Lately a few of my favorite bloggers have been sharing what their daily routines are like with their kiddos and they have been so much fun to read! Even though we are all spread out around the country, I love hearing what other Mamas spend their days doing, how they keep their little ones busy and what they do for themselves, so here is a little peek at our weekday routine!
I wake up between 8 and 9am, and usually have some time to myself before Olivia is up. If this is the case, I enjoy a hot shower & slow breakfast without little hands reaching for my orange juice. V wakes between 9 and 10am and she loves sitting on the couch eating Cheerios in her pajamas, watching Daniel Tiger, or eating eggs in her high chair. This is the only time I really let her watch TV, and I love that our mornings are usually slow-paced, with yummy food and no huge rush to do anything or be anywhere.
After breakfast, it's either bath time or we get dressed and ready for the day. I usually throw in a few loads of laundry and pack up what we'll need for errands {read: snacks}. Our plans usually involve grocery shopping, fun trips to the bookstore, a muffin date or going out to lunch together {Panera is a favorite}.
On Tuesday mornings, I attend a women's bible study with other wives + moms at our church, so Olivia enjoys being in the nursery there and playing with all the kids. I love connecting with other young moms who are going through the same stuff I am in this season of my life. Thursday mornings, we go to ECFE {early childhood family education} and have been doing that since January. We LOVE it! I highly recommend it if there are school districts in your area that offer it. If you're not familiar with it, it is basically pre-preschool. It is a great way to get to know other families in your community and for your child to interact with other kids their age. We don't have a lot of young families in our direct neighborhood, so I love that Olivia gets so much socialization each week there. It also teaches kids SO much and offers an opportunity for parents to connect and discuss issues associated with toddlerhood.
Afternoons that we don't run errands or have ECFE, we love going to the local park for walks and picnics. Via is an outdoors girl through and through; I am convinced she would spend all her time outside if she could! Now that the weather is warming and the sunshine is out more often than not, we love spending our days outside. Sunshine is so good for the soul.
Olivia has lunch around 1pm and I typically put her down for a nap between 2 and 2:30pm. Nap time is my time to get done what I need to do, to eat lunch myself, to clean + organize {which is so therapeutic for me!} and to relax. Pregnancy has made me much more tired than usual, so I try to take naps at least a few days a week since my sleep at night isn't always the best. I think it's SO important to take advantage of any time you have that is kid-free -- even if it's short -- and to do something for yourself. Sometimes it is just lighting a candle and reading for 20 minutes; sometimes it is napping or crafting. I have been loving making all kinds of felt flowers lately and am crafting up a storm! I know that when our little babe arrives this Fall, I certainly won't have time to just sit and get crafty, so I am trying to soak up the quiet time while I can.
Olivia naps anywhere from 2-3 hours, depending on what time she woke up and how busy our day had been. She is usually up between 5 and 5:30pm, and either has dinner shortly after waking or a light snack if we will be eating a bit later. Her favorite snack right now is sliced cheese and mini triscuits. If your little ones like triscuits, the minis are the best! I put little pieces of cheese {you can even use a cute mini cookie cutter to make them in flower or star shapes} in a bowl and a handful of mini triscuits in another and she sits and puts each piece of cheese on each little cracker and enjoys them alongside blackberries or blueberries. Cutest thing ever. I try to keep her meals smaller but more frequent throughout the day, and add in regular snacks, as I've found she does really well with that.
After dinner, we either take a walk as a family, or Dustin takes Olivia to a local playground for an hour and it gives me some time to wash dishes, unwind and get things ready for the next day. Sometimes we play play-doh or with special toys that aren't always out during the day. Last night we baked chocolate chip cookies, mostly because I felt like it.
If it's nice out but a full trip to the park isn't an option, we play in the backyard with bubbles. Then it's bath time if she didn't have one in the morning, and books. I always tell her she can choose 3 and then find myself reading way more. I'm a total book pushover {we are LOVING this book right now}, but I know our routine will be a lot different come September, so I am soaking up every moment I have with my little lady.
Bedtime for V is around 9-9:30pm, which seems late to so many people {my best friend puts her son to bed at 7pm, which seems SO early to me, since he wakes at 5am}, but I LOVE that she sleeps in so that I can too! I am a total night owl and cherish my mornings of staying in bed way past sunrise. After she is down, I crawl into bed and usually spend some time getting lost in a book of my own before calling it a night.
SO very refreshing to hear a dail routine that doesn't include getting up at 6 am, and out the door for activities by 8! That's when we are just getting up too! It has taken a lot for me to embrace the fact that I'm a night owl, it's so freeing to see someone else own it and enjoy a restful morning! Continue being blessed!
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