately. He starts to cry, so I pick him up to nurse him. He's due to eat around 3:00am anyway.

2:30am: Tory cries out for me again, so I nudge Andi and he gets out of bed to go sit with her. She has a cold and starts having a coughing attack, so I mentally kick myself for not giving her some medicine before bedtime. She seemed fine during the day though.

2:35am: Andi crawls back into bed. Tory must have fallen back asleep.

2:40am: While Aden's eating, he fills his diaper so I get up to change him. Meanwhile, Tory calls out for Andi this time, so he goes back into her room to soothe her back to sleep. It's basically musical bedrooms at this point. 

2:50am: I'm burping Aden when Andi crawls back into bed again. I lay Aden down to sleep in his bassinet, refill my water bottle in the kitchen and use the bathroom. Back in bed by 2:59am. 

3:10am: I'm wide awake now, so I read a few blogs on my iPhone. I'm so far behind in reading all my favorites, I make myself turn off my phone and go to sleep. The more I read, the more awake I'll be. I close my eyes and listen to the sweet baby sighs and snores coming from Aden beside me. 

4:00am: Just when I'm finally asleep, I hear Tory cry out for me. I go into her room, pick her up, grab her pillow, baby doll, sippy cup and bring her into our bedroom to lay down. I know I shouldn't do this, but I'm tired and need sleep however I can get it. I'm sure she knows I'll eventually cave at some point in the night if she wears me down enough. And, so goes the circle of crappy sleep. I caution Tory to be quiet so she doesn't wake Aden or Daddy. She says "okay, Mommy" and snuggles right into the crook of my arm falling fast asleep. 

5:30am: Aden wakes up. I feed and put him right back into the bassinet to sleep. I was having some crazy dream where Andi and I moved into a new house, so we had boxes everywhere. I went to get my haircut from my sorority sister (who I maybe saw on Facebook recently??), but an intern was there and he botched my haircut. Then in my dream, Andi and I were running from my dead-beat step-dad (which is really weird since my parents are still married) to find a hidden treasure of inheritance money. I think whenever I'm really sleep deprived, I fall asleep hard and dream the strangest things. Anyway, I finish with Aden and snuggle back into bed.

6:35am: Andi comes into the bedroom to say good-bye as he's leaving for work. Tory gives him a hug, then demands yogurt from me. She whines and carries on until I pull myself out of bed to retrieve some from the kitchen for her. Then, I turn on a Dora episode and try to steal a few more winks of sleep. 

6:42am: Just kidding... Aden wakes up. I think it's about time to move little man into his own crib because Tory wakes him up before he's ready almost every morning now. She says "hi, brudda, hi buddy" obsessively while trying to lay her head on his stomach. He is not amused. 

7:15am: I move this party to the living room and lay Aden in his swing. He falls back asleep immediately. Tory and I head to the kitchen to make breakfast. She requests pancakes with blueberries and whipped cream on top. I have oatmeal and coffee. God bless coffee. Seriously. I ask Tory if she wants some of my oatmeal and she says "um, probably I not." (Everything's "probably I not" or "probably yes" these days).

8:00am: This morning Tory has gymnastics class, so I get her dressed in a pink leotard and black leggings. She requests a ballerina bun on top of her head. I take the opportunity to get dressed as well while Aden's still sleeping. I wear the new pair of Columbia Omni-Heat pants Andi just bought me because it's super cold outside today. Extra pumped because these pants fit (!!) and I couldn't comfortably button them just a few weeks ago.

8:30am: Tory's playing nicely so I actually have a few minutes to myself. I clean up the breakfast mess in the kitchen and check my email.

9:00am: Aden wakes up. He's had a poop-plosion during his morning nap, so I change his diaper and get him dressed for the day. I wonder if I should give up on my beloved Pampers for another brand? He shoots poop right up his back at least once a day lately. Maybe he's just hit that stage of babyhood? I remember Tory going through this, too. PS: Why are babies clothes so dang hard to get on? This little plaid one-piece is adorable, but a nightmare to pull onto my chubby guy.

9:15am: I feed Aden once more before we head out for the morning. Tory climbs onto the arm of the couch next to the rocking chair, then falls onto the chair and bumps Aden's head. I comfort Aden while reminding Tory the arm of the couch isn't a safe place to play. Gah.

9:30am: Rush, rush, rush to load everyone into the car. This is the worst part of parenting, I swear. I chase Tory through the kitchen and living room trying to put on her coat and shoes, then pack her into the car first. Next, I load Aden into the car, along with the diaper bag and Baby Bjorn. Thank goodness for an attached garage. Tory requests her sunglasses because it's "too sunny, Mommy!" so I grab the kid's pair stashed in the pocket of her car seat. Toddler necessities. We pull out of the drive-way at 9:42am and I'm impressed all that only took 10 minutes, though now I'm exhausted. Down the street, I forget where we're going and get honked at by another car for stopping at a stoplight in the wrong lane. 

10:00am: We're five minutes late to gymnastics because there's an accident on the highway. Tory asks, "Mommy, almost?" wondering how much longer. Lots of rushing again to get everyone unloaded out of the car which is a sucky part of Minnesota winters - it's so cold outside, we have to hurry indoors quickly. I unload Tory first, carry her to Aden's side of the car and then remind her to stay close to my side as we're in a parking lot. I grab Aden's car seat and the diaper bag while keeping a hand on Tory's coat. I'm impressed how well Tory listens during this process. It definitely makes my life easier. 

At gymnastics class, Tory's once again apprehensive to participate. It's preschool nervousness all over again. Once the class splits into smaller groups and she's paired with the female coach, Tory does much better and soon she's running around like a crazy maniac. Apparently, it's the male head coach she's not sure about. (Unrelated: the head coach is a 1980's Olympian and is remembered for one of the worst Olympics bloopers. Click here to see it. One word: ouch).

11:00am: Andi surprises us at gymnastics for the last 10 minutes. His office is close by, so it's nice for him to sneak away and see Tory in class for a bit. Afterwards, the owner recaps an incident involving a carbon monoxide leak at the studio this past Monday. I don't love the way he plays it off like it wasn't a big deal because, dude, it's a really big deal. 

11:30am: As soon as we're home, I hurry into the house to feed Aden. He screamed the entire way home from gymnastics because he was hungry. Poor guy. Tory plays around us in the rocking chair / pokes at Aden until he looses interest in nursing. He spits up again, so I jot down some notes on my phone about his eating and spitting up to follow up with the pediatrician.

11:45am: I plop Aden in the swing and make lunch for Tory and I. We've been eating sandwiches and leftover chili from Aden's baptism all week and I secretly love it. Tory also has vanilla yogurt with blueberries and I let her count out how many she'll eat. 

Noon: Aden's fussy and tired, so I put him in the Baby Bjorn and shovel food in my mouth while Tory eats her lunch and watches Umi Zoomie. I may or may not have dropped juicy tomato on Aden's shoulder. Sorry, kid.

12:15pm: With Aden still in the carrier, I clean up the kitchen again and then I move him to the swing so I can pump. Tory says "Mommy, I probably all done" with her lunch.

12:30pm: I quickly wipe Tory down and the massive amount of yogurt smeared all over the table. I change her out of her gymnastics clothes and get her ready for nap time. Did I mention Tory's back in diapers? Oh, yeah. New sibling potty training regression. It's a real thing. 

12:45pm: If I time it just right and I get Tory down for a nap as soon as Aden fall asleep after lunch, I can sometimes score a few minutes of dual nap time in the afternoon. I quickly read Tory three books and tuck her into bed for sleep.

1:00pm: Light's out for Tory. "Too dark in my eyes," she tells me. I ask if I can rub her back. "No, only Daddy rub my back" she says. I promise her we can make valentines after nap time if she goes to sleep. She snuggles Minnie Mouse and is out without much of a fight. This definitely is not typical of most days.

1:22pm: Both kids sleeping! Wahoo! I brew a cup of coffee (my second of the day) and sit down with my computer. I should throw in a load of laundry or something, but ....

1:40pm: Welp, that didn't last long. Aden usually sleeps for a good two hours in the afternoon, but not today. I nurse him while looking up a recipe for dinner that'll use up the obscene amount of broccoli we have in the fridge. 

2:00pm: Since Tory's still asleep, I decide to do a little photo shoot with Aden. If she's awake while I take pictures of him, she demands to be in every one and Aden loses his patience quickly. It's no secret Andi's the photographer in our family, but I get a couple good ones of my boy and his baby blues.

2:15pm: I put Aden back in the Baby Bjorn and attempt to edit photos from the day, but he's fussing too much to let me. I chug my cup of coffee and walk around to shush him. 

2:30pm: Tory wakes up from her nap. It's a decent one by her standards - one hour. She's pretty grumpy (which is typical after she wakes up) but she's also crying that her tooth hurts. I look inside her mouth and sure enough, she's getting her top two-year molars. After a few more minutes of crying, I give her some Tylenol for the pain. Five seconds later she says, "It's not working, Mommy."

3:00pm: Aden is still awake and fussing in the Bjorn through all of this. I can tell he's tired, but he just won't give up today. Tory's still crying about her tooth, so I bounce between the both of them crying for me. Ahhh!

3:15pm: I distract Tory by pulling out the craft supplies to make valentines. I cut heart shapes out of coffee filters and have her color them with markers. Then we spritz water on them so the marker bleeds around the filter. "I need put more water on it," Tory says and the filters are basically soaked through. Whatever. She's having fun.

3:30pm: As I'm cleaning up the craft mess, Aden starts crying again and Tory tries to reassure him. "It's okay, brudda. Mommy coming. Mommy, Aden mad! He needs you!" It's pretty cute the way she tries to take care of him and I'm proud of her for being so gentle. She slips on a pair of my green flats and says, "Okay, I gotta go to work. Bye."

3:45pm: Aden finally falls asleep again. Life is hard when you're a baby. His signature sleeping move is to casually throw a hand over his face emphasizing pure exhaustion. While he sleeps, Tory and I play magician. She says, "Ladies and gentleman!" as she whisks a baby blanket on and off her doll house. I ask her if I can sit beside her on the floor for the magic show. "Uh, probably not. That's my spot. You sit here." 

4:00pm: I throw in a load of laundry downstairs and fold another one on the living room floor while Tory and I continue to play. 

4:15pm: We switch to playing doctor now, which Tory's very into these days. She gives me a shot in the arm and listens to my heart with the stethoscope. "Say ahhh, Mommy," says says. Tory looks in my mouth. "I have a diagnosis. You have bugs in you mouth." I ask what's the cure and she shrugs her shoulders. Ha! Well, what in the world should I do about that?

4:30pm: Both kids need baths tonight so I get started by running the bath water, grabbing jammies and diapers, lotion, towels, etc. I get Tory setup with toys in the tub while I wash Aden in the baby bathtub on the sink counter top. He isn't a big fan of the bath tonight for some reason. Really, he's been more fussy than usual all day long, so I finish his bath quickly. At some point, Tory tells me she needs to go potty (which, remember, she's in diapers now) and I can't leave Aden unattended, so I tell her she has to get out and use the toilet by herself. She crawls out of the tub and I half-help her while keeping another hand on Aden, but it's clearly a ploy because she doesn't want to use the toilet when she's out of the tub. I convince her to get back in the water so I can finish up with Aden. Once he's done, I wrap him tightly in a blanket and lay him in the bouncy seat while I wash Tory. Then, I get her dressed and clean up the bathroom. 

5:00pm: Tory's whining she's hungry, so I get her a string cheese. Aden's screaming from the bouncy seat because he's hungry, so I bring him into the living room to nurse. Just as I sit down to feed him, Tory gets ahold of the spray bottle we used for the valentine crafts earlier and pinches her lip in the plastic lever piece. She's crying hard, so put Aden down and go tend to Tory. I get her set up with the iPad and her string cheese on the couch while I feed Aden again. Holy geez, my head hurts. Wine time yet? I think so. 

5:30pm: Andi calls and says he's going to be home early. Thank goodness! Suddenly, I'm exhausted. He asks if he should pick up dinner. I tell him I was planning to make chicken with broccoli, but I haven't gotten that far yet. We decided to figure out dinner when he gets home. 

5:45pm: Andi's home. Wahoo! He takes over making dinner - teriyaki chicken, broccoli and sweet potato fries. I pour myself a glass of wine and start shoving Cheez Its in my mouth because I'm suddenly starving. Andi cooks while we recap our days. I'm holding Aden because he's still fussing. 

6:00pm: Andi unloads the dishwasher. I make Tory some macaroni and cheese. She whines at my feet because she wants to eat it while laying in my bed. Um, no. 

6:15pm: Surprisingly, Andi and I enjoy eating a warm dinner together at the dining room table. Aden's asleep on my chest in the Baby Bjorn. Tory's laying on our bed watching Paw Patrol. She's probably watched too much television today, but I don't care at this point. I'm zapped. 

6:45pm: Andi cleans up dinner while I change Aden's diaper and pick up toys around the house. Andi reads Tory a few books before bedtime. Since Aden was born, Andi does Tory's bedtime routine and I love listening to them together at night. 

7:15pm: I attempt to sit down to blog, but Aden starts fussing shortly after I do. Andi comes into the bedroom after Tory's asleep. We watch New Girl together while I walk around the room, bouncing and shushing Aden. My arms are aching!

7:45pm: Aden is asleep, but wakes up when I lay him down in the bassinet. I pick him up and continue more bouncing, rocking and shushing.

8:15pm: Aden's finally asleep again. Andi and I watch a re-run episode of Duck Dynasty. I'm so tired tonight. I can barely keep my eyes open. 

8:30pm: Andi and I are both feeling snacky, but I cannot eat junk food... cannot eat junk food ... cannot eat junk food ... so I can drop these last few pregnancy pounds. Andi makes some nachos and I fall victim to them. Dang it! I think about typing up this post for half a second, but I'm way too tired. I read for about 30 seconds and I'm asleep. 

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It's interesting how documenting the details of the day really puts things in perspective. I wrote earlier in the week about my necessity for patience with Tory as she adjusts to life with a new baby in the house. I think, like a lot of things, the reality of something isn't as bad as it seems inside your head. It's easy to get frustrated and focus on the negative. We still have our moments of struggle, but overall I was really proud of Tory on this day (and all week, really) of how much better she's doing around Aden.

I also forgot about the down and dirty details of newborn life. Feeding, shushing, changing diapers ... and repeat. Holy cow, I'm a human food truck. I remember being so aware of this stage with Tory, but I guess I'm well enough adjusted to "mom life" these days that I didn't quite realize how much my life revolves around Aden's schedule. Eat, sleep, poop. Eat, sleep, poop. That is seriously all I help a little person do these days.

While this post seemingly took forever to draft, I'm glad I took the time to document a day in our life right now. Time moves so quickly with little kids. It was fun to capture all the little moments of the day, then read back and realize just how lucky we are.

The End.