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August 2012 Moms
poppyseed1017
member
Working Mamas, what's your schedule like?
poppyseed1017
member
Walk me through your day. I feel like I have a pretty good schedule down most days, but a lot of time I feel so rushed all the time, like I never have enough time to do anything, so I'm wondering if I'm missing something or if that's just the way it is now.
Here's my day (I work 8-5):
5:45/6:00 - wake up, get myself ready (hair done, teeth brushed, makeup done, put pants on)
6:30 - go downstairs, pack bottles and daycare bag, pack breakfast and lunch, make coffee
6:45 - get DD up, change, nurse
7:00 - finish getting dressed, take dogs out, pack up car, put DD in car seat
7:15/7:20 - leave for daycare, get there around 7:40
8am - work
5:30pm - home, nurse DD, clean bottles and pump parts, play with DD
7pm - DD down for cat nap, make dinner, pump, make bottles for next day (DH helps with all of this stuff)
8pm - start nighttime routine, bathe DD, change, pjs on, sleepsack on, nurse one more time, DD asleep by 9 or 9:30
Watch whatever shows I have that night if I'm up for it
Pump one last time
Hang out with DH, dogs
Bed by 10:30/11:00
Whew. I feel like I don't sit down from 5:35am - 10pm most days and it's f*cking exhausting. Is that just how it is now? Or at least until I stop BFing/pumping? What's your day like?
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Re: Working Mamas, what's your schedule like?
I usually don't pump in the mornings. I nurse DD and let her nurse from both sides, then pump at work around 9am. I'm usually pretty full, if not engorged, but I just don't have time to pump in the mornings before work.
Oh wait. Reading comprehension fail. Do you mean 5:30pm? I only pump then if I get home and she's asleep or if DH has just given her a bottle. I usually wait until later on in the evening to pump.
If I'm able to drop a pumping session, I definitely do. DD still cluster feeds sometimes at night so usually I don't have to worry about pumping until right before I go to bed. But on the nights she naps, if I'm full, I have to pump or I get too uncomfortable, plus it helps me maintain my freezer stash.
Well, mine is going to be a little different because I work afternoons (3-11pm), but here:
6-7am: SO leaves for work, I pump beforehand. DS wakes up for the first time (since 8pm when he went down), he goes down after this bottle for a nap.
9-10am: Wakes up, bottle, Ellen, we try for ten minutes of tummy time...usually we get about five.
11am: Naps, hopefully. Most days, he just fights until he falls asleep after his 1pm bottle.
2pm: My sister gets here to babysit, I pump, get ready for work, fill his bottles for SO
2:45pm: Leave for work, come home at 11:45pm.
SCANDAL!
I work four 10-hour days, Mon-Thu. My schedule is crazy and I don't even breastfeed.
5:20am wake up, makeup
5:50am get DS dressed, packed for day care, grab my pre-made bags from the fridge for the day
6:15am drop DS off at day care
7am work
5:30pm get out of work
6:20pm get home from work (DH picks up LO at 5:30pm), make dinner, wash bottles, make bottles for the next day, wash out my lunch, make my lunch, make a breakfast shake for myself for the drive to work, put everything in the fridge, clean up the kitchen, also feed DS once in this time depending on how he napped that day
8:30pm shower
9pm pick out clothes for the next day, sit with DH for 15 minutes
9:30pm bedtime routine for DS, change into pj's, feed him, burp him
10:15/10:30pm put DS to bed, I go to sleep.
Wish I knew how to get more hours out of my day...if someone knows please share!
4 am: Wake up DD, change her, nurse
4:30: pump whatever DD didn't get (usually nothing)
5: get myself ready, take dog out to do his thang, eat oatmeal
5:45: leave house
6: drop DD off at Mom and Dad's
6:30: arrive at work
7: pump at work
10: pump again
1130: sport lunch until 1 (I am in the military so I get a lot of time to workout)
1 PM: pump
3: off work!
330: pick up DD
345: get home, nurse DD
4-7: take DD and furbaby on walk, eat dinner, bathe DD
7: nurse, then play
8:30: one more nurse session if needed, DD to bed
After 830 I get my uniform ready for the next day, do household chores, watch TV, and shower. Then I'm knocked out by 10 pm. Then I repeat it aaallll over again.
5:45-6:50am: We wake up (DS is my alarm clock), feed DS his "breakfast" bottle, have some cuddle time.
7:15am: Put DS on his play gym mat while I get ready (Interupted if he is feeling fussy).
8:00am: Make DS's bottles for the day, pack my lunch, stuff diapers.
8:30am: Sitter arrives.
8:45-9:00am: Work.
5:15pm: Get home, get something out for supper, and walk the dog before the sitter leaves (she is amazing.. I swear).
5:30pm: Spend more time with DS (read books, sit and talk, etc.)
6:00pm: Get the diapers in the wash, soak bottles.
6:30pm: DH is home by now. He handles DS while I get supper started and do things around the house.
7:00-7:45pm: Bathtime, DS has his "supper" bottle, bedtime.
8:00pm: If we didnt eat between the previous times me and DH eat supper.
8:30-10:00pm: Finish diaper wash, do laundry, do dishes, DH will clean kitchen (most days), clean the bottles for the morning.
After 10pm: DH and I have alone time and will watch a movie or just watch tv and spend time together. Bedtime for us normally follows this around 11:30pm.
AND REPEAT
This is a normal day. Recently DS has been waking up around 3am for a feeding so our morning schedule has been a litle off but no biggie.
6:30 Usually my mom or husband takes her so I can have a cup of coffee, use the bathroom, etc.
6:45 Go through my oldest's backpack, sign any of his papers, write in the teacher journal, pack his snacks. I lay out his clothes, shoes and coat. I pick out my clothes for the day.
7:00 Begin the arduous task of waking my oldest. This can sometimes take up to a half hour. During which time I will feed/change the baby again, have one more cup of coffee.
7:30 My oldest is up, I have him dress and brush his teeth while I make him breakfast or pour him cereal.
7:45 Pack my lunch, get my work bag, purse and travel mug ready.
8:00 Shower, make up, hair and get dressed.
8:15 Put my oldest on the school bus
The baby doesn't go to daycare so this cuts down on rushing and stress tremendously. My husband works the opposite shift that I do so he stays home with the baby during the day.
8:20 Leave for work. It's a 40 minute commute.
9:00 5:00 Work. My husband works at 4, so my mother gets my son off the bus and watches the baby until I get home.
6:00 Help my son with homework, feed the baby and him.
7:00 Have my son take a shower while I give the baby a bath.
7:15 9:00 Play with the kids, feed the baby, read with my son, feed the baby, change her and swaddle and in the crib by 9:00. I then lay with my son in his bed and we talk about his day, watch something on the Disney Channel or read.
10:00 Load the dishwasher, do a load of laundry, clean the kitchen counters, etc. Maybe watch a tv show or read. I usually end up in bed between 11 and 1 depending on what needs to be done. If I have the energy I will shower and get everyones clothes ready, bags packed and lunches made the night before. But usually I am too exhausted by the end of the night.
And repeat.
The only thing that stinks about the whole thing is that my husband and I rarely see eachother since he's home when I work and I'm home when he works. We don't see eachother at night and I think we sleep in the same bed one night a week. But you do what you've got to do, right? My oldest was always in daycare and I am thankful that the baby is able to stay home during the day this time around.
5am - My dad drops off my mom on his way to work
5:30am - Wake up, eat breakfast, pump then get ready for work.
6:30 - Leave for work (DD sleeps until 7 or 7:30 so I don't usually get to see her before I leave for work.)
7am - Get to work
3:30-4pm - Leave work and head home
4:30pm - Get home and play/feed DD help my mom make dinner.
5:15pm - DH gets home from work, eat dinner.
6pm - DD naps anywhere from 1hr to 3hrs. This is where I wash bottles and do other things around the house.
9pm - Start DD bedtime routine then DH takes her up to put her to bed while I pump.
10pm- DH and I are in bed to start all over.
I teach nonstop from 7:30 to 12:30.
I get home between 3 and 4 and do housework and play/feed/bathe babies as well as help dd with her homework. Three days a week she is out from 6:30 til 8:30ish. When she gets home everybody goes to bed by 9:30 and I usually get up 2 to 3 times a night once per kid.
That's exhausting.
5:30am wake up LO, change her and give her a bottle
6am hand her off to DH and get dressed and ready for work
6:20am get LO dressed, feed dog, get her in carseat and leave for DC
6:35am drop LO off
6:45am leave for work
7:30am get to work
5:15pm leave work
6:15pm pick up LO from DC
6:30pm home
6:30 to 10:30 make dinner, run errands if any, get outfits ready for next day, feed LO, watch tv, shower, pack lunch
Basically Monday thru Thursday I have no life.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels like I'm running around like a crazy person now that I'm back at work
I started back last week, but my parents were here for the holiday and helped out, so today was the first day that I had to do the whole routine by myself. But that also meant no more houseguests, so that's less stressful, at least. My schedule is:
6:15 - 8 am: DD doesn't have a normal wake-up time yet, so I get up at 6:15 am and either feed her first or start getting ready until she wakes up. Walk dogs after she is up and fed. Eat breakfast.
8 am - leave for daycare (which is luckily 3 blocks away)
8:30 am - arrive at work
4:15 pm - DH picks up DD from daycare
5:30 pm-ish - I leave work
6 pm - 7 pm - play with DD and give her a bath, then DH puts her to bed
7 pm - 9 pm - eat dinner, make food for the next day, wash bottles/pump parts, generally clean up, pump, and take care of any "life" stuff
9 pm - bed
DD usually wakes up around 4 am or so for a feeding, though on her first day of daycare last week she slept 7:30 pm - 6 am, so I'm hoping she starts to do that more often. I'm also trying to fit in exercise and errands during the day as a lunch break.
5:30 eat breakfast
6:00 DH gets up DS and feeds him while I get ready for work hair,makeup, get dressed
6:30 pack my lunch and daycare bottles and load the car while DH gets DS dressed.
6:50 put DS in carseat and leve for daycare/work
7:00 drop DS off at daycare
7:25 arrive at work
7:30 until 4:00 work
4:15 pick up DS
4:30 until 5:30 feed DS solids an spend time playing with him
5:30 DH gets home and takes DS and feds him a bittle while I cook dinner, DS usually falls asleep around 6 for a nap.
6:00 dinner
6:30 relax while DH does he dishes
7:00 take my shower
7:30 until 8:30 make bottles for the next day, pump, watch TV, some days work on laundry, play with DS after his nap
8:30 dress DS I his sleeper and sleep sack, DH reads him a story and I feed him his bedtime bottle.
We go to bed between 9 and 9:30 depending on how long it takes DS to go to sleep.
DH is a SAHD. Hats off to those of you who both work, I would go nuts! Here is our typical schedule:
4:00am (sometimes later) - she wakes to nurse. If she finishes before 5am, I'll go back to bed for a little more sleep.
6:00am - wake up and pump (I'm usually pretty full in the morning)
6:30 - get in the shower and start getting ready
7:00 - DH wakes up and showers, feeds the dogs, crams in as many chores as he can before I leave
7:45 - get LO up (if she is already up), change her into daytime clothes and bring her downstairs to play in her swing or with DH if he is done with chores
8:00 - leave for work, arrive around 8:30. I'll pump three times during the day, usually around 10am, 1pm, and 4pm.
5:00 - leave work, arrive home around 5:30.
5:30 - nurse and cuddle with LO
6:00 - make and eat dinner (DH hasn't started taking over cooking duties yet, so we often do our own thing or do quick and easy stuff like tacos)
7:00-9:00 - nap, nurse, play or cuddle on demand while we watch our shows or a movie
9:00 - get her ready for bed, do one last feeding and put her in her crib
10:00 - get ready for bed, usually asleep by 10:30.
Here's the outline of our ideal day, but maybe 20% of them actually go exactly like this...
6:00 or 6:30 - My alarm goes off and I get up, shower, pump, fix my hair, and get dressed (or partially dressed if I'm going to feed the kiddo - she is a serious spitter.) Husband deals with the kiddo during this time if she has any early wake-ups. Generally I also tackle some laundry, dishes, and my breakfast during this time.
7:30 - Time for the kiddo to get up! She gets a bottle from either husband or myself, depending on who has less to do.
8:15-8:30ish - I leave for work.
9:00 - Nanny and her 14-month-old son show up. Husband gives her the lowdown for the day. One of them puts the kiddo down for her first nap around this time. Husband leaves for work a little after 9:00.
8:50-2:11 - Teach! (I am part time.) Kiddo is at our house with the nanny and her son.
2:30 - Get home; daily nanny debriefing. Say goodbye to Katie (nanny) and her son - our kiddo is sleeping at this time. Unpack my school bag, change clothes, pump, deal with the kiddo's mid-nap wake up, do some housework or school work.
4:00 - Get the kiddo up to eat; diaper change; play time!
5:15ish - Put the kiddo down for her last nap. Pump. Work on dinner, do housework or school work, hang out with the husband if he is home, relax!
6:30 or 6:45ish - Kiddo gets up for dinner! Husband does bedtime Monday, Thursday, and Friday; I tackle Tuesday and Wednesday. Bottle, bath some nights, diaper, PJs, and bed by 8:00. I pump at some point during this time.
8:00-10:30 - My time!! Honestly, I usually fall asleep. I also try to prep my lunch and snacks for the next day and lay out clothes.
10:30 - Husband does the dream feed while I pump; we all go to bed.
The only day that is different is Wednesday, when my husband stays home with our daughter all day. Sometimes he will leave and do work stuff after I get home, sometimes we have the afternoon to get things done around our house. (He is self employed and I teach part time, so although we are poor, or schedules are nicely flexible!)