"What do you do all day?" is a common question to ask a stay at home mom/wife. But, why do we ask this? We don't ask our child care providers what they did all day. We know what they did...they took care of our children, and that's all we expect! Why would we expect to hear a stay at home mom did anything on top of taking care of their children? I decided to, for a day, record every single thing we did to see what all I really do. NOTE: It's not an exciting day and I don't expect you to read every single thing I did. It was more for my own self-reflection.
8:40am | Jace & Mommy up | |||||||||
8:43am | Jace: clean diaper & clothes | |||||||||
8:50am | Mommy breakfast | |||||||||
9am | Sweep kitchen, clean countertops & microwave, clean half bath- constantly checking on/holding/redirecting Jace | |||||||||
9:35am | Breastfeed Jace | |||||||||
9:45am | Mop kitchen | |||||||||
9:48am | Stop mopping to clean up spit up | |||||||||
9:49am | Resume mopping, holding Jace | |||||||||
9:52am | Check on still-sleeping Ally | |||||||||
9:55am | Take pics of upstairs for home listing | |||||||||
10:05am | Make bed while wearing Jace (because my arms are falling off) | |||||||||
10:08am | Take pics of master bedroom | |||||||||
10:12am | Ally up | |||||||||
10:13am | Nurse Ally, Jace begging for attention, chewing on my leg, pulling on Ally's shirt | |||||||||
NOTE: Mommy needs water & bathroom break | ||||||||||
10:18am | Cuddle kiddos & watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse | |||||||||
10:19am | Mickey not on…calm toddler, play DVR episode | |||||||||
10:20am | Nurse Jace, Ally laying on my legs | |||||||||
10:25am | Mommy bathroom break & water (didn't have to wait too long this time!) | |||||||||
10:29am | Make Ally's bed | |||||||||
10:31am | Ally: "Mommy!! He's STUCK!"…rescue Jace from between fish tank stand and TV stand where he was wedged | |||||||||
10:32am | Take pic of Ally's room…BOTH batteries for camera dead, set to charge | |||||||||
10:35am | Sit down to cool off & enjoy kiddos while they're both happy | |||||||||
10:40am | Wipe down master bathroom | |||||||||
10:42am | Tend to wimpering Jace | |||||||||
10:43am | Breastfeed Jace, Ally demanding more Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, start another DVR episode | |||||||||
10:45am | Ally finally ready for breakfast, get cereal & milk, set Jace down long enough to pour milk | |||||||||
10:48am | Ally eating, Nurse Jace | |||||||||
10:50am | Wrestle Jace to get clean diaper & shorts snapped | |||||||||
10:55am | Chamomilla for irritable Jace who is sleepy | |||||||||
10:56am | Rock & nurse Jace to sleep | |||||||||
11:08am | Jace down for nap #1 | |||||||||
11:09am | Get dressed to workout | |||||||||
11:12am | Workout-Cathe Freidrich's Kick Punch & Crunch | |||||||||
12:22pm | Workout complete | |||||||||
12:23pm | Ally wants cottage cheese | |||||||||
12:26pm | Shower with Ally (yes, she can eat that fast!) | |||||||||
12:40pm | Out of shower, minimal makeup done, hair will have to air dry | |||||||||
12:49pm | Ally wakes Jace up after the getting-dressed battle begins | |||||||||
12:52pm | Tantrum ends, Ally asks for help getting dressed & nummies | |||||||||
12:57pm | Nursing done, Ally & Jace wrestling, Mommy making lunch | |||||||||
1:01pm | Jace done wrestling, Ally not…Mommy explains Jace isn't have fun anymore | |||||||||
1:03pm | Mommy lunch | |||||||||
1:05pm | Ally wants lunch (after I asked her and she said, "no thank you") & nummies | |||||||||
1:13pm | Make Ally tortilla with cheese (her request), while Jace chews on my shoulder (ouch!) | |||||||||
1:17pm | Clear Ally's table from earlier eating, Ally eating | |||||||||
1:18pm | Breastfeed Jace | |||||||||
1:19pm | Jace done | |||||||||
1:22pm | Jace spits everything up & then nurses again | |||||||||
1:24pm | Jace done nursing, sits on my lap & plays with toes :-) | |||||||||
1:25pm | Jace decides he needs more… | |||||||||
1:28pm | Jace done, again, Kids play together | |||||||||
1:29pm | Mommy puts laundry away | |||||||||
1:39pm | Redirect Jace to his toys, Vac living room | |||||||||
1:44pm | Help Ally pick out nap time movie | |||||||||
1:46pm | Fish stray food out of Jace's mouth | |||||||||
1:47pm | Start Ally's movie & do night-night nummies | |||||||||
1:52pm | TV off in living room…Quite time for Mommy & Jace | |||||||||
2:01pm | Fold laundry while Jace plays | |||||||||
2:06pm | Nurse Jace | |||||||||
2:11pm | Change Jace's diaper, more chamomilla | |||||||||
2:15pm | Ally yelling from her room, stopped her movie & needs help | |||||||||
2:33pm | Mommy snack, Jace playing | |||||||||
2:35pm | Nurse/rock Jace to sleep | |||||||||
2:55pm | Jace nap #2, Ally still awake in her room | |||||||||
2:56pm | Mommy breathe time, catch up on Facebook, finalize Disney dining plans so I can make reservations at 6am tomorrow | |||||||||
3:27pm | Get Ally up after giving up on her napping, she is completely naked and yelling in her room | |||||||||
3:32pm | Start dishwasher and load of laundry | |||||||||
3:41pm | Put laundry away, bring dry load up to fold | |||||||||
3:45pm | Nurse Ally, only to find that Jace is awake. Carry Ally upstairs while nursing to get Jace. | |||||||||
3:46pm | Both kids climbing on me. Ally wants to play, Jace doesn't. | |||||||||
3:48pm | Ally's game: Kiss Jace, Hug Jace…Kiss Mommy, Hug Mommy…"I love you Baby Jace, I love you Mommy"…Repeat routine. | |||||||||
3:54pm | Ally trying to pull Jace by his hair, very upset Jace…Ally is separated from the situation, Jace gets nummies, Ally apologizes & gives kisses to "make Baby Jace all better" | |||||||||
4:02pm | Snacks for everyone | |||||||||
4:20pm | Rescue Jace who has toppled over trying to climb in Ally's grocery cart, all the while never losing his carrot! | |||||||||
4:22pm | Nurse Jace | |||||||||
4:29pm | Jace hits head on couch while pulling up. Ally: "Mommy, you pick him up?! It's ok Jacer-Man! It's ok, it's ok, it's ok! Eat you carrot. Ok, ok, Here! (as she hands him a toy) You makin' me nuts!" | |||||||||
4:40pm | Take final pics for home listing (now that camera is charged) | |||||||||
4:43pm | Upload and email pics to realtors while kids are playing nicely | |||||||||
4:49pm | Rescue Jace from under Sissy, who is sitting on him | |||||||||
4:50pm | Nurse sleepy Jace, nap #2 was not sufficient | |||||||||
4:57pm | Get ready to go to Baby Boot Camp- food for Ally, Mommy dressed, waters | |||||||||
5:08pm | Snack for Mommy & Ally | |||||||||
5:18pm | Clothes for Ally, once again she's naked | |||||||||
5:19pm | Nummies for Ally | |||||||||
5:22pm | Ally done nursing, Now she wants to play "Mommy scare me!" | |||||||||
5:28pm | Shoes for Ally | |||||||||
5:30pm | Change Jace's diaper | |||||||||
5:35pm | Kids in van | |||||||||
5:40pm | Leave | |||||||||
6:20pm | Arrive at Baby Boot Camp | |||||||||
6:25pm | Nurse both kids | |||||||||
6:45pm | Leave Baby Boot Camp- no show class | |||||||||
7:20pm | Arrive at home, Ryan already home | |||||||||
7:25pm | Nurse both kids | |||||||||
7:45pm | Dinner with family | |||||||||
8:20pm | Change Jace's diaper, more chamomilla, nurse | |||||||||
8:41pm | Kids playing, reading | |||||||||
8:42pm | Send Ally to get her pj's | |||||||||
9pm | Ryan takes Ally to bed, Mommy rock/nurse Jace to sleep | |||||||||
9:18pm | Jace asleep, in bed | |||||||||
9:25pm | Mommy coloring hair | |||||||||
9:41pm | Ally still awake, wants more night-night nummies | |||||||||
9:45pm | Jace suddenly awake |
I didn't record anything past 9:45pm because I spent the rest of the evening nursing and putting Jace back to sleep. I think I ended up going to bed myself sometime around 11 or midnight. This also ended up being the night that we made an ER trip at 4am for Jace who ended up having croup.
So, there you have it. This is what a stay at home mom does all day. It's nothing glamorous or exciting and not a lot to share BUT, it's important work for their family. Each smile and sweet hug from the little ones, and a simple comment from the husband about what a great mom you are makes the day-to-day worth it.
omg i know we all do this but seeing it written down makes me so tired! no wonder we are tired a lot! lol!
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