how do i do it?

So how do I do it?  This is one of those questions that always throws me.  And when a mom I often wonder 'how does she do it?' asked me, I wrote it all down for her (she asked me to give a daily schedule).  So here is what was a semi-typical school day back in January (it is amazing to see how much my days have changed in the past few months)...

6:00am - My alarm goes off (if Manning or Maddux hasn't already woken me up) - my goal is to get up before the kids and shower if I have to go somewhere other than dropping off and picking up at school.

6:15am - sit down to do my one or two verse Bible study (Good Morning Girls) with a few ladies from MOPS. We just email our thoughts and prayers each day.  Sometimes this doesn't happen until after the kids are in bed for the night.

6:30am - start cleaning the kitchen.  Unless Matt does the dishes after dinner (depends on how his day and bed time go), I generally leave them for the morning.  Gross?  yes.  Best for me?  Yes.  for whatever reason, I find it so much easier to clean the kitchen first thing in the morning while the kids are eating breakfast than mustering up the energy to do it after making and eating dinner.

6:45am - make Madelyn and Matt's lunch.  Could I do this at night? Yes.  But again, I find it easier to do in the morning.  That way I don't have to try and store them in the refridgerator.

7:00am - most if not all of the kids are up and are eating breakfast. A few times a week I make those bran pancakes or something (generally I do this on the weekends but at least one school day).  Somewhere prior to this Manning is usually up and nursed.

7:30am - start encouraging the kids to wrap-up breakfast and get dressed.

7:45am - start solid feeding for Manning if I haven't already

8:00am - make sure everyone is dressed, double-check neatening up the 'bed-heads' and go to throw on some clean clothes if this wasn't a "showing day" (seriously, I must only shower every two or three days most of the time - yuck).

8:15am - tell everyone to get on coats and shoes and get in the car. Go change Manning's diaper and get him dressed.  Gather up anything that needs to go in the car with us - coupons, shopping lists, snacks, etc.

8:25am - tell the kids to get their bags and get into the car.  All three bigs head out the garage while I buckling Manning into the carrier.  There is usually yelling (me) and crying (usually Mason) during this process.

8:30 - 8:40am - head to drop Madelyn at school through the drop-off line

8:50am - unload everyone and take Mason into his school

9:05am - load Maddux and Manning back into the car

9:15am - Usually we run at least one errand while Mason is in school. If we just go home then I put Manning down for a nap (if he fell asleep in the carrier I just leave him sleeping in it in the hallway). Let Maggie out for the first time.  Maddux usually gets to watch a cartoon while I sit at either a work computer or personal computer to send a few emails and make any calls (the calls very, very rarely happen which is why I still haven't rescheduled my dentist appointment from a few weeks ago).

10:20-10:30am - make Maddux a snack and try to read a book or do something one on one (honestly, this part rarely happens) or do some house task - clean the kitchen (again), throw in some laundry, etc.

11am - nurse Manning

11:15am - go to pick up Mason

11:45am - make lunch for Mason and Maddux then feed Manning.

12:30am - make and eat my own lunch (I used to eat with the kids, but I am finding that I enjoy eating by myself with a little quiet while they go play after eating)

1pm - put Manning down for his nap

1:15 - 3:30pm - this time varies wildly depending on my energy level, the boys' temperment and what deadlines I have for work.  Some days the boys and I play downstairs, sometimes we bake (this is something productive I can do that they enjoy doing with me and doesn't leave me feeling like I am "wasting time" which playing sometimes can), I might meal plan,  do laundry (only washing and hanging - I only fold when everyone is sleeping), some days we just watch a movie because my brain (and more often ears) need a break.

3:40pm - step outside to get Madelyn from the bus

4:00pm - snack for the kids and double-check how much time dinner will take so that I know when to start.  Typically, I meal plan for the week on Wednesday or Thursday (or Friday) and shop on Saturday morning (when everything is stocked and the store is quiet).  It takes forever to select, list and coupon but is usally worth the time and makes dinner preparation a little less stressful - that is, of course, if I remembered to defrost the meat.

4:30pm - Manning wakes up to be nursed

5:00pm - on a good day the kids will all go downstairs and play while I make dinner.  This very rarely happens.  They usually want a craft. I just let them decide what they want to make and then I try and make it happen (enter Google or a quick Pintrest search).  Mostly, they are
happy with some paper, scissors and a gluestick.  Sometimes I will just throw in something they don't normally get to use like newspaper. For some reason coloring is more fun on newspaper.

5:30pm - I start dinner (sometimes a little earlier - we eat at 6pm). Depending on the day this might be a time with a lot of crying and yelling or it might be a dance party or it might just be a fun and helpful time.  I never know quite what I am going to get.  Most days I am starting to run out of steam.  Actually, if I sit down before Madelyn's bus gets here, I set an alarm on my phone because I am afraid to fall asleep.  Even when I am reading them books.  The words start to come out of my mouth more and more slowly and my blinks keeps getting longer and longer.  The afternoons can be dangerous.  I try to get the kids to clean up their toys before dinner.

6pm - Matt gets home.  It is like the kids can sense his arrival because it usually gets calm about 5 minutes before he walks through the door.  On Wednesdays, when I don't have to leave the house, I might still be in my pajamas.  Poor Matt. Matt generally feeds Manning his solids during our dinner.

6:30pm - Dinner is over and the kids seem to occupy themselves with Matt and I might get a few minutes to myself.  I try to make this productive time, but generally it is just putting away leftovers and cleaning up the kitchen a little (meaning, I might empty a dishwasher or stack the dirties next to the sink neatly).  Sometimes I go 'hide' in our room but the kids seem to find me in under 5 minutes.

7pm - start getting Manning ready for bed and start baths for the kids (they get a bath every other night unless we did or ate something messy).  Matt might help the kids with cleaning-up.

7:15pm - I go in to nurse Manning.  This is when I read my book club book or look at Pintrest on my iPad.  It can take anywhere from 10 - 60 minutes to nurse Manning at night. Sometimes I just go longer so that the kids' bedtime antics don't wake him up.

7:30pm - Matt starts bedtime with the other kids - jammies, teeth brushing, etc.  On nights he isn't home, Madelyn helps the boys until I am done with Manning - which is crazy but they all like to do it this way so it works.

8:00pm - This is our goal bed time for the kids and all lights are off (luckily the kids' room lights are on their fans and operate from a remote control.  there are nights when we have to take the remote from the boys' room so that Maddux will stop turning the light back on and
bother Mason).  Madelyn generally puts herself to bed after reading books with Matt on the couch.  Sometimes I will read to her once I am done with Manning in her room (Manning sleeps in her room).  Then I go and sing songs with the boys.

8:15pm - Matt and I get out our computers to work.  On a good night where everyone goes straight to bed. 

8:30 - 11pm - I should use this time for working but the past two months it really hasn't been used for enough working and my billable hours have been lower than normal.  I might spend 30 minutes making a list of what needs to happen the next day.  I try to have a list of what needs to happen each week and specifically the next day.  The busier the day, the more specific my list gets - like the sequence I am going to run all my errands.  I will do my cutting to sew during this time too.  I have found that I can pin and sew with the kids but the cutting needs more focus and thought than I can do correctly with so many question interruptions. This is also when I might peruse Pintrest for a few minutes or do my meal planning.

11pm - I try to wrap things up by now because we usually have at least one nightime visitor and more often lots of sleep interruptions.

11pm - 1am - If I have a tight deadline at work, I am still working. If I am getting close to book club, then I am reading.  I try not to stay up past one because I just can't wake up enough to be effective the next day.

That might have been more detail than you wanted.  I really didn't plan to make it so long.  Notice that there isn't any personal time. This is the part that wears on me a little.  I am going to try and start swimming by February (I want Manning to be a little older before I start leaving him with the YMCA child care and I wanted to get past all the resolution traffic).  I do use my iPad a lot for a quick search or a quick look at emails here and there and I rarely sit down. I guess I try and have one 'activity' planned each week - somewhere to go, some craft, or something 'fun' - that we can throw in on any day I feel up to it.  I also keep an eye on the forecast to see if there is a particularly nice weather day coming up that we should really try to spend outside.  I rarely plan things with other people and tend to be a little fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants.  I am trying to change this because it would be nice to volunteer or have playdates.

The house is rarely clean but I do try to keep it 'neat'.  And I am personally rarely neat or clean.  I shoot more for "not smelly". :)  I very, very rarely feel like super mom or even on the same planet as super mom.

I guess I am always planning.  And I like to plan kind of far out (I am trying to start nailing down summer vacation plans/dates).  I always have something to do if I get stuck somewhere - like note cards in my diaper bag for a quick thank you.

Pregnancy and that first year really take it out of you.  I keep telling Matt it will get better - I will get better.  And I dream of what my life might be like when Manning starts Kindergarten and I get 8 glorious hours to myself everyday!

i hope that this look at what is a fairly typical day makes you feel better about your own days. being a mom to littles is hard work!  love.