a day in the life - norah (almost) 18 months.

Since Norah is almost 18 months, I decided this would be as good of a time as any to write another day in the life post. She is really changing and growing into her own person, and I feel like she's aged a decade in the past few weeks.

6:30am - 8:00am.

Your wake up times are still all over the board. Some mornings you're up and ready to party before 7:00am. Some nights you sleep in your crib until 8:00am. That one is rare, but it does happen. And some mornings, you end up in our bed in the middle of the night, and on those nights almost always sleep until 7:30am-8:00am.

8:00am.

Everyone gets fed. Mom gets coffee.

Regardless of what time we're up, by 8:00am the dogs have been let out, fed, watered, and given their medications. If Dad is in town, his lunch is made. Mom has coffee. Norah has breakfast. That breakfast generally consists of 2 or 3 of the following items: bowl of cheerios and milk, waffle with honey peanut butter, fruit, yogurt, and/or turkey sausage.

8:30am - 9:30am.

If we have morning plans, an activity, or errands, we will spend this time getting ready and getting out of the house. If we don't have morning plans, we'll spend this time cleaning up the kitchen from breakfast and the night before, watching the Today Show, and playing downstairs.

9:30am-12:00pm.

Morning play.

We almost always have a play date or some type of activity scheduled in the mornings. Lately though, we've had a lot of contractors and service people in and out that we've had to wait at home for, so we've had to be a little less social. Also contributing to our lack of activities are the freezing temperatures and snow. If we don't get out of the house, we'll spend the morning playing in your room, trying to clean or get laundry done, work on a small project for the house, and probably watch an episode of Mickey. We also have a small snack mid morning, like cheerios or crackers.

I'm really looking forward to Spring and Summer so we can spend this morning block of time taking advantage of our awesome new neighborhood. We have lots of neighbors to take walks with, several parks to explore, and we're going to join a club this year, with a pool and splash pad, which Mom is super excited about.

12:00pm-12:30pm.

Lunch time.

please disregard the futon and boxes. this picture is pre-furniture delivery/total unpack!

For lunch we usually have a vegetable pouch, some fruit, a sandwich, and veggie straws or bunny crackers. This is also the point in the day where I realize I'm starving and have probably eaten little aside from your leftovers. I'll eat at this time too, but usually dinner leftovers or something breakfast related.

12:30pm-2:30pm.

Nap.

At 12:30 we start winding down and playing quietly, andNorah is almost always out by 1:00pm. Naps vary a lot, but Norah usually wakes up around 2:30pm.

2:30pm-5:00pm.

This is by far, my LEAST favorite part of the day. After being up and at em for 8 hours, I start to get Mommy fatigue. Norah is usually a little cranky due to being bored, sick, teething, or who knows what lately. She's begging to watch TV. I'm saying no. We're out of games to play. Meh. In the warm months, I think I will love this time because we can get back to the park or the pool. But in the winter, I've usually already used up all my tricks. We might bundle up and walk anyway. Or just play inside and try to find new ways to pass the time. On days I need to grocery shop, this is when it gets done. If I'm desperate for something to do or we really need a change of scenery, the library is a always a hit. Sometimes we will watch our first or a second episode of Mickey. Since Norah is literally obsessed with it, I try to keep it to 0-30 min a day of "screen time", but sometimes I'm weak, and it is what it is.

5:00pm-6:30pm.

Prepare and eat dinner. Sometimes this includes Dad and dinner is more elaborate. If it's just us girls, dinner is a closer reflection of lunch, just with pasta or a protein instead of a sandwich.

6:30pm-7:15pm.

Occasionally we have evening plans or go out to eat, but most nights we're home, and this is our "wind down" time. Read books. Play in Norah's room. Take a bath. Just general end of the day stuff. We try to be in pajamas by 7:00pm and are usually in the crib shortly after, but it's flexible depending on what's going on.

And that's that.

Obviously the grown ups don't go to bed at 7:15pm, but honestly we are generally so beat from the day, not much happens after that worth mentioning. A little clean up, a lot of laying on the couch, checking emails, taking care of any bills or correspondence, and watching a show or three.

I'm almost always in bed by 10:00pm, then the next day, we're back at it.

This stage is difficult because we are in the throws of "separation anxiety", where N wants me to be holding her or next to her almost all the time, but most of the time, I actually enjoy that :) The days are long and stay at home parenting is not for the weary, but I cannot imagine it any other way.

Favorite Toys: little people, step 2 slide, mickey mouse clubhouse figurines.

Favorite Books: lady bug girl and her momma, where is baby's belly button, spot books

Favorite Activities: library, park, our mom + baby "school" program (basically preschool but the parent stays), thursday morning play group, museum center

Our activities and play groups have been my saving grace. I recommend all parents, especially stay at home parents, find a network of parents with kids in a similar stage of life. It's been great for my sanity, Norah's social skills, and I've met some of the most wonderful friends.