Day in the life, June 28 2016

I'm always curious to see how other women make it all happen in a day. It's not like I have all the answers, but here's how today went, and it's a pretty typical day for me:

• 5 AM—I wake up, marvel that Sis isn't up yet
• 6 AM—Give up on going back to sleep, get up, make coffee, do some work on social media projects, proof files for noon presentation
• 7 AM—Sis is up, we snuggle and talk about the dreams she had
• 7:30 AM—iPad time for Sis and Bubs, I talk with my husband, walk the dog, make breakfast
• 8 AM—Paleo blueberry pancakes and strawberries and milk for breakfast at the breakfast bar (kids eat everything but pick out the blueberries). I also order library books from my computer on the kitchen counter
• 8:30 AM—Bye to Daddy, get kids dressed
• 9 AM—Fourth-of-July flag crafts, which is not very structured, more just involves red white and blue paper for Luke and stars I cut out for him and pink paper for Sis with pink hearts. I get dressed, brush my hair, put on a tiny bit of makeup, call a friend and leave a message, load and start the dishwasher
• 9:45 AM—We go upstairs to play "Restaurant"
• 10 AM—Sis continues with restaurant and Bubs builds with his wooden train tracks. I go downstairs to do a quick call where for the most part I just have to listen. Make the bed while on the call. Fold the blankets outside as well
• 10:15 AM—Errands: Cable company to replace remote I can't find (closed), gas for the car, dry cleaners where the kids are fascinated with the spinny thing with the clothes
• 10:45 AM—Back home for quick work call (prep for presentation), kids gather bug catching stuff
• 11 AM—Kids decide they are hungry and that we should catch bugs later, eat the lunch I was fixing for later: Salami, orange peppers, cherries, 1/2 small bagel with cream cheese, water. I write the first half of this post and answer a few emails
• 11:30 AM—Kids watch a dump truck dumping gravel at the construction site outside our window, play with Little People princesses on our bed, I pop in and out with them, deal with some little urgent work stuff, snack on some slices of salami and pepper, drink water
• 11:45 AM—Snuggle and talk time on our bed for me and the kids
• 12 PM—Presentation conference call and after that some other work for me, 2 episodes of "Miraculous" for the kids (actually this is atypical...we rarely do TV mid-day but this call was last minute and needed my full attention...)
• 1 PM—Luke has a meltdown because he wants to catch bugs instead of nap, I calm him down, read him "Dem Bones" and Zo "Cinderella."
• 1:30 PM—Kids try to nap, I go downstairs to work (client revisions, screenshots). Snack on Rainier cherries and water. Monitor non-sleeping kids
• 2 PM—Grandma takes over and kids probably go to sleep for her. Sigh. Work calls for me
• 3 PM—Spend time on a personal project
• 4 PM—Tie up loose ends at work, emails
• 4:30 PM—Bug catching time! We go down by the river and catch a fly. (Not very exotic, I know, but even flies are fun when you're 4.) In he goes to the "Bug Hotel," which has a stay limit of 1 night.
• 5:15 PM—Back at the house to do puzzles (kids) and prep dinner (me)
• 6 PM—Walk with my husband and dog. Grandma watches kids/gives them a bath
• 6:30 PM—Dinner of hamburgers, grilled squash, guacamole for us and sliced avocados for the kids. They eat great
• 7 PM—Letters (with a cupcake craft on the front) for Grammy and Papa
• 7:45 PM—Toothbrushing, stories ("The Only Child" and "Rosie Revere, Engineer") on the blue couch with a kid on each side, Luke bringing Zo a stuffie and them hugging each other goodnight, scratchies and song with each kid individually (Luke: "Little Bird, Little Bird," Zo: "North Mountain"  [aka "Let It Go" from Frozen])
• 8:30 PM—Lights out for kids, I go back to work at the dining room table, they are playing sweetly together even thought they are supposed to be trying to go to sleep...lots of giggling...
• 9:45 PM—I go up to check on kids and Sissy's doll clothes are everywhere. Make kids get in bed and turn out lights. I'm not happy. Tomorrow morning they're going to clean everything up
• 10 PM—Finishing this blog post and then short walk for the dog, wash my face and put on PJs, join my husband on the porch (probably with a small vodka with lemon over ice) to have some time together and watch the stars (a nightly ritual), then reading in bed until I fall asleep, hopefully by 11 PM

Never a dull moment around here...

XO