Continuing with our A day in the life… series. Here’s the daily routine of a SAHM and her 1 -year old and 4-year old boys.
We asked a stay-at-home-mum (SAHM) to let us in on her life for just one day. How does she manage a baby and a toddler and does she get a break? Judge for yourself.
My days are all the same and different, I barely know the time and I watch the clock. Sometimes I think I have it all in hand and others I just sit and let it all unfold around me. I enjoy what I do but I cry about it all the time! You could say I just get through each day as it comes. But I know I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Read more: A day in the life of… WAHM of 8-week old twin boys
Here’s my daily rountine of a SAHM with a 1-year old and 4-year old.
- 4am – My 4-year old will creep in to the bedroom and slide in next to me, he tries not to wake me, bless him, but he wants a cuddle and so do I.
- 6:30am – On the days when my baby doesn’t wake at 5am and join us all in bed, he’ll sleep until 6:30am. I get out of bed and change his nappy, trying not to wake my eldest, but he wakes up anyway because my 1-year old has no concept of time and still screams with resistant when having his nappy changed. After the battle is won, we all lie together for about 10 minutes. That’s about their limit.
- 6:40am – My husband gets up and ready for work and leaves by 7am
- 7am – We have breakfast and a chat. My eldest will tell me his interpretation of last night’s dream while I shovel Weetabix in during a breath. My baby is quite the opposite, food time is food time and he will eat anything any everything still. Hallelujah.
- 7:30am – Morning playtime, watch some TV and chill out. I have a cup of tea and some breakfast while watching them play. This you could consider a break.
- 8:30am – We get washed and dressed. This takes an unusually long time as we normally have to pack several bags of toys from the play room to take with us. Then I have to navigate the stairs carrying said bags with a baby in my arms because my adorable 4-year old decides they are just too heavy. Yes, darling they are rather heavy!
- 9am – I get my 1-year old ready for his morning nap. He has milk and then sleeps by around 9.30am for 1.5 hours.
- 9:30am – My eldest and I will decide on an activity to do together while the baby sleeps – this could be colouring, sticking and pasting a picture, play-doh or bake some cookies – anything that is a one on one time activity for us.
- 10am – He will have a snack and a drink while we play. I think, is it really only 10am?
- 11am – Baby wakes and we go outside (weather permitting) before lunch.
- 12pm – I make lunch while they jump, run and play at my feet.
- 1:15-1:30pm – After lunch, we have some chilled floor time with the toys and a cartoon or read a book in preparation for their afternoon nap.
- 2pm – My baby will have milk and go down about 2:30pm for another 1.5 hours nap. He has about 3 x 210ml bottles of cows milk each day.
- 2:30pm – My toddler will still want a sleep some days, but not very often. If he doesn’t sleep we play again or he gets out one of his workbooks. I’ll do the washing , tidy up and clean where I can during this time also. Some days, when I feel extra brave, we head out after lunch to the shops or the park. My baby won’t sleep when we are out so I have to make sure it’s a good day or i’ll be sorry! I don’t have a car so we take the bus and MRT.
- 4pm – Nap time is over, the kids play and I make a start on dinner. I say start because it usually takes a good hour to prepare. I am interrupted often to break up a scuffle, comfort a cry, or just to make, destroy, stick together or pull apart a variety of duplo creations.
- 4:30pm – The kids have a snack and a drink while playing – some fruit or a biscuit or a piece of toast.
- 5:30pm – My husband comes back from work and straight away takes over with the kids. I love him so much for that.
- 6pm – We eat dinner together. It may seem late for the kids but it’s one of the best parts of my day and I think it’s important to eat a meal together each day.
- 7pm – Playtime as a family before we start the bedtime routine.
- 7:30pm – We bath them together and then it’s the usual snacks and milk before bed at 8pm. My eldest will usually want to watch his tablet and have a story before he will go to sleep about 8:30pm.
- 8pm – 8:30pm – We lie down in bed, exhausted and ready for sleep and to do it all over again the next day.
Does this sound like your day? We are always looking for example days to feature in our A day in the life series… Are you a working mum or a work from home mum? Perhaps you work part-time? Are you a breast-feeding new mum or a formula feeding new mum? If you would like to share your daily routine with us (anonymously or not) then please email digitalwriter@redtreegroup.org.
Written for Parents World by anonymous.
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