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Houston Babies
5/17/09 Silverlake Sprint Triathlon 1:28:32
10/3/09 Susan G. Komen 5K 28:58
1/17/10 Chevron Half Marathon 2:09:08
2/27/10 ConocoPhilips Rodeo Run 10K 1:10:49
Daily schedule = stress
I want to get some feedback on my schedule. I need to find out if this is normal or if there is room for improvement.
In the evenings it seems there is just not enough time. Also, I am curious how much other DH's help out. Mine helps get LO ready in the morning and he will play with him in the evening for a little while. I usually feed him and get him ready for bed.
This is what last night looked like:
6pm arrive home
6-6:45 play with LO
6:45 feed LO
7:15 get LO ready for bed
7:30-8:30 prepared bulk cherries I found for LO. Removed seed and cut into small pieces. Then I froze them in ice cube trays. Cut out the #1 for LO birthday hat.
8:30 got LO food ready for next day
9:00 put Totinos pizza in oven
9:20 eat dinner
9:20-10 watch tv
10:00 bed
I need to handle dinner in a better manner so I am not eating so late but I find it difficult. DH wants to have a say in what we have every night so when I mentioned planning meals ahead of time he was not happy. I said he does not know what he wants a week ahead of time and he also refuses to eat leftovers. He is also picky about what he will eat that has been frozen.
I also need to fit working out into this schedule too. It is not an option I have to have some me time or I am going to go crazy.
5/17/09 Silverlake Sprint Triathlon 1:28:32
10/3/09 Susan G. Komen 5K 28:58
1/17/10 Chevron Half Marathon 2:09:08
2/27/10 ConocoPhilips Rodeo Run 10K 1:10:49
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Daily schedule = stress
Our situation is a little different since I work from home, but since I do have to work the majority of the day most of our stuff gets done at night too.
We eat dinner early. Super early. I try to have it all done and ready by 6. If we are out of time then DH throws some chicken on the grill and I make some crescent rolls and a salad. Super quick and easy.
I try to meal plan as much as possible. DH and I sit down on Sat and talk about what we want to eat for the week. I buy it all on Sunday when I can and cook what I can then. (Cook up the ground beef, or have the chicken cooked, etc.) Then I can freeze/refrigerate the stuff for the week and making dinner at night is a lot less stressful.
Between getting both kids fed, washed and into bed and the dog walked and fed our evenings are busy too. What helps me is having everything done at the same time. Collin eats at the same time we all eat so that's not an extra step I have to take. DH and I take turns bathing DS while the other one walks the dog and DD gets a shower. That way we are all done and ready for the kids to go down between 7:30 and 8 and then we shower and have time to relax together.
Can you take a few days a week where when you get home you go for a run or go workout while your DH plays with and feeds LO?
Collin Thayne 10.11.2010
DH picks up the boys. I get home by about 5:15 and they are either already home or are shortly after. We play for a little bit and then I get started on dinner. DH plays with them while I get this done. We try to eat around 6:30 but sometimes it is closer to 7. Once dinner is finished we go upstairs to start the bedtime routine. If it is bath night they get baths and then books and bed. If it isn't bath night DS #1 might play around his room a bit before books. I rock/nurse DS#2 and put him down. This is finished by about 8:15. DH puts DS#1 down and he is usually finished around 8:15 too. When finished I clean up kitchen and make bottles and DH does the dishes from dinner. Day care provides food so I don't have to worry about that. No later than 8:45 we are finished and sit down to watch tv etc. In bed usually by 10:00.
Even though you said your DH doesn't like it I would really recommend making a weekly menu. I have actually just started doing this monthly. It takes a little planning up front but makes dinner/grocery shopping so much easier. As far as working out, I go to the gym during lunch. This isn't ideal but I would rather spend my evening on other things. Could your DH do bedtime while you prepare food for the next day?
Can you do some of DD's food preparation (the cherries) on the weekends? Seems like a long time to spend on that - and you are freezing it anyway (as opposed to preparing for the next day).
I would def. eat earlier. You could have put the pizza in while you were preparing DD's food and it would have been ready before you were done - or why can't DH cook, or help you with pitting the cherries, or put her down while you work on that?
ETA: I'm not insinuating that your DH doesn't do anything while you are doing all of that - i just didn't see him in your agenda, so maybe he doesn't have time -but just throwing it out there.
And - on the food menu, he might sound picky on a day to day basis, but I bet if you just started fixing whatever dinner every night, he would eat it! Just try it for one week and see. If he doesn't like it - he can get something himself. Keep up a menu for the week, so he knows that morning what he will be having that night, and maybe that will keep him from not being in the "mood" for it when you ask him at 7pm what he wants for dinner.
There is never enough time in the evening, we battle this every day and my DH helps a lot. I'm afraid that's just the way it is when you both work. I pick up Cooper and we get home between 6 and 6:15, I race around like a madwoman fixing dinner while DH plays w/ DS. Then we all sit down and eat by 7pm. DS has a few more minutes to play then it's bath, pjs, books, bed by 8:30. (we split up the bath/bed routine, DH does at least half really more than half lately). Then we do the dishes and make lunches for the next day, watch a little TV and then we shower, get ready for bed and do it all over again! whee!
DH is already gone for the day when DS and I get up at 7am, so I do mornings by myself. That's extra fun.
I do plan meals for the whole week and try to do some of the prep work on the weekends. I also try and have leftovers one night a week and one night that's either in the crockpot or a casserole that DH sticks in the oven before I get home. Frankly, I'd tell your DH too bad about dinner, plan meals and if he's not in the mood to eat what you make he can fend for himself. Dinner stresses me out enough as it is though, no way could I deal with last minute decisions. I also couldn't wait that late to eat.
So Tasty, So Yummy
I'm right there with ya. I get home with Evan around 6:00 or 6:15 and DH gets home anywhere from 6:30 to 7:30.
Here is what our schedule is like on good nights:
6:00 - Get home and play/read with DS
6:30 - DH gets home and play wiht DS, then helps with dinner prep (DS play in the kitchen while we get dinner ready)
7:00 - Dinner
7:30 - One of plays with DS the other cleans up dinner
8:00 - One of us does bath/teeth cleaning/jammies and the other gets lunches ready for tomorrow
8:30 - Book and bed (we both do this so we have a little more family time.)
9:00 - 11:00 Catch up with DH and watch tv
11:00 - 11:30 read and go to bed
Other nights look just like yours.
Like other people have said, we do as much as we can on the weekend, such as cut up fruit for the week. All we do during the week is assemble the items we have prepared.
As for dinner, we try to cook on the weekend, get things that heat quickly and require little cook time, and we definitely have a plan for the week. We may change the order of items, or eat something different from the freezer, but we don't deviate a lot because neither of us want to figure something else out.
Dx: PCOS and short luteal phase
18 cycles (3 with our RE) - Metformin + Clomid + HCG booster did the trick!
BFP #1 6/22/09 EDD: 3/2/10 DS born: 3/8/10
TTC #2 since Dec 2011
BFP #2 7/8/12 EDD: 3/18/12 M/C @ 9w1d: 8/16/12
So where was DH last night? Does he usually get home 6ish or get home late?
On days I work, DH usually picks up the kids and is home by 5:30 or 6. Dinner is already prepped - I have 3-4 meals prepped and ready to cook (all chopping is done, stuff is mixed together, recipes are on fridge, meat is seasoned, etc), so DH can pick one based on time and preference and get it started. I get home by 6, so dinner might already be started. We try to eat at 6:30, but 7pm is the latest. We all eat together, even when the kids ate baby food.
So on a good night, done with dinner by 7, we might go to the pool for an hour (and push back bedtime) or just play for a bit. One of us hangs with the kids while the other cleans up. Shower or baths at 7:30, milk and a show on tv, then books and bed for the kids around 8:30. Downstairs again at 9 for grown up time.
Sounds about right. Except, we tend to eat with the kids. They are a little older. Leftovers become kids' lunches.
*********************
My husband has been cooking things sous vide all summer and finding a lot of good, quicker recipes on this blog: nomnompaleo.com.
The blogger is a shift worker (nurse) with two little boys and a husband. Because of her schedule, she tends to have a lot of cook-ahead food and has ways to prepare leftovers into a new meal (see fritattas).
If you don't have or want a sous vide, most of the recipes can be adapted to conventional cooking. She also relies on her slow cooker - her pork roast is good.
The argument for sous vide is that you can cook the meat ahead and leave several options in the fridge for up to a month.The method of cooking avoids the leftover taste that can be objectionable
On good weeks, my husband cooks chicken, beef, pork, and even lamb ahead for the next week. Then, he just pulls a meat out of the refrigerator, finishes it in the skillet and has a wonderful meal in little time. It really is incredible.
The frozen veggies also help us get dinner on the table. Although, fresh isn't that much more to prepare. The blogger mentioned above has lots of good veggie recipes too.
We struggled for a long time and found a few conventional recipes, like red beans and rice, that really worked well leftover when we made a big batch. Simple soups that use chicken stock and frozen mirepoix as a base to throw leftovers into are pretty good, quick ideas, too.
Good luck.
Maybe I'm just in a pissy mood right now, but I'd tell DH to fix his own d@mn dinner if he wants a say in it but whines about me trying to do things ahead of time. You have a very busy evening and after working all day, it would be incredibly hard for me to do all of the LO duties + dinner for the adults.
Honestly, I agree with pook. It's not fair to you and it is stressing you out. I'm not sure how old your LO is, mine is 16 months and I never meal planned until he was born. Something as simple as meal planning could help you out tremendously...it did wonders for me. When I first met DH he told me he didn't eat leftovers, that changed, he eats them now. It stemmed from his mom's bad cooking though, I guess I'm a better cook than she and he has learned that some foods are actually better the next day.
I cook nice meals for us on Saturday and Sunday nights, crockpots also cook wonderful meals! The rest of the week are meals 30 minutes and under. I saw another nestie made a meal from Budget Bytes blog, it was the apricot dijon pork chops, they take less than 30 minutes. I also recently made her summer pasta, also a quick healthy meal. I also make extra so DS can have dinner the next night from leftovers from the night before, otherwise his school provides the meals for the day.
We have to work together each and every night in order for us to be able to relax and be in bed at a decent hour for us.He might prep a meal while I give DS a bath or I put DS down for the night while he starts dinner.
As far as exercise, while I haven't ran in three weeks cause of this crazy heat, I was going on weekend mornings and taking DS with me in the jogging stroller. The plan is to start back up once this crazy hot weather goes away. Eventually I would like to add a weekday evening too, knowing that night will probably be an take out night.
Lastly, DH and I take turns on the weekend waking up early with DS. Saturday I get up with DS, which is usually around 6 and Sunday is my day to sleep in, if you consider 7:30 sleeping in. It does help getting that bit of extra rest.
Raising a child is the most difficult job I could ever have imagined, it really does take a villge and you have to work together to do it. However, I have noticed the older he gets the easier it is getting. HTH.
This. DH told me that once when we first got married and I told him to get over it. Now he will eat whatever we have planned. We may switch days around but we will eat the meals.
Our schedule is like this:
Home by 530-I usually pick up but DH does as well
Dinner by 630 at the latest-One of us makes it and one of us plays with/watches E. We all eat at the same time.
E gets his bath right after dinner usually. Then we play until about 830 and then E goes to bed. We try to switch off who is the "main" caretaker...like I'll take the brunt tonight but DH will tomorrow night. That way we each have time to do things we need to get done.
I usually get daycare things ready right when we get home in the afternoon. Seems easiest.
Oh, and I do mornings everyday by myself.
I would have saved the whole cherry prep thing for the weekend (either early morning or during nap time) and then cut the 1's while watchinog TV at night. So you could have had dinner earlier. As your kid gets older, you'll want to have dinner all at once.
My schedule is (and it's not perfect and if only I had the energy to add a work-out in there...I would be a lot healthier!)
5:45 - come home
6:00 - family dinner
6:40ish - I give kids a bath and DH washes dishes and cleans the kitchen
6:50-7:15 - we all play in the living room together
7:15 - I put DD2 to bed (read books, brush teeth)
7:30-8pm - spend time with DD1
8 - DH gets DD1 ready for bed, and I come in during the last book and prayer time.
8:15-10:30: decompressing and TV (this is when I should be adding the work out in...but I am just soooo tired)
Double ditto. What the h*ll is your husband doing while you are doing all these tasks?? (This is MGR btw)
My husband and I trade off dinner prep, dishes, bathtime, bedtime routine etc. There is never a time when I am working my butt off and he is sitting there watching TV. We work as a team and once Joe is in bed, we have downtime. Your husband needs to be an equal partner. While you're cooking dinner, HE should be feeding your kid. Or, while bathing the kid, HE should be cutting this #1s etc etc etc....You are not a slave.
I can't really remember the feeding schedule from when C was that little but I will add in a few tips. We both walk in the door about 6:20 and eat dinner between 7 and 7:30.
First, DH would help with everything - we did bath and bed time together. Also, it was his job to wash and prep bottles for the next day. Mostly because I was either nursing or pumping, but that was his contribution and it was awesome.
If your DH is going to be that picky about dinner, make him cook. The only way we function is by planning ahead and cooking everything on Sunday. I don't understand people who don't eat leftovers. Yes, some things aren't as good and we work around that. But not eating them is just a big PITA to me.
Usually we plan out 3-4 meals for the week taking into account what will make enough for a second meal. I'll cook 2-3 entrees on Sunday (ex: grill chicken breasts, grill pork tenderloin, make hamburgers). Then at night we'll reheat the entree and cook sides and dinner is on the table in less than 1/2 an hour. It took a while to get in a groove, but now when I can't get my crap together on Sunday we end up eating crap (hot dogs, pizza) and blow our diets.
This is exactly what we do. I cook he feeds. He bathes I put up her laundry. etc
He says that me making Kyle's food is not necessary and that we could buy it so he will not help me.
He will feed him and take care of the night time routine sometimes but he never helps with the meals unless it involves cooking a pizza.
I think I am going to try to prep what I can on the weekends and if he does not like it he can eat cereal.
5/17/09 Silverlake Sprint Triathlon 1:28:32
10/3/09 Susan G. Komen 5K 28:58
1/17/10 Chevron Half Marathon 2:09:08
2/27/10 ConocoPhilips Rodeo Run 10K 1:10:49
in our family, all food prep is my responbitily, thats just how it is, and that is fine. I made all DS's food and make all our meals... but DH has no say in what is made for dinner. I cook what I want to cook and he eats it. Obviously I know what he likes/doesnt like and I take that into consideration and if he has a request (made before weekly grocery shopping) I oblige. Otherwise, he eats what i put on his plate.
as for finding time in your schedule... as everyone else has said, menu planning and weekend prep is the key. I made DS's food in marathon steaming/peeling/cutting/etc sessions during naptime one saturday a month. Now, he just eats what we eat.
When DS was still taking a bottle or being spoon fed, DH did the feeding while I cooked dinner. That was a big time saver and DH enjoyed the bonding time. And quite frankly, I have to say that I didnt get much "play time" in with DS on lots of nights. There just wasnt time for me to do that some nights. It sucked but I'd make up for it on the weekends.
My motto is "I am not a short order cook." You said it - cook/prep what will work best for you and if he wants cereal, go for it. He'll either help, get tired of cereal...or you'll have leftovers for lunch quite often. :-)
I did the same - I made C's food on the weekends. The good news - it isn't forever. Eventually they'll start eating more solid food and you can give him what you're eating. I feel like C was only eating baby food for 4-5 months.
Also, as for working out, I still haven't figured that out. :-( If I do get on the treadmill, it is 9pm at night. I hate that...but it is my only option.
After I kicked DH in the shins for saying this, I'd tell him that making his food isn't necessary and he could buy it, so I won't cook for him. Yes, you could buy baby food (and I did with A), but making it is easy, better for them and probably tastes a heck of a lot better than something that doesn't expire for a gazillion years.
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Your DH is lucky - I'd probably aim a little higher than the shins.
)
DH doesn't prep DS's food, but he does tell me often that he appreciates that I make it instead of buying it - if nothing else then for the fact that it's a lot cheaper that way. I'd save the food prep for the weekends, that's what I do during his nap time on the weekends, I'd go crazy if I tried to do it at night during the week.
DH also doesn't cook dinner unless it's grilling something outside, and then I still do the side dishes. I really think that planning ahead and prepping on the weekends will help your nighttime routine a lot.
Do you have a crock pot? There are so many yummy things you can cook in there and using it can really free up your nighttime routine.
Collin Thayne 10.11.2010