First is me trying to be a great mom/wife. My day begins early with getting Alex ready in the morning. Sometimes it's on a timed schedule depending on if we have to be somewhere at 9 or 9:30. Many of the activities that are scheduled for the Mom's Club are early morning activities. On the days where we are at home I TRY to get her to eat breakfast but she just wants to play. So she'll play while I clean up from the night before - usually loading/unloading the dishwasher or doing new dishes. Then I try to eat breakfast too if I can find the time. Sometimes if there is an activity we are out until 12 or so and then it's time to lunch. Again, hoping that she'll actually sit down and eat and that when I put food in front of her hoping that she'll eat more than two bites. If I don't have other things to do I'll be able to sit down with her for lunch but that is not always the case. Many times we will run errands together in the morning such as going grocery shopping or to some other store . Sometimes we'll go somewhere just to get out of the house. I try to plan fun things for Alex to do at home such as crafts or cooking. I should be able to come up with good ideas since I was a teacher. I often think I should make a daily schedule to follow with her now just to get her used to doing certain things at certain times (and to get her ready for preschool). After lunch she'll play again as I clean up. Around 2:00 she usually takes a nap. But not always. Some days are more of a struggle than others. Today she went right to sleep. Other days she'll sing, talk, call for me 5 times, etc etc etc so it's sometimes a long drawn out process.
Now begins my "me" time. This consists of eating if I didn't get a chance, sometimes cleaning, sometimes laundry, usually starting to get dinner prepped, and sometimes napping. This usually consists of 2 hours if I am lucky. Then when she wakes up (and it's usually crying unless she got a really nice nap) I calm her down, and we'll go relax in my bed while she wakes up fully. Depending on how long it takes we'll go down when she's up (between 4-5) and it's playtime again. Mommy....play soccer. Mommy.....let's paint. Mommy......play farm animals. Mommy....I need a show. (I find it funny that she NEEDS it!) TV is one thing though I want to cut back on. She has learned alot from the cartoons she watches but she can very well entertain herself without it on. So we play or she will play and I will again work on dinner. I'll entertain her until Chris gets home, which is usually between 6:30-7. When he gets home he plays with her and while he is playing with her I'll maybe run errands or if I want to go grocery shopping alone I go then. Usually I just take Alex with me during the day but sometimes I just need a break! If the weather is nice he'll take her outside. I will make Chris's lunch for the next day, may just relax and watch tv or clean up dinner, or vacuum (since Alex is scared of it). So then around 8 I take Alex up to get a bath, and I give her her bath, get her ready for bed, and hopefully she falls asleep before 9. Lately when she goes to bed I've been just going to my bedroom to watch tv or may get on the computer. I am lucky that she sleeps through the night though.
Well that's a typical day, sometimes it's super busy with activities, sometimes it's more laid back but one thing is always true - all of my energy during the day goes into raising Alexandra.
Oh one more major task that I am trying again is potty training. That is a task in itself. So add that into my day. It's quite stressful!
Then comes baby number 2 in March. We are so excited to have a little baby around again. Although it is exciting it is definitely going to put me to the test even more as a mom. Right now I am devoting all of my attention during the day to Alex and I do quite well with the responsibilities of raising one child but in a few months I am going to be splitting my attention between two kiddos. I am sure Alex will be great with the baby. She is good at entertaining herself (probably since she has been an only child) with imaginative play, coloring, and doesn't always need my attention 24-7. So having a new baby around will be putting Alex to the test too I suppose.
Then there is the "unemployed teacher" role
Like I said before I'm not teaching right now but I also have my teacher brain working. Next year I am going to try to get a job again. So that means that this year I have been trying to make sure I stay in the loop as far as technology, teaching ideas, etc. I often think about time in the classroom and I know I won't just forget everything but I don't want to feel like I am behind either. I will need to work on getting applications out, updating my resume, and finding a job. Interviews.....yuck! But at least I have experience now so hopefully I will get a job for next year. It's not that I don't like being able to be at home with Alex but I plan on putting her in preschool a few days a week next Fall. Even if I go back to work in August I will have had 6 months at home with the new baby, which is actually more than I had at the beginning with Alex. Plus I do enjoy having that extra spending money by getting a salary.
I know things happen for a reason. I mean the timing of us getting pregnant was nice especially since I am home now. Who knows. Maybe I'll be at home 1 or even 2 more years before getting a job. Maybe I'll get a job next year. I have no idea what will happen but I am just trying to do the best job that I can do with whatever I am doing.
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