A Day in the Life: 2.5 Years Old

As much as I would like to think I'll never forget what life was like with a toddler, I know these details will slip my memory more and more as time passes.  This is a typical Wednesday home with C at just shy of 2.5 years old:

8:00 AM - C wakes up.  He is usually up around 6:45 on day that we work, so sometimes he sleeps in a little on Wednesdays since we don't have to be up and out the door.  He'll sit in his crib for a little while to fully wake up, then stand up when he is ready to get out and yell "Mommy Daddy, where aaaaaaaaaaaaaaare you?"

8:01 AM - If we let him wake up in his crib for a little bit and wait for him to stand up before we get him, he wakes up in a sweet mood!  He is always standing at this corner of his crib holding Lyle and Dog when we go into his room.

8:03 AM - Still holding Lyle and Dog, the first thing he does this time of year is ask "Is it still Christmastime?", run into the living room, and demand the lights on the Christmas tree be turned on.  He is in awe of the lights every single day!

8:05 AM - Carter asks for "peanut butter toast" for breakfast everyday these days.  I pop a slice of bread in the toaster and start unloading the dishwasher, which we typically run overnight since the new energy efficient dishwashers take forever to run!

8:11 AM - Carter is eating breakfast while I continue to unload the dishwasher.  By "peanut butter toast", he means one slice of toast, cut in half, with jelly and peanut butter spread on one half each.  So basically a PBJ for breakfast.  And a banana.

8:17 AM - Dishwasher is empty; I re-load it with the dishes in the sink that wouldn't fit last night before we ran it.

8:24 AM - I move laundry from the washer to the dryer and start a new load of laundry.  I've started doing a load of laundry on Tuesday nights so it is ready to go in the dryer when I wake up; this saves a few minutes of laundry time on Wednesdays!

8:26 AM - Carter is still savoring his gourmet breakfast (ha), so I sit down with him and eat a mug of cereal.  It is pretty much this or a cinnamon raisin English muffin on my days at home.  We don't get too fancy with breakfast around here!  The Christmas mug makes me feel festive :)

8:44 AM - First diaper change of the day.

8:50 AM - C is dressed and has done his asthma meds - ready to play!

9:09 AM - I strip the linens from our bed and C's crib to wash them and make the bed.  This was our first day this year to use the flannel reindeer sheets!  My favorite!

9:12 AM - C's crib gets new sheets too.

9:14 AM - Time to read Christmas books!  We have a bin full of Christmas books on the fireplace hearth, and C is OBSESSED.  We read at least 15 a day (and several of those on repeat).

9:21 - Time for another diaper change.  C doesn't even bother putting down the Christmas book.

10:08 AM - Bundled up in the stroller to walk to a neighbor's house for a playdate.  There were supposed to be several neighbors with toddlers there, but 2 families got sick that morning, so it was just us and one other girl.  C had a blast playing with his new friend Emmy.

11:41 - Back home from the playdate and eating lunch.  C didn't get a morning snack today, so he ate lunch a little early.  Today was (unglamorous) leftovers for lunch - a slice of pizza, a piece of deli ham, and mandarin oranges.

11:45 AM - While C is eating lunch, I mash some sweet potatoes I had baked the night before and then been too lazy to finish.  C loves sweet potatoes and demanded some for lunch when he saw what I was making.

11:58 AM - I start folding the first of 3 loads of laundry that day.

12:10 PM - Laundry folding is done!  I move the next load to the dryer and start a third load.

12:29 PM - I join C in the playroom to play.  He loves shooting baskets.

12:35 PM - And "painting" with water.  These Water Wow! books are cheap entertainment and great because they don't make a mess and are reusable!

12:41 PM - And building with blocks.

12:50 PM - Naptime!  C is so good about taking naps and doesn't seem to mind.  He always wants one of us to rub his back before we leave the room.

1:00 PM - As he is automatically scheduled to do, Thomas (our Roomba) starts vacuuming the house.  It is the BEST to not have to do this chore, ever!!!!  (Check out my Roomba review here).

1:01 PM - I make myself a kindergartener  lunch - PBJ and an apple.

1:57 PM - Another load of laundry is ready to fold.

2:16 PM - I finally get a chance to wrap the Christmas gifts that have been piling up.  I'm hosting a baby shower this weekend and can't have a Christmas tree with nothing under it!

3:06 PM - C is up from his nap.  He is pretty reliably a 2-2.5 hour napper.

3:17 PM - We hop in the car to run some errands before rush hour traffic gets too bad.  C gets a little container of Goldfish for the ride as his afternoon snack.

3:43 PM - We wait in line at the tailor to pick up my bridesmaid dress for my brother's upcoming wedding.  This tailor is nowhere close to our house but they do the best job and are dirt cheap!

4:03 PM - A detour through the Starbucks drive-through for a little pick-me-up for Mommy.

5:07 PM - Back at home, I start dinner since spaghetti squash takes so long to roast in the oven.

5:45 PM - Playtime while the spaghetti squash roasts!

6:25 PM - Daddy is home!  He is about 45 minutes later than usual since he stayed to work a little late tonight.   I finish dinner while C plays with daddy, and we eat (not pictured) - spaghetti squash with meat sauce and mashed sweet potatoes.

7:29 PM - After playing some more, it is time for bed!  C is in his PJs, teeth brushed, meds done.

7:30 PM - C always sits in my lap in the glider to say his prayers and then rock for a minute, before he gets in his crib and Blair rubs his back.  

7:47 PM - I'm at the gym, on the treadmill warming up.  Ugh.  I hate working out at night but it is the only time it happens, so I force it!

8:45 PM - I'm back at home, shower, and on the couch to watch TV with Blair.  We are currently addicted to American Crime on Netflix!

10:00 PM - Pass out so I can be at work by 7:00 AM tomorrow!

A Day in the Life: 15 months

I love love LOVE day in the life posts...I love reading other people's to get a glimpse into what other people do all day, and I love looking back at my own to remember what this season of life was like with a 15-month-old C.  I almost always pick Wednesdays, my day off, since I'm home with C all day and that makes for a much more interesting day and better photos!  These were taken on September 30.  Blair was out of town for work, so I was flying solo all day.

6:45 AM - I wake up without an alarm since I'm used to getting up earlier than this for work.  I normally leave the house at 6:30 so I can be at work by 7, so 6:45 is "sleeping in".

7:35 AM - C has slept in this morning!  (He's normally up between 6:15 and 6:45.)  He yells in his crib until someone comes in to get him, and then he's all smiles.  I get him up and change his diaper, and then he's impatient and wanting breakfast.

7:53 AM - C's eating his typical breakfast of 2 homemade whole wheat waffles (from the freezer), whole milk, and a banana.

8:14 AM - C plays (pants-less, apparently) with his train in the nursery while I box up all of my maternity clothes.  (I had let a friend borrow them and she had just returned them, so time to pack away!)

8:23 AM - Another diaper change and C gets dressed for the day.  It's ridiculous that it's well into the fall and it's still warm enough in Dallas for him to wear shorts!

8:28 AM - I get the stroller ready to go on a walk and find C eating stale Cheerios out of the stroller storage area.  Great.  I grab a KIND bar to eat for breakfast on my walk.  I do not know what/if I would consume food as a mom if it weren't for KIND bars.  On Wednesdays and Fridays, when I'm home with C but Blair is at work, I eat a KIND bar for at least 1, if not 2, meals.  At least they're healthy-ish?

8:40 AM - I throw on some workout clothes and we're out the door at 8:43.  We take a 3.5 mile walk around the neighborhood.  I love using Map my Fitness to GPS our walks, mostly because I can them compare it to my Fitbit which drastically undercounts my steps and feel justified (I NEVER hit 10,000 steps in a day, even when I take a 5-mile walk!)  

9:49 AM - An hour later, we are home.  C fell asleep on the walk and I manage to transfer him from the stroller to his crib to continue his nap.  Woohoo!  I can shower alone!

10:48 AM - C is awake from his nap and ready to party!

10:54 AM - We play in the playroom for a while.  C loves toys that play annoying music at this age.  He also has the attention span of a gnat so he plays with each toy for approximately 12 seconds before moving on to the next one.  He cracks me up!  

12:07 PM - time for lunch (for C, that is).  I make him a veggie burger (his favorite), whole wheat macaroni, and mixed frozen vegetables.  

12:33 PM - C is snoozing for another nap.  He still takes at least 2 naps a day at this age, a short morning nap and a long nap from noon to 3-ish.    

12:38 PM - Somehow, our kitchen looks like this after every. single. meal. that C eats.  How can such a small person create so many dirty dishes?!  I tackle the messy counter and wash all the dishes.

12:47 PM - time for my own lunch (a day I DIDN'T eat a KIND bar for lunch!)  I make myself a veggie burger and a honeycrisp apple (the best!!!)

1:28 PM - time to fold some laundry that I started at some point earlier during the day.  Laundry never ends.  I try to do at least 2 loads on Wednesdays while I'm home.  After I start another load of laundry, I make a huge batch of homemade granola.

4:07 PM - C's up from his nap (3.5 hours!)  I love how much he loves his lovey and cuddles it while he sleeps.  We don't let him have his lovey or his paci except while he's napping/sleeping - when we pick him up out of his crib, he immediately drops both into his bed.

4:11 PM - the granola is done baking, so I take it out of the oven to cool while C plays in the playroom.

4:19 PM - time to run errands! My little partner is buckled up in the backseat ready to go buy groceries.

4:58 PM - we're leaving Kroger, groceries in cart.  C loves going to the grocery store and people watching.  He is turned around like this almost the whole time we shop!

5:31 PM - in the checkout line at Sprouts.  Yes, 2 grocery stores.  I tend to buy most of our produce at Sprouts because the selection and the prices are better than Kroger.  

6:15 PM - On our way home, we swing by a neighbor's house to purchase her hand-me-down PJs that she left out for us on her porch.  I love Facebook garage sales!  

6:41 PM - I put C in the playroom (with the baby gate) for a couple of minutes so I can make his dinner without him completely flipping out on me.  So instead he throws a fit in the playroom as if he hasn't eaten in months and is literally starving to death.  Toddler dramatics at their finest.

6:44 PM - C is FINALLY (ha) eating dinner.  He has not been into vegetables lately ever since he got a stomach bug, so I have taken to hiding/mixing them into his other food that he will eat.....hence this lovely creation of pasta/tomatoes/avocado/chicken/broccoli.  Yum?

7:16 PM - bathtime!  Yes, he's still in the baby tub.  Everyone makes fun of this.  It is so much faster than filling up the big tub!! Plus it is easier for me to wash his hair with him lying down in the baby tub.  I dread the day he (completely) outgrows it!

7:42 PM - lotion, PJs on, teeth brushed, prayers said, and bed with his paci and Lyle, his lovey.  We are so lucky how easily he goes to bed!  We turn off his light, turn on the sound machine, and he rolls over with Lyle and goes to sleep.

9:34 PM - I basically crash on the couch every night after we get C to bed....and I'd like to say that this terrible excuse for dinner is abnormal because Blair was out of town, but the reality is that we eat something like this for dinner at least a couple of times a week, just because we are too exhausted to think about cooking something more real.  I cut up another honeycrisp apple, along with some cheese and wheat thins.  Dinner of champions!

10:23 PM - I always peek in on C before I get in bed, and most nights I take a picture on my phone (the flash doesn't phase him) so I can see how sweet he looks sleeping!  I have dozens upon dozens of these pictures on my phone....so sweet!  After that, lights out and I'm asleep within 15 seconds of my head hitting the pillow!

 These days are busy but so fun!! I love this age and have so much fun hanging out with this little boy on Wednesdays - the perfect mid-workweek break!