A Day in My Life

It's been a long time since I did one of these and thought it would be a good excuse to snap some pictures throughout the day.  Here's what our Monday looked like!


5:30ish am - I heard Jarrod getting out of the shower, which is my cue to hop out of bed and get myself going.

By 5:37am, I was in the kitchen, ready to get coffee, breakfasts, and lunches going...

 Kids were both up earlier than normal.  They had mini pancakes for breakfast, then Gavin took care of brushing his teeth and getting himself dressed for school.

6:02am - Time for Riley and I to get dressed.  I'm so glad I started wearing hats a couple years back...there's no doing hair before school drop off for this mama!

 6:23am - Kids get a little time to watch TV (Gavin actually picked iPad because he's super excited about his new game) while I have my own coffee, eat something quick for breakfast, and hop on to check team sales, a little Facebook, and reply to a couple emails.

7:08am - We're pulling out and on our way to school.

7:25am - Since it's Monday, we get to walk Gavin in to school.  When he was having a rough time doing the drop off in the car line at the beginning of the year, we agreed that Mondays and Wednesdays I'd walk him into the building.  I love it just as much as he does!

7:55am - Riley and I drop off a food kit for an excited October host!

8:17am - Pick up dry cleaning

8:35am - Back home!  Riley has her '2nd breakfast' (she never eats much before we leave for school) and I make dentist appointments.  She then moves on to her new sensory tub while I unload the dishwasher. 

9:30am - Time to put dinner in the crockpot!  Chicken Ranch Tacos for dinner tonight...

Then I start decorating with the fall decor that Jarrod pulled from the attic for me on Sunday.  Riley helps! :)

10:30am - An early lunch for the Riley girl.  Her fever started to come back and I knew she was tired, so we started lunch/nap early...by 11, she was sound asleep. 

I put the finishing touches on the mantle and took a little break to grab a quick bite for myself while watching some Bethenny.

12:15pm - I jump in the shower and get myself ready (finally, right?) for the day.  Then, spend a little time working on the blog and helping a team member get ready for her first party.  

1:30pm - Riley's up! 

She gets a drink and gets to watch a little TV, I load up the dishwasher, and clean up a little in the living room.

2:30pm - Time to leave to go get Gavin! 

 3:00pm - We make a stop at Amy's on the way home to check her mail and take care of the pets while they're still in St. Louis with Baby Maggie.

3:20pm - Home for snack; I go through Gavin's backpack while the kids eat Goldfish

 3:40pm - Quiet time for the kids - Gavin needs his down time after school!  Riley picked to look at books, and I sent some emails about his upcoming Halloween event at school (gotta love being homeroom mom!)
4:00pm - Gavin didn't fall asleep today (surprising!) so he's out of his room.  They watch a show together and I shred the chicken and finish some dinner prep. 

4:30pm - Kids hop in the shower and I fold laundry (notice I didn't say anything about doing laundry before...this laundry was in the dryer for the last 24 hours.  Oops)

5:10pm - Jarrod texts me that he's coming home!  Loving these earlier nights...he'd been working out after work for the last several months and hasn't been getting home til 6:15-6:30, so I'm excited that he switched to lunchtime workouts this week. :)

5:45pm - Dinner is ready!

Jarrod and I clean up after dinner together (like we always do!  Love that he's so helpful!) 

6:30pm - Kids get a little dessert, and I get to sit down to watch a little bit of the DVR'd Ellen

The kids wanted to take pictures of each other...

 7:00pm - Bathroom to brush teeth, get Pull-Up on, and in bed to read.  Daddy went up to let the dog out at Amy's, so we read together (usually Gavin brushes with Daddy while I read to Riley)

I rub Riley's back for a little bit, and Gavin heads out to have some 'Daddy Time.'  

7:30pm - I have a training call for work.  I check-in and participate for about 10 minutes, but hearing Riley struggle with bedtime was distracting so I muted myself and laid with her, and just listened to most of the call. 

 Jarrod put Gavin to bed, and I finished up my call around 8:15.

 8:20pm - Finish the Ellen episode from earlier and hang out with Jarrod on the couch

9:00pm - We head into bed, and of course, watch an episode of Friends :)

9:20pm - TV off and we're sound asleep shortly after!

 

Let's pretend...

I'm guilty of mom guilt.  You know, when you feel guilty every time you spend any money on yourself.  I've been that way from the start...I can always find something else we should spend money on and hate buying things for myself.  The kids, no problem.  The house, not nearly as guilty.  Myself...yeah, doesn't happen.  

So, let's pretend.  If we won the lottery, after we did all the 'big' things you do when you win the lottery {buy a house, Jarrod a truck, pay off the rest of the debt, fund our retirement and kids' college fund, etc...} what would I spend some money on for ME without feeling guilty...

1. A new wardbrobe ~ 2. An appt with a dermatologist ~ 3. A new lens for my camera ~ 4. A trip to California to see a taping of the Ellen Show {and visit Amy while I'm there} ~ 5. A new coffee table {yes, not technically just for me, but I'd love a new one!} ~ 6. Personal Trainer sessions ~  7. A massage every other week ~ 8. New shoes; lots and lots of shoes so I don't end up wearing flip flops every day ~ 9. An anniversary band for my ring and have them soldered together {probably supposed to be a gift, but it can be a gift to myself!} ~ 10. A KitchenAid Stand Mixer and maybe some other new fun kitchen gadgets

Life

I just realized I haven't taken a single photograph with my camera in over a month.  That's craziness.  So unlike me!  But we've been so busy lately that I've been snapping shots of everything with my phone!  So thankful I have them...but hate that I haven't been using my camera!  Time to get better.

What's going on in our little world?  Well, a lot.  We're finally getting back into a good napping routine in Riley's big girl bed.  She's doing really good with potty-training.  It's been a couple weeks now, and we haven't had an accident in a few days.  Still crazy to me that we're done with diapers.  I had no intention of this so soon...all Riley.  Little Miss Independent.

Gavin's doing really good in school.  Last week, he read two brand new books to me for the first time ever...a first for us!  He's read books before, but never a 'cold' read.  Big deal!

He's also getting really into coloring (where did this come from?!?!?) and writing stories.  Love it!  I met with his teacher yesterday about some 'friend' issues we're having and she told us he's really opening up at school, which makes us so happy.  I surprised him at school today for lunch.  He was so happy, and I love that another friend was sitting right across from us and I got to watch him interact with him.  And of course, little sister just wanted to do what he was doing.

We're still doing tennis lessons every weekend.  Gavin loves them and is getting pretty good!  Unfortunately, Mom and Tot class was cancelled, so Riley and I don't have a class to take right now, but I have been good at sticking to my Tues/Thurs workout schedule so Riley at least gets to interact with friends at the childcare there.  She always tells me she doesn't like it there on the way, and as soon as I pick her up, she's smiling and saying, "I had fun!"  Silly girl.

My friend, Amy, who was pregnant with triplets, unfortunately went into labor WAY too early last week and had her little babies 16 weeks early.  Sweet little Jack didn't make it; his two sisters are fighting so hard right now.  We've done as much as we can for them; keeping Harper overnight the first night, taking care of the animals, mowing their lawn...  I just can't imagine what they're going through and feel really thankful that our paths crossed six months ago and we're able to be there for them now.  One thing I definitely learned with our move...when you're far from home, your friends become your local family!

I'm determined to get a Day in My Life post done next week.  It's been a long time since I've done one, and that will help me get back into the camera routine!

Wordless Wednesday: Cause and Effect

Wordless Wednesday

Two Big Changes for a Two Year Old

Riley sure is keeping us busy around here lately.  It wasn't enough for us to have to deal with our first baby starting kindergarten and our second baby turning two in the same week.  No, no.  Riley decided she was also done with her crib.  Fun stuff.

About three weeks ago, Riley was not herself at bedtime.  Crying, calling for us, just acting strange.  She felt a little clammy to me, so I was worried she wasn't feeling well and took her out of her crib to rock her.  Big mistake.  She was up a lot that night, and the next, and pretty soon, she was refusing to get in her crib at all.  Bedtime consisted of her clinging to us, screaming, trying to climb out, and insisting she wanted to sleep on the floor.  So, that's what we did for a week or so.  I was hoping it was a phase that would pass, but no such luck.  And so, months before I wanted it to happen, we ended up getting Riley her big girl bed.

I spent hours scouring the internet for the perfect bedding.  I finally found something I loved and that was reasonable at Bed Bath and Beyond, so we headed to the store to order it (so I could use the coupon) and of course, Riley found one that she loved instead.  I tried convincing her to get the one I wanted, but she kept pointing to this saying, 'I like this one.'  So, the two year old won.  She picked out her bedding and was really excited!

 

Funny how a bed can make someone seem so little, yet so grown up, all at the same time.

So, how are we doing?  Well...the first week was rough.  Bedtime was taking at least 60 minutes, if not longer.  She didn't listen quite like her brother did when we said, 'You can't get off the bed by yourself.'  In true Riley fashion, she took that as a challenge and was jumping from her bed, giggling through it all.  We're finally to the point of naps going smoothly, but bedtime still takes a while.  She wants us to lay with her, and we go in frequently to check on her.  The transition to the new bed does mean an even earlier wake up time for Riley.  More fun for all.  We'll get there...one day at a time.

 And as if switching to a big bed wasn't enough to remind me that my baby isn't quite a baby anymore, little Miss Riley decided she was ready to use the potty.  We'd walk in a room and find her completely naked and telling us she wanted to go potty.  Again, something I was not ready for.  I know some moms enjoy getting past the diaper phase, but potty training is not exactly my favorite phase.  It makes life quite complicated!  But, we decided to spend our four day weekend jumping into it.  What were we thinking??? 

We went to the pool Friday morning, and when Riley woke up from nap, we put her into panties and she helped put her diapers away.  She did so good on Friday.  Not a single accident!

Saturday, she had an accident early in the morning, but we had to get Gavin to tennis lessons still so we powered through and headed out.  Brave, I know.  She did good while we were gone, but ended the day with two poop accidents added to her score.

This morning has been challenging.  The newness has wore off, the potty has lost its appeal.  We're keeping our eyes on the prize though.  No going back now...that will just confuse her, I'm sure.  So, we'll see how this ends up.  We're home for the day today and tomorrow, and hopefully by Tuesday when we're back to our school routine we'll be doing well.  Fingers crossed!