Today, for the first time since Levi bounded out of the newborn-I-sleep-all-the-time-and-anywhere-you-put-me phase, I have felt like I know what I’m doing with my day.
I’m not just scrambling around trying to accomplish something, (or giving up and nursing all day on the couch while watching Hulu), I actually have a plan. A plan I’ve used before. A plan that has actually worked for the past {gasp} few days! A plan I like!!
First thing every morning (except Sundays), is Exercise Time. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, I get up at 6:30, do Jillian’s 30-Day Shred. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I get up at 5:30 to run in the bitter cold with an awesome friend. I even set my alarm for 7:30 on Saturdays to get up and run with a local running club.
Then it’s Get Ready For The Day Time. I shower, eat breakfast, and read my Bible. The kids are usually up and eat breakfast with me. They play while I finish my breakfast and read my Bible. Then they get dressed and it’s Work Time.
Work Time has been, well, a work in progress for the past couple weeks. It started around the same time as the Quarter Jar and the kids are getting used to it, finally. Work time is not optional. They can’t just forgo their quarter and play instead. It is a time when everybody works. If someone refuses to work, they spend Work Time in their room with no toys. As this is a newly implemented activity, I’m not sure how old Levi will have to be to participate. Benjamin is almost three and while he doesn’t always like it, he is completely able to partake in Work Time.
After Work Time, it’s School Time. Olivia and I are 13 weeks (plus a 10 day introductory unit) into My Father’s World Kindergarten curriculum. There are so many things I love about it, I’ll save that for a post of its own. Benjamin either plays by himself or does quiet work at the table while we do school. He usually enjoys the Free Time after Work Time. Levi is either in his high chair eating a snack or in the sling being cuddly during School Time.
After School Time, it’s Lunch Time.
After Lunch Time, it’s Play Time. My kids are usually very cooperative and excited after being fed. It would be a shame to spend that time cooped up in their rooms, so I allow them to run around a bit while I clean up lunch dishes.
After Lunch Time, it’s Quiet Time (and usually around 1:30). Quiet Time is for nappers and non-nappers alike. Well, as long as they are over a year old. I usually try to start Quiet Times as soon as Levi falls asleep or is acting tired, so as to get all three down at the same time. Quiet Times last either an hour or until you wake up. Benjamin sleeps everyday still; Olivia hasn’t slept in ages. They both get to take toys to bed to play with, but they must be QUIET. Especially Olivia, as she has Quiet Times in our bedroom, which is also where the crib is.
Benjamin usually doesn’t wake up until around 4pm, whereas Olivia is out after her hour is up, around 2:30. She is very talkative during this time. She plays by herself, asks me questions, wants to play games on the computer, wants to watch movies, wants to read books… she’s all over the place during this time.
Levi usually only sleeps about 20 minutes by himself before waking up and wanting to continue his nap with me on the couch. I usually watch a bit of Hulu, since I can’t nap due to the talkativeness. 🙂 Any blogging I do is done during that initial 20 minutes of Levi Nap Time. Or, if I’m making a crock pot meal, during Gotta Get Ready For Dinner Time.
When Benjamin wakes up, it’s Snack Time.
Then it’s Gotta Get Ready For Dinner Time. Which goes by a couple other names as well, such as Everybody Goes Crazy Time and Nobody Gets Along Time. Oh, and the ever popular Levi Doesn’t Want To Be Put Down Time.
Then it’s Dinner Time when the Daddy gets home around 6:30. Sometimes. Other times, it’s Now I Can Finally Start Dinner Time. Which pushes Dinner Time to some pretty extreme times. Oops.
Then it’s Kids Go All Hyper With Daddy Time for most of the household while I participate in the Great Nightly Debate. Should I go with Dishes Time? Or Feet Up On Coffee Table Time? Depends, usually, on how Gotta Get Ready For Dinner Time went.
Then, when the kids stop getting along and the crying belies the hour, it’s Bed Time.
Then it’s Mommy And Daddy Crash On The Couch Time. Levi wakes up periodically to be nursed back to sleep. He spends a lot of this time unconscious in our laps just so we don’t have to keep getting up to get him.
And that’s my day!
What’s your schedule look like?
Wow! YAY for your new normal! You are such an inspiration to me, do you know that?
What’s my schedule? Don’t have one. Need one.
Since your day seems to go more smoothly in the early hours, what if you did some of the dinner prep during quiet time or work time or while you were making lunch?
Chopping things, other prepwork. And then at dinner time, pop something in the oven or throw it on the skillet or whatnot.
Just putting that out there — that may not at ALL be practical for you right now!
Also, I’m doing Jillian’s shred tonight for the first time. I’m scared.
.-= Kacie´s last blog ..Part 2: Some thoughts and suggestions for my friend in debt =-.
That’s a great idea! I could totally do that during Work Time!
And I totally get the same fear every single time I think about putting in the Shred DVD. It’s like how I used to feel before a track meet. Queasy stomach and all.
Our mornings look a lot alike! Except lately I’ve been foregoing exercise time. Once the tread mill gets here next week I’ll be up at 5:30-6 to workout! can’t wait!
And chore time has been good for my 3yo and me!
Hooray for finding a schedule that works for you and your family!
My 4- and 5-year olds each go to school for half the day (opposing halves!) so my days revolve heavily around that whole deal. One thing that never changes, however, is that the bulk of what I get done for the day happens before 7 am. That includes dinner prep! I am SUCH a morning person.
And isn’t that suppertime hour just the hardest?? I think it’s that way for almost all mommies. 🙂
Can you please explain what schedule worked for you (or you would recommend) for a new, first-time SAHM and when that schedule changed, why, and how. Thanks!
I’m one who is much more productive with a basic routine, instead of flying by the seat of my pants, but I also can’t do exact time slots throughout the whole day or I go nuts and can’t focus on joy, just on being productive ;-). I had put off and put off and put off coming up with a basic daily routine (and a basic weekly routine) for months and finally did it in January and it was working great for a few weeks. Then I got pregnant ;-). So now my routine is on hold while I try to keep down food, let hubby do the cooking and dishes, and while I nap each day instead of be productive during Hans’ naps. I’m hoping to start back up my routines in a few weeks, though, when I hit the 2nd trimester (Lord willing!).
I really liked Fly Lady’s book “Sink Reflections”. Her website and e-mail listserve DROVE ME NUTS. But her book is good. A bit nauseatingly positive, yes. Self-centered? Possibly. But there is a ton of good advice on routines. The thing that helped me the most was having a regular morning routine, I think.
I didn’t know you were in track! What did you do?
.-= Kacie´s last blog ..Part 2: Some thoughts and suggestions for my friend in debt =-.
I’m sure I wasn’t the track star you were. 🙂 I just did it my senior year to keep in shape for prom after soccer was over. 🙂 I had one event: the 1600. My fastest time was 6:32. I never placed. 🙂 Oh, forgot – she put me in the 3200 relay once. Never again. A 800 is a completely different kind of race!!
I have never been a morning person. My cold-weather-running partner has early-rising boys so we have to be done by 7ish, hence the early start time. After a few weeks of that, I found 6:30 and 7:30 felt like sleeping in! Now I’m contemplating getting up even earlier to cram in more things before the children wake up. Just contemplating, tho… for now…
I love this post! It made me want to get a routine.
I came up with 6 things I wanted to get done every day. They were simple, but I wanted to make sure to do them. My goal was to eventually make them a habit. Not there yet – in fact, I think I’ve only ever done all 6 once or twice. Sigh, I’m so bad about it!
So far, my routine is this: wake up. Put Savannah down for a nap 2 hours later.
That’s about it. 🙂 (And you wonder why I’m so unproductive??)
What are your six things?
1. Devotions
2. Clean cat boxes
3. One load of laundry
4. Walk around neighborhood
5. Clean kitchen/dishes
6. Make dinner
(I had to look it up to list them all! I’m terrible!)
(Today, I did #2, 3, 4, and 6! Woo-hoo! Forgot the most important though.)
.-= ashley@twentysixcats´s last blog ..finally! videos! =-.
Oh, routines, routines. How they help and hinder mommies everywhere. My family does have a basic routine, but I try to live my days by a basic rule which works better for me than any system. I just tell myself I have to “work steady.” Sometimes working steady means picking up, sometimes holding the toddler for some snuggles, sometimes making dinner, sometimes getting out of the house to run errands. It’s a rudimentary just-do-it kind of lifestyle, but the nice part about it is I can take breaks if I need one. Also, a little tip I’ve put in place for myself is never dirty more than two pans when making dinner and if possible cook one item on the stove and the other in the oven. Basically, we know we eat plenty of starches during the day, so we skip that at dinner and focus on a protein and vegetables. So, green beans steam on the stove while steaks broil, or salmon bakes while I make beet salad. And I never make casseroles or hot-dish. It just makes my life a great deal easier with those simple rules.
Btw, I’m looking forward to a post on the My Father’s World curriculum. I’ve been looking (way in advance) for curriculum options for Hans. I pretty much know the basic ideas I want to do for preschool – nothing uber-formal, but a basic montessori approach, based on “Mommy, Teach Me” by Barbara Curtis. For kindergarten and up, I have an interest in Charlotte Mason and the classical approach, and I understand that My Father’s World is a combination? My main concern with My Father’s World is that from the website, it looks non-resusable. It is very important to me to find a curriculum that could be legally reusable (i.e., not copying copyrighted worksheet pages), because a few years down the road when Adrian starts teaching, there is no way we are going to have money in our budget to re-buy K-2 curriculum for each kid, especially if we really do have 12 kids ;-). So I would definitely be interested on your opinion if MFW could be adaptable to be legally reused? Just some ideas to address in your future post :-D.
.-= Susan´s last blog .. =-.
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