Ever wonder what we do all day? Sometimes I don’t even know what we did all day. Last week, I decided to track everything for one day. I took one photo an hour, sometimes more, so I would remember and so Beatrice would know what it was like when she was eight months old. This might be a long post. Bear with me. Or read this if you’d rather have some real news. I began the “day” at midnight or thereabouts. For the sake of our eyes and our night of sleep, I took only photos of my alarm clock between midnight and 7:00am. I’m not a parenting expert, but something about taking a photo with flash just seems like it wouldn’t help Beatrice to stay sleepy.
2:38am, Beatrice wakes and I get up quickly to ensure Jonathan is least disturbed and it’s been four hours since she last nursed, so she gets a snack. I am hoping this means she will sleep till 6:00.
3:07am, Awakened to realize all hopes of sleeping until 6:00 have been dashed. Beatrice is clearly not hungry, but is going through a “hang out with me! PLEEEEASE!” phase. I rub her little back to help her relax and whisper, “I love you. I’ll see you in the morning” as I sneak back to bed.
4:09am, Beatrice is awake again. I fumble around trying to take this photo then shuffle into her room. She parties like a college student. What the heck? I nurse her again, hoping this means she’ll sleep until 8:00am.
6:45am, Beatrice is awake. My body is like a lump of lead. I literally cannot will myself to move from the bed. Jonathan takes one for the team and goes to care for Beatrice. She requires a new diaper and a change of clothes, which explains why she is wearing basically an undershirt when I get out of bed.
7:00am, I finally drag myself out of bed and find Beatrice and Jonathan playing ball in her bedroom. It’s adorable. I feel guilty for missing out on precious moments with my family, but realize she doesn’t care and they are having a blast so I try to consider it quality Daddy-daughter time and give myself a break for once. I take Bea into the kitchen where she has her first solid meal of the day: oatmeal and pears. During this time, Jonathan gets ready for work. She gobbles up her food and then enjoys practicing the old pincer grasp with some puffed brown rice while I prepare breakfast for Jonathan and me (also oatmeal). Jonathan comes out to the kitchen around 7:30am. We eat breakfast following which he takes Bea to watch him brush his teeth (she thinks this is highly entertaining) and I clear up breakfast. 7:55am, Jonathan leaves for work.
8:00am, Beatrice nurses is bit, we have some cuddles and then it is time for her nap. She’s sleepy and she’s been rubbing her eyes like she’s been sprayed with mace! I have a great feeling that today she’s going to go down without a fight! It will be a peaceful morning and I have hope of doing crazy things like getting ready without singing a song while putting on mascara or narrating while I use the lavatory.
8:20am, The reluctant napper is in her crib and she proceeds to tell me I am wrong, very wrong. She does not need a nap and she will not go down without a fight! After this momentary protest, she rolls over and falls right to sleep. Ha! I am the winner! While rejoicing in the fact that I am reigning victorious, I get ready for the day, drink another cup of coffee, take time to read a devotion, check email and begin sweeping and mopping the kitchen floor. I also seriously consider whether having a dog would be more or less work than all this cleaning after each meal.
9:00am, I check the voicemail, chat with a friend, then talk with my mom. Try to figure out what to say to the people who want us to participate in a diabetes study. Is it okay for my child to be a lab rat? Decide I cannot make this call on my own and instead make the bed, clear up the living room, rearrange the couch cushions and dust a bit. I know, glamorous doesn’t even begin to describe the day I’m having. I don’t care what you think, suckas! I am being productive and it is GLORIOUS!
9:45am, our girl is awake! Perfect timing! She really enjoys helping by holding up her legs while I change her diaper and dress her, so we go with that. In the last few weeks, she has also started enjoying the distraction of a toy while she’s on the changing table. This is much better than using logic to try to get her to stop wiggling while I freshen her up and should also explain the presence of toys on her changing table. Don’t worry, I make sure they stay separate from the other toys and are cleaned regularly. I pack up the diaper bag to prepare for our departure while she plays on the floor and realize she’s already “loaded up” the diaper I just put on her little tushy. Fresh diaper time!
10:00am, we are in the car (with Raggedy Ann) and on our way to meet “the girls” for some fun. I am pleased that Beatrice seems to be easily entertained by Raggedy Ann this morning and there is minimal whining from the backseat.
10:30am, we are at the mall to meet up with two other moms/daughters. We walk around and Beatrice is in a great mood. She was a little under the weather this weekend and earlier in the week, so we’ve been sticking around home and this baby loves to see other people, especially other children!
11:00am, there is a new store opening at the mall and they are giving away Miley Cyrus tickets. The line is very crowded and fun to watch so we stop and take it all in for a bit. We walk around and then decide to explore the 3rd floor of the mall where there is a play area. Beatrice is very disappointed that we are not stopping to play with all the other children! I attempt to stop her writhing and screaming and distract her from this by spinning her in the stroller repeatedly. It seems to work until we go to the elevator where she once again expresses her dissatisfaction. Around 11:30, we stop to give the baby girls a little snack and then decide the Mommas could use some lunch too. I am thrilled! I have a goal of having lunch before 2pm and I almost never meet that goal. Today is my lucky day!
12:00pm, we stop to have lunch at Nordstrom Cafe. Beatrice is a little cranky until I pick her up from her stroller and let her sit in my lap. I’m feeling adventurous, so she gets to have a piece of the crust from my sandwich. I’m feeling awesome about this while chatting with the other moms until I notice Beatrice has eaten the whole piece of crust already! Crap! I squeeze her cheeks and pull out the full piece of crust. Feeling like an idiot, but not wanting to be wasteful, I pick apart the now fully moistened piece of bread and give Bea one small piece at a time until it’s gone. She still really enjoys it and I feel a little less dumb by the time she’s done eating. Meltdown city is starting for all the babies, so we part ways with our friends and head home. While walking to the parking garage, Beatrice giggles for quite a long time when she feels the wind on her face. I once again swell with love at how our girl has a sense of adventure about pretty much everything!
1:00pm, I drop the Netflix DVD into the post office drop box on the way back to our house. Sing at the top of my lungs while driving to try to keep Beatrice happy while we inch our way through freakishly slow traffic. Regret having taken the freeway. Hope that she falls asleep while we’re on the road.
2:00pm, I put Beatrice down for a nap, then retreat to the kitchen where I distract myself and watch the lights on the baby monitor. You may wonder why we have a baby monitor if you’ve ever been to our house. The answer: dissassociation. It is easier for me to listen to the radio and watch these lights than to simply listen to her. I read about baby food menus and then start some laundry. But wait! It’s 3:00!
3:00pm, fresh batch of laundry in the washing machine (these are the sheets for the guestroom. It’s all made up and ready for anyone who wants to visit!). Mentally prepare myself for Beatrice to wake up at any moment. She does not awaken. I wash some dishes and begin a rough menu plan for next week.
4:00pm, Beatrice is still sleeping! Crazy! I have just finished cleaning out the fridge and washing the condiment jars for recycling and started some peaches for Beatrice and some lima beans on the stove for supper. I hear a little something about 4:15 and low, she is awake! We have a quick change and then some songs, followed by the peaches I’ve lovingly prepared for her. In this house, that means in August, I took a box of peaches, blanched, peeled, sliced and froze them and then removed them from the freezer at the appointed time, cooked them and pureed them so they would be fresh and wholesome for her. Beatrice’s response? Hatred. She looks at me like I’m an idiot for ever placing them in her mouth. Ok. Hmmm. I should mix them with something! I defrost some zucchini that she liked earlier in the week and try again. Toxic waste face! What? I try the mixture myself. It’s DISGUSTING! Ok, mixing zucchini and peaches is a bad plan. This time I mix peaches and oatmeal together and offer them to her. Nope. I decide to move on. Maybe the peaches need another try some other day. She has pears and zucchini and is a happy girl.
5:00 pm, We go to her bedroom where I apply some teething gel because the stinking Hyland’s teething tablets have been recalled. She’s not a fan of the gel, but it does make her feel better.
5:05pm, she tries to see how many toys she can put on her lap! It’s hilarious and she starts to giggle in response to my laughter. We read her current favorite book a few times before I switch it up to another option. There are only so many times I can read one book.
5:30pm, Jonathan is home and he has been suckered into reading the book for her! Everyone is happy!
5:45pm, Beatrice plays around with Jonathan for a bit. This is always what I would consider roughhousing. She loves it!
6:00pm, time for jammies! She’s figured out that jammies=bedtime, so we’re trying to put her in them a little earlier and then let her play a bit so it’s less of a struggle when we put them on her. She’s in a pretty good mood! (Please note the bedhead that I can never quite get combed down. I love it, but it lasts all day!)
6:20pm, Beatrice has nursed again and gets a story with Daddy, followed by prayer times and then it’s into the crib for a nice, long night of sleep!
7:00pm, we finish up the last of our supper (Giant Crusty and Creamy White Beans) and clean up a bit. I use up the last of our apples from our trip to a farm stand and make an apple-cranberry crisp.
8:00pm, The crisp is ready! We enjoy a nice treat for dessert and relax a bit.
9:00pm, We sit down to watch The Office; it’s the one show we try to watch during the week. In fact, it’s one of the few times we turn on the television. We cuddle on the couch a bit and then I maybe fall asleep.
10:00pm, We brush our teeth and head for bed. The party starts early around here!
Well, there you have it. Lots of giggles, fun and smiles. Good friends. Not too much sleep, but hey, we don’t mind. We’ve got things that cannot be replaced and that’s worth more than sleep.
