Thursday, March 6, 2014

A Day in Our Life

Here it is....A Day In the Life with me and my boys. I have done this a few times before and I decided to do it again because I love looking back on these posts and remembering what life was like with the boys at certain ages. I realize nobody else out there will be interested in this, and that's okay. This is written mostly for me to have on record.

6:30am - I am woken by Adam, telling me I need to get up and get Lucas so he can leave for work. Lucas is sitting in his toddler bed, banging his head against the wall. It was actually a really good night....Lucas slept through the night and I only had to get up with Ryan once to put him back to sleep in his bed around 1am. He climbed into our bed this morning around 6am.

6:45 - I am moving really slow this morning because I am still recovering from a flu/virus thing I had earlier this week. It was pretty bad. I am thankful to be feeling better today! Adam rushes out the door and I am stumbling around the kitchen trying to wake up. Lucas starts throwing a fit because he wants to be held while I make breakfast. I manage to distract the boys with some toys so I can run and put in my contacts.

 7:00 - I can see now! I decide to make a special breakfast using a new pancake mix. I also scramble a couple eggs and slice up bananas. Ryan surprises me and eats 3 mini pancakes and a few bites of a banana. Lucas eats yogurt.

8:00 - I start the dishwasher and defrost some chicken sausage for dinner. I get myself dressed while the boys watch part of a Clifford episode in Spanish. No, I'm not trying to teach them a new language. The TV in our room got switched to Spanish and I can't figure out how to fix it. I start a load of laundry.

8:30 - I check my email and suddenly remember my credit card was charged for something by mistake. I call the company and get put on hold. I finally give up and leave them a very frustrated voicemail. I have already emailed them about this matter and never heard back. Arggg bad customer service is really annoying. Meanwhile the boys have dumped out all the toys in Ryan's room and made a huge mess.

9:00 - I have the boys clean up their mess and then get them both dressed. I sit down and make a quick grocery list of items that will get us through till next week. I switch the laundry and start another load.

(At this point I decide to document my day for the blog, so I start taking pictures!)

9:45 - 2 timeouts later (Lucas) we head out for the grocery store.  I take a quick picture of our jasmine blooming in our front yard. It smells so sweet!

Adam actually took the boys to the grocery store on Tuesday while I was in bed dying. He stocked up on the essentials (chips, soda, cheezits....oh and milk). While this was somewhat helpful, my idea of "essentials" is a bit different than his. So off we go to get lots of produce.

10:00 - I brought along a bag of change we've been collecting for the past two months. When I get to the store I realize the entire bag spilled out in my purse. I put them back in the bag and realize how dirty my purse is. The boys help me put the coins in the coin machine at Safeway and we redeem our $30 in change for a gift card to Chili's. It feels like a free gift card! 

The boys behave really well today! I think this is my first shopping trip with Lucas where he doesn't try to climb out of the cart. And surprise...we run into my Mom at the store! Here is Lucas selecting his fruit. Both boys eat a banana at the store.

11:00 - We emerge from the store and I let the boys run around the nearby fountain for a few minutes. Lucas throws a big tantrum when it's time to go. I'm pretty sure people think I am kidnapping him as I wrestle to get him in the car as he kicks and screams. Oh well, stop staring.

11:15 - I unload groceries while the boys fight over my cell phone. I noticed the front lawn needs mowing so I decide to do this before fixing lunch. The boys play in the backyard while I carry in the garbage cans and do a quick lawn mowing.

I check on the boys every few minutes and they seem to be playing nicely. When I'm done Ryan runs inside and I find him washing his feet in the bathroom sink. Lucas got muddy outside, so it's outfit changes for both boys.

12:00 - Lunchtime! The boys get salami, crackers, cheese, and grapes. Ryan eats salami and 1 cracker. Lucas just eats crackers. I eat a taco salad using leftover taco meat with salsa, cheese and lettuce. Lucas feeds half his lunch to the dog and Ryan drops half his salami on the floor. When he's done he climbs into my lap to give me a hug and dumps his cup of water all over my lap. Thanks Ryan! Now I need to change my clothes.

12:30 - The boys are playing with their hotwheels so I call the annoying company again to get my refund.

I empty and reload the dishwasher while I am on hold. I sit down and start blogging, still on hold. I finally speak to a human and they assure me I will receive my refund. They better be right.

1:00pm - Naptime for Lucas! I turn on Tom & Jerry for Ryan to watch while I put Lucas down. He gets to watch this every day at this time. I read Lucas Jonah & the Whale and sing The Wheels on the Bus to him. I put him in his bed and hope for the best! I sit down and blog for a few more minutes.

1:10 - Ryan and I sit down together and practice writing letters. We have been working on the letters of his name.

After we are done I give Ryan a bowl with a few chocolate chips (his treat every day during quiet time) and close his door. I set his timer for 1 hour and tell him not to come out. We'll see how long he lasts today. I have been working hard to make quiet time fun for him and to encourage him to play independently. But ultimately he hates being by himself, so he has a hard time staying in his room alone.

1:30 - I check the monitor and see Lucas asleep....halfway hanging off his bed. Oh well, better than no nap!

Ryan is already out of his room, asking me to get his Lincoln Logs down from his closet. I agree, but make him clean up the other messes in his room first. I give him a warning about staying in his room and leave. I text Adam to see how late he will be today. His response? He is on his way to his second assignment of the day to install a water heater. I'm hoping this means he will be home in time to eat dinner with us!

1:45 - I pour myself a glass of iced tea, sneak some chocolate chips for myself and sit down to read my Bible. It's one that guides you through sections of the Bible each day so that you end up reading the entire book in one year. Today's topic was the source of our joy, and the difference between joy and happiness.
I follow up my Bible reading with a little Facebook time.

Ryan calls me into his room to see the cabin he built. I am really impressed since this is the first house he has built without my help! I tell him I will put a picture of it on the blog.

2:00 - 2:30 - Over the next thirty minutes I do the following: put away 1 load of laundry, defrost bell peppers for dinner (my friend gave me a ton of them a few months ago and I chopped and froze them. So handy for quick dinners!), schedule a dog grooming appointment, wash and trim asparagus for dinner, and wash and chop 2 bunches of kale (to keep on hand for my lunches or smoothies). I have to say, I love this time of day. Partly because I get to spend time in the kitchen alone, but also because I get to listen to Ryan sing over the monitor. He loves singing little songs during quiet time and it's adorable to hear. As long as he isn't coming out of his room a million times. Today he did really well and only opened his door 4 times.

2:30 - I build a Lincoln Log cabin with Ryan and then hear Lucas banging his head in his room. A 1 hour nap is a little short for him but he seems wide awake. I wait a few minutes and he goes back to sleep! Ryan cleans up his Lincoln logs while I start putting away toys in the family room.

2:45 - Ryan tells me he is too tired for our afternoon plans (library and park). So he lays down for a quick nap before we leave. It lasts about 2 seconds. Ryan snuggles on my lap while I blog and answer an email.

3:00 - Lucas is finally awake! I fix a cute snack for the boys in the hopes that they will eat something healthy. Neither boy will eat it. I snack on an orange.
Ryan and Lucas are comparing how tall they are before we head out the door.

3:30 - We arrive at the library. I am always a little nervous to take the boys here because it's a place to be quiet and calm. Not exactly my boys' strength. Ryan does great this time. Lucas manages to scream only once, hit only one child, and knock over only 2 chairs. Sigh. This little boy is crazy. He gets a stern talking to, which he promptly ignores. Here are the books we got.
The boys play at the park for a full hour. They swing, ride the airplane, go on the slides, and run around the perimeter of the park. They love watching the choo-choo train go by on the nearby tracks.
5:00 - We arrive home to 2 surprises. First, a new sweatshirt I ordered for myself last month. I have been wearing the same sweatshirt since college and it has definitely seen better days. So here's my new one!

My second surprise was that Riley ate the ants on a log snack I left on the table. While I'm cleaning up Lucas tries to bite Ryan, so he gets another time-out.

5:15 - Naked time! I strip the boys down for their bath and let them run races up and down the hallway. I'm pretty sure this is their favorite time of day. Nothing better than running around naked! Lucas smashes his fingers in my closet door while I'm starting their bath. I suddenly remember that the bathtub drain stopped working yesterday, so I have to give them a shower-style bath. They like it and it's faster than a usual bath. Maybe I'll make this a new thing? Here they are sitting down after being washed. A fight broke out right after I snapped this....can you see the evil eye Ryan is giving Lucas?
5:45 - The boys are watching Wild Kratts in their jammies on the couch, so I start on dinner. Ryan shoves his brother off the couch and gets his first timeout of the day.
I'm making a loose interpretation of Pioneer Woman's Cajun Chicken Pasta. It's basically leftover pasta from last night, chicken sausage, bell peppers, Cajun seasoning, cream and garlic. I roast the asparagus for Adam and I, and crack open some mandarin oranges for the boys. Lucas does this while I try to cook.

I get a tickle in my throat and start coughing uncontrollably. Ryan wanders into the kitchen and asks me "What are we eating today? What are we eating today?" over and over. Meanwhile I have tears streaming down my face and almost throw up from coughing. Ryan gets bored and wanders out of the kitchen. I wonder what he would do if I was actually choking?

6:15 - Dinner is ready! And Daddy is home! (We love when he gets home early!)

6:30 - Dinner is over and Adam heads into the shower. I start cleaning up the dishes while the boys snack on some cheerios. They end up eating their weight in cereal. I pack Adam's lunch for the next day and wipe down the countertops.

7:00pm - Adam plays with the boys for a few minutes before we start their bedtime routine. They end up doing some crazy jumping game in the living room. All of a sudden Ryan runs out of the room to use the bathroom. When Adam goes to check on him, we realize he had tried to wipe himself. Without getting too graphic, well, it was everywhere. Ryan has to take another shower. I take care of this while Adam puts Lucas to bed. (2nd time ever!) While I'm washing Ryan he starts giggling and tells me he loves me. I tell him I love him too and he responds with "But why do you love me still?"
7:30 - I put Ryan to bed tonight. Teeth are brushed, 2 books are read (usually 3!), lavender oil is rubbed on his feet (to hopefully help him sleep), and he falls asleep as soon as I finish telling him the story of the 3 little pigs. He fell asleep so easily tonight!

8:00pm - Ryan is asleep but Lucas is still wide awake playing in his bed. He is actually sitting on his bed with a blanket over his head and giggling.

I'm going to stop here because this is becoming the longest bog post in the history of blogs. If you read this far, you deserve a medal! Overall this was a great day. The boys were pretty well behaved, we got out of the house, we got some chores done.....most importantly I got to spend the day with my two adorable boys. For that I am truly blessed.

What are your days like with your kids?

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