SAHM's with no help ...

Aimes78

How on earth do you do it all?!!!  I have an 8 week old & a 21 month old.  I am still trying to find our new normal.  We also have 2 dogs so I really have to vacuum downstairs daily, they no longer get walked, I do consultancy work for a hospital that only takes a few hours a week but without DS#1's long daily nap I am struggling to get everything done.  Any advice?  My MIL is not too well & has other grandchildren so is not too available & my mum lives in the UK - without me picking up more consultancy work a cleaner or child care is not an option!  I know it will become easier as DS2 goes to bed earlier but please let me in on any secrets . Thanks ladies.

celiabwatson

One thing that I've done lately (which I'm doing so I can do some tutoring) is trade childcare with another SAHM. It obviously takes some time to build a relationship with someone enough that you'd trust them with your kids, but it's been great. She brings her son over around 3:30 when my son wakes up from his nap. She leaves and either goes to the library to work on her computer (she works from home) or goes home to clean etc. She comes back around 5 and then I leave for tutoring for an hour plus commute time. If I wasn't tutoring I could run to the grocery store (I have dropped my kids off with her to make a grocery store run on a day when I wasn't up for doing it with both kids), clean my house, etc etc. 

It's so nice to have free childcare available and watching an extra kid for an hour or two is not too bad. I don't want to watch an extra kid all day to make money but trading childcare is really working well for us.

I also try to clean as much as possible during the toddler's long nap, even if the baby is awake. It doesn't always happen, but sometimes I can put her in the high chair with some snacks/toys and unload and load the dishwasher before she gets bored.  

delg23

with time it will get easier, I don't have dogs, and tv. I just joined a gym just so I could get a break and drop them off lol.

PaisleyRuth

I have no advice, but just wanted to say that I'll be in your boat starting in about 6 weeks!  I'll have a newborn, and 18.5 month old, and DH will be starting another school year with 2 new higher-pressure, longer-hour jobs (was a teacher & JV coach, now will be assistant principal & varsity coach).  He also has a Saturday job every weekend for Sept/Oct (when the baby will be 1-2 mos old), leading right into basketball season (the sport he coaches) from Nov-Feb.  Oh, and he's still finishing grad school this year.  And I'm still going to be working my part time job from home, supposedly 15 hrs a week.  

My sister keeps asking me how I am going to do all that (and I keep asking myself the same thing).  I have no idea.  I'm trying not to shoot myself preemptively.

bellelamb

Our kids are very similar in age but I have an 8 year old, 20 month old and 7 week old.  First I live with a fur ball here and there one dog and two cats, my sanity is more important than a clean house.  Second I let them cry sometimes, third we watch a lot of Seseame street, so I can feed lo and keep ds happy. Some days we get things done some days we just are in survival mode. 

etude de la vie

The firs 6-7 months my house wasn't clean but it was picked up and I hardly ever really cooked. We also had pets. 

Now I have a routine.

Kids wake up I put in my first load of laundry. We go downstairs for milk and tv. I make my coffe. 

Once they are in the high chair with breakfast I unload or load the dishwasher. After they are done I sweep the floors (after every meal).

DS would take his first nap and then I could do art with DD and when he woke up we would run an errand, eat lunch, and DD would nap. I would try to fit quick cleaning (like dusting in) during this time and switch laundry again. 

DS would nap again about 1hr into DD nap (around 2pm) and I would eat, do quiet cleaning (bathrooms, windows, dishwasher) and try to get a 20 min nap myself.

After they wake we do snack, then I vacuum downstairs and we either go upstairs to play (playroom)  Outside or if we need we do another errand. 

After that we eat dinner, pick uo all the toys, go for bath, milk, bed! Then I  feed the dogs. I don't clean the entire house every day but try to get 1-2 things beyond laundry and dishes done a day. 

I am way too exhausted to clean anything after bed. This is when I eat and shower and go to bed.  

 

Aimes78

Ladies, thank you.  You have offered wonderful support & advice.  I'm going to try & put some of your ideas into practice & try not to let the dog hair drive me so insane!!!!

Mommy2CB

This worries me because we have a good number of pets and there is so much hair! Right now I sweep/mop every other day (during DS's nap) but I'm wondering how it will be with #2 when the time comes.