A day in our world

Oh hello! I'm still here! haha Some of you wanted to know what a typical week day looked like for us, so I finally got around to sitting down and typing this out.  I also included some pictures from different days, because a post without pictures is just boring, right?!

6:30/7 – Ava wakes up.  She’s usually happily “talking” in her crib, if this is the case, I use the restroom, make her bottle, get water, everything situated/ready before taking her out of her crib.  If she’s fussy, I get her right away. Change her diaper, love on her, feed her in the living room on our comfy couch.

7:30 – 8 – Playtime on the floor with her toys (also getting in good tummy time about 4x’s a day—she’s at the age now where rolling in both directions is fun and she gets around to her different toys that way) or place her in her Einstein Jumper. I'll feed our dog, Kelsey and on occasion make a nice breakfast for daddy before he leaves for work (aiming to do this more often).

8:00 – 10:30 – Ava’s naptime.  The timespan varies day to day, but it’s usually her longest nap of the day, about 2’ish hours long.  She typically sleeps through the night but if she has a restless/off night and I need more sleep then this is when I get my nap in, too.  If I’m not tired I’ll use this time to make myself a caramel latte, breakfast if I hadn’t already eaten earlier with Daniel, watch a show I recorded on our DVR while I enjoy my breakfast in peace, put a load of laundry in the wash, clean up breakfast dishes, unload clean dishes from night before. If we have plans to go somewhere, I will get ready during this time, too.  I also pack Ava’s diaper bag and have everything ready by the door, so leaving is stress free, especially if we’re trying to get somewhere on time, like an appt., lunch with a friend or daddy. *today I'm using this naptime to do this blog post :)

10:30/11’ish – Ava’s up from her nap. Feed her again.  This is when I dress her for the day, too, if we’re going somewhere. After she eats we either leave the house or stay home and play until she’s sleepy again for her next nap.  This is also the perfect time to go to the gym if I take Ava with me.  She does great in the YMCA nursery. I've only had her in there for 45 min tops. I have bad mommy anxiety when people other than family watch her for now, so my workouts are short when I take her with me! haha 

12:00 – Ava’s naptime. She’ll sleep for about an hour or less. I make myself lunch around this time, do more laundry if needed, pick up/clean around the house as needed.  If we’re out running errands during this time Ava will nap in her carseat and I’ll do chores later in the day.

1:00 – 3:30 – Feed Ava. Ava’s pretty alert around this time, so we play on the floor, or I’ll put her in her floor seat, take her around the house with me while I get chores done that I can’t do while she’s napping, when I have to be somewhat quiet.  If the weather is nice, I’ll take Ava for a walk or go to the park around this time. I'm hoping to get Ava into a music class around this time (and/or a local playgroup). I think she'll really enjoy it!  

3:30 – 4:30 – Ava takes another nap around this time. It’s usually about 45 minutes long, maybe longer depending on how tired she is.  My child likes to nap! Enjoying this phase, because I know she'll soon drop a nap or two.  I’ll make myself a snack.  I try to get dinner prepared around this time, too.  Not cooking it yet, just chopped/prepared, to get it ready if prep work is involved.  I learned early on that “witching hour(s)” is NOT the time to start prepping, cooking dinner.  If I expect dinner to be on the table when my husband walks through the door, then I have to do some prep work ahead of time.

4:30 – 6:00 – WITCHING HOUR(s) (aka baby is fussy until bedtime).  Ava isn’t always fussy during this time, but if she’s tired, teething, overstimulated or whatever… then she’s fussy during this time.  I’ll feed her.  Put her in her seat, put on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (her favorite) and it’ll entertain her for 20’ish minutes while I’m finishing up dinner.

6:00 – Daddy walks through the door! YEY! J We greet daddy.  I’ll typically have dinner on the table or it’s almost finished cooking.  Daniel and I will eat, Ava sits in her seat on the floor next to us by the table. We are going to start putting her in her highchair at the table with us, though. We’ll be starting to feed her food soon, too, so that will mix things up a bit for us. If Ava is not too tired, we’ll take her for an evening walk together after dinner.

6:30 – Daddy usually gives Ava a bath while I clean up dinner dishes, feed our dog, get Ava’s bottle ready for bedtime, “turn” the house down which includes picking up Ava’s toys, turning off some bright lights (so Ava knows it’s bed time -- we've been doing this since the first few weeks after she was born), closing the window blinds, putting our outside lights on, preparing Daniel’s lunch for work, etc.  We take turns giving Ava a bath, but Daniel does it mostly.  

6:45 – 7 – After Ava’s bed time routine (bath, diaper, jammies, sleep sack, feed—we’re starting to incorporate a book in her bed time routine, but she’s not really showing interest right now), we put her to bed while she's somewhat awake in her crib. 

7 – 10:30’ish - Daniel or I will go to the gym, do something by ourselves or with a friend, or we’ll both stay in and relax in the living room together.  An evening or two out of the week, I like to get out of the house for a couple hours or so, either meeting up with a girlfriend for dinner or just hanging out at Barnes & Noble by myself.  It's so important to have that time for yourself! Typically we’ll watch a show together (House of Cards, Impractical Jokers, House Hunters International or comedy).  If we have a sitter (a family member for now) on a weekend night, we usually already have bath time for Ava covered earlier in the day, so all they do is play with her, feed her and put her to bed.

Ava is a very easy going, happy baby. I can not express how wonderful it is to stay home with her every day! I love watching her develop and spending this quality time with her!  I should preface this by saying of course not everyday is a dream and we have our struggles just like most mommies/babies/families.  I have to remember to tell myself this sometimes, "Not every day is good, but there's something good in every day"! Remember that when you're having a moment!

**I’m not on any set cleaning schedule now, I just do what needs to be done, but it can get stressful trying to choose what takes top priority.  I’d like to get back on a schedule though; it helps keep me more organized and accountable for keeping an orderly house.  I’d also like to start incorporating some goals for myself each week like taking time while Ava's napping or in the evening to write in Ava’s baby book, blog/read blogs, meal plan, organize things, etc. One day at a time, right? J