I never thought I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom. I love working, I loved my job and I grew up with both my parents working and thought that was just how things should be. Well that was PRIOR to having children… When Landyn was 9 months old she stopped drinking her bottles and refused to eat solids and anything we could get in her usually came right back up. At the time, I was a Territory Sales Manager for a textile company and was up to 2.5 hours away from our home and her daycare at any point during the day. She dropped from the 30% to the 4% rapidly and was diagnosed with severe acid reflux. She associated eating with pain and was basically avoiding eating to avoid pain. It was so hard to watch from afar and not be able to help when she needed me most. At the same time Rob took a job that required more travel and we knew something had to give. We decided I’d start staying home full-time to get her back on track. That was a little over 2 years ago and I’m still a full-time stay-at-home mom today.
While I haven’t looked back and feel very grateful that I can stay home with Landyn and Bryce, I have to admit, being a stay-at-home mom is definitely more “work” than I anticipated. I thought it was going to be all fun and games, play dates, coffee with other stay-at-home moms, running fun errands and making delicious homemade meals for dinner, all done seamlessly with my cute baby giggling on my hip of course… And while *sometimes* it can be those things, boy was I wrong! Most days I’m un-showered, still in my jammies at 9 am, knee deep in laundry, dirty diapers, staring at a bare bones fridge that hasn’t been stocked because let’s be honest, grocery shopping with 2 under 3 is the opposite of a “fun errand” and I typically avoid it at all costs unless I’m heavily, heavily caffeinated. So as someone who thrives on some sort of routine, I’ve found that having a weekly routine with some wiggle room, has made time for work (diaper changes, feeding times, bedtime routine, etc) and play (trips to the playground, playdates, coffee dates, seasonal trips i.e. pumpkin patch, etc. ). Here is a typical day in the life that helps us live a life of both work and play and some of the things that help us along the way.
6-7am: Bryce (8 months old) wakes up and drinks a bottle and then plays while I empty dishwasher, fold laundry, pay bills, etc. and get breakfast ready. If Rob is home and not traveling or off to work yet, sometimes I’ll take Bryce for a walk in our B.O.B stroller around the neighborhood while Rob and Landyn are still sleeping.
7:30/8: Landyn wakes up and both Bryce and Landyn eat breakfast together while I eat with them or eat on the move while folding laundry etc. Then we go upstairs to get dressed for the day.
9-10: Either Landyn goes to preschool (M,T, TH) or we do some sort of activity outside of the house (Book Babies at the Library, Play date with friends, Landyn’s swim lessons, Gym (child care for them and working out for me) and then the pool or playing in the inside play area after my workout), or if Landyn’s in preschool I’ll run errands (grocery store, thrift store, target, etc.) with Bryce.
12/12:30: Pre-school pick up (depending on the day) then home for lunch and an hour of play in our work in progress playroom, outside or in one of the kids rooms.
1:30/2-3:30/4: Naptime! Sometimes for me too! Although, the more Bryce sleeps at night, the fewer naps I need, which means a cleaner house, more blog posts, updated Etsy shop listings, etc. Gotta love nap time!
3:30/4: Landyn and Bryce play in the playroom while I get dinner started. The playroom has been a HUGE help in allowing me to have some time to get dinner ready.
5:30/6: Dinner for the kids and Rob and I if he’s home by then, if not, Landyn and Bryce will eat and then Rob and I will eat closer to 6:30/7.
6/6:30: Family walk to the playground, playing outside or Rob will take them to play in the basement to give me a little break to clean the kitchen.
7:30: Bathtime! And then ready for bed.
8pm: Kids are in bed and Rob and I are feet up, wine in hand and watching one of our favorite shows. OR (reality) cleaning up the disaster zone, putting dishes away, catching up on anything and everything.
So our day basically includes, eating, transporting, playing and sleeping. While this post is sponsored, all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own. Walmart has many of the great premium baby/toddler products and september is their “Best of Baby Event”. They’re featuring special deals with similar pricing to Black Friday and even offering gift cards with purchase on select items. I’m amazed by all of the premium products they carry and also by the free next-day shipping on many of their products. I’ve broken down our favorite baby products by the main activities we do daily and linked them below.
Happy shopping!
Meghan
Eat
Transport
Play
Sleep
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