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Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months
excitedforlittleone
member
SAHM's I need your help.
excitedforlittleone
member
I have decided to quit my job. I'm scared and excited. I'm not quitting until next month so I'm trying to figure out what I'm going to do all day with DS. I feel like he is at an age where he won't want to stay at home all day every day but of course we will be limited with money because a loss of income.
My question is what do you do all week? Do you plan certain days to clean and shop and certain days you do playdates/parks/ etc? Do you just kind of go with the flow? What is your weekly schedule like? I just want to try to find things to do so we aren't both getting cabin fever the first week. TIA.
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Re: SAHM's I need your help.
well first it depends where you live but for us, we live in california so we have a lot of outdoor options.
Our weeks usually look like this:
Mondays: grocery shoppin, playing inside and naps.
Tuesdays: Park trip after first nap.
Wednesdays: playdates.
THursday: mommy and me program for 3 hours.
Fridays: open day to do anything
We usually stay inside until the first nap is over and then we go out and do things. We have a mommy and me program at our church for $30 for 5 months and we LOVE it! I would find something like that to do at least once a week, Dawson really loves it! Especially as winters comes, it will be a great escape when we cant do things outside
Good luck and congrats!! I hope it works out for you!
I would look into local playgroups, library (or bookstore) story times, children's museums, aquariums, zoos, etc. Find things that you can do each week, and things that are good for the occasional trip. Some days you and LO might just want to hang around the house and color or read books all day. Even a walk around the block can be a nice way to spend an hour if you point out trees, cars, puppies, etc. etc. etc.
A lot of places that do cost money to visit have good deals on seasonal/annual passes that cost more up front ($50-$100 per family usually) but pay for themselves with a couple visits. We have passes to the zoo, aquarium, and living museum.
Don't underestimate the value of just wandering around a store for an hour. You don't have to buy anything, it gets you out of the house, and if you realize you're out of toothpaste, it's convenient. If they have a food area (like Target) you can grab lunch and make a proper afternoon of it.
B and I are the types that can sit at home every day just hanging out and then for a week we're out and about all day, every day. Our schedules don't allow for storytimes or playgroups (we get up later than most of their start times) but we still pack a lot in when we set our minds to it.
Mes Petit Choux
I can't go back to yesterday - because I was a different person then. ~ Alice
We just go with the flow. My days are crappy now since we're prepping for a move. They used to be very easy but, busy (hence the long hiatus!)
Usually he'd wake up and we'd play while I cooked breakfast for us and he'd watch cartoons while I ate and cleaned up a bit. We'd go for walks in the late afternoons and go to the park so we didn't go stir crazy.
The best advice I can give you is to clean and whatever while he's playing and relax while he naps!
Hey love! I didn't know you were at home now! Thanks for the tips
Thanks everyone I will definitely look into local activities!
Yep - been home since late May!
I try to keep up with a schedule to help us get through the days:
Monday: 9 am gym with bff while the babies are in playcare/daycare for an hour, play outside when we get home, nap, lunch, run an errand, like target trip.
Tuesday: 9 am run with a group of moms, sometimes take kids in strollers, others we find a babysitter to share for 2 hrs, nap, lunch, playgroup, joined up with a group of about 10 moms and every tuesday we meet at somebody elses house to let the kids play and moms socialize.
Wednesday: 9 am workout with Stroller Strides group (at a park in the summer, mall in the winter), stay an play at park afterward or the mall has an indoor play area. nap, lunch, run an errand (grocery store for produce) or stay home and just play inside.
Thursday: 9 am gym with bff while babies are in playcare/daycare, home to play outside, nap, run an errand or play inside. Once a month on Thursday I go out with a group of moms for MNO, Mom's night out.
Friday: 9 am stroller strides, home to play outside. DH is home on fridays so they vary what we do after working out in the am.
Saturday: 8 am go running with a group of mom's, no babies. deep clean the house with DH plays with DS.
Sunday: usually do the grocery shopping by myself this day.
It depends what kind of area you live in and what kind of resources are available. We live in a city so there's tons to do. DD takes two classes per week. The rest of the days we might go to the pool or the park. Some days it's just errands. I usually plan one outing per day, either a class or errand in the car, then we just stick around near the house the rest of the day or head to the nearby park. We also joined a playgroup that meets once a week. If we lived in a more rural area and had a backyard we would probably just stick around a bit more.
Most of the time we go with the flow. We go to weekly story time at the library, she takes 2 - 3 classes a week (varies by season, anything from music, swim, art, toddler pre-gymnastics, etc.) we have memberships to the zoo, local kid's science museum and children's museum, play at different parks, swimmimg, and local events downtown. We live in Oregon so there's a lot of nature trails to take long walks on. I also belong to two mom's groups that each have 2 - 3 activities a week. We stay pretty busy from morning to bedtime, even if it's something easy going. We do most of our cleaning and laundry on weekends and hubby helps out.
Congrats on being a SAHM. It is wonderful, yet trying (although I would not trade the experience). I just think it is a balance - I am not able to clean one day, take LO out another, etc. I try to take LO out every day. We both get bored. Actually, he is down to one nap, so we leave the house morning and afternoon. I add errands to that.....
All I can say is that you need to hang in there. I miss working (the grass is always greener). You might be shocked at how tough it is to not work. Again, not trying to be negative. But adult interaction is so great, and that might decrease, to say the least.
Basically, do everything every day: clean, play, etc. GL! It has to be a balance. And, find a babysitter! Even if it is one day per week for 2 hours. You will need it.
I don't really schedule our days but more like go with the flow. I usually do house chores when she's napping, that way I can finish quiclkly. Some of our activities include running errands, playing outside, going for walks in her push buggy. Sometimes we'll make a trip to the library or the park. If I need to go grocery shopping I'll go after her naptime so I can sit her in the shopping cart.
I break the day up by naps.
Block one 6:30-10
Block 2 11-2:30
Block 3 3:30-5:30
Within every block is a story time, then meal and/or snack, which is always followed by 30 minutes of "independent play" while I clean up and prep for the next meal. Beyond that we are flexible. Every day I work in 30 minutes of music- I blast a CD and dump a pile of instruments. We have a sun room where they ride the ride on toys, they like to race and play bumper cars. In the basement we have swings and a slide, so we go down there 30 minutes most days. Upstairs we have a traintable which currently has megablocks, so we all go in there and build together,
I usually get out in the mornings, some days to the playground, one day to the farmer's market, other days we just go out back and they play in the pool and sand box. The second block I get one major chore done for the house and it usually involves helping hands. The third block is usually wind down, a little TV or a play date.
Before the twins we had a gymboree class once a week and then went for free play twice a week. He went to the library story time, or would go to the community center to swim.
Enjoy being home!
We go out twice a day, though some days both outings are just walks around the neighbourhood. DS gets really antsy if we stay in the house for too long, so we take one walk in the morning after his first nap, and another in the afternoon. Sometimes I'll take him for a walk at naptime and he'll fall asleep in the stroller and then I get to sit with a coffee and a book.
Stuff we do:
-Neighbourhood walk
-Walk through nature trail
-Playground
-Big playground at the lake with splashpad
-Zoological park (small zoo/farm)
-Library
-Community Centre programs
-Moms group
-Errands (post office, shopping, etc)