A Day In The Life Of A Stay-At-Home Mom (Part 2)

Follow along on my journey as I continue a play-by-play of my typical day in the life of a stay-at-home mom.

Me-time versus her-time – I am always on the search for a way to balance these two.

When I talk about “me-time”, I’m talking about a time when I could be solely focused on doing something that I want to do – no divided attention, no clingy baby on my leg, no fear of “why is it so quiet, she must be up to something bad.” “Me-time” usually includes showering, doing devotions, posting on my social media accounts, writing a blog post, and doing chores: changing the bunny litter, washing dishes, meal-prepping and weeks’ worth of laundry. These are my daily aspirations (on top of keeping Rosie alive and well); they don’t sound so difficult but for some reason they’re almost impossible for me to achieve.

So I really covet having “me-time” every day and the only time that’s possible is when she naps.

Nap time always stirs up a whole mix of emotions in me. First there’s relief when the little eyelashes flutter and close. There’s a few moments of peace as I catch my breath, lounge on the couch, and just relax. Soon enough, the anxiety sets in when I start tackling my to-do list. Was that her? Is she up already? It always feel like a race against a ticking time bomb. When I do hear the demanding yelp coming from her room, I often feel frustrated and annoyed with being interrupted from whatever I was doing. And then of course, I end up with a heap of mom-guilt as I beat myself up afterwards, wondering how I could be mad at the little angel staring up at me with a goofy smile.

Can anyone relate or am I just crazy?

Anyway.

Today – I make some tea and spend some time in prayer. Then I open the laptop and follow up with all my social media accounts and check my emails. I make a to-do list for the week and unload the dishwasher. Then the voice in my head tells me to stop procrastinating and start working on my blog already. I sit down with my laptop and write a few words – and there she is – a little yell to indicate to me that she’s awake. 90 minutes has never passed by faster.

Rosie is most definitely cutest right after she wakes up from a nap. Whatever annoyance I felt dissipates immediately when I walk into her room. She is dazed and sitting up. She flops back on the bed and rolls around for a bit. With a little yawn and a big stretch, she’s ready for the rest of the day. I sit her on the potty and after a few minutes of reading, she gives me a poop – score! I heat up our lunch (which is almost always last night’s dinner) and we eat.

It’s 1:30PM by the time we’re ready to head out the door. Thornhill plaza is our one stop shop at least a few times a week. I stop by the grocery store, return some library books and then we go to the Early-On Centre.

Rosie loves going to the EarlyOn Centre. And I love going just to be able to watch her socialize. I’ve learned so much about her personality when I see how she interacts with others in public. What you need to know is that she is very very very observant and she takes her time to switch into “social” gear. Most will mistake this for her being shy but she is definitely not a shy one. Give her her time to sit and stare. When she’s ready, the little social butterfly emerges.

It’s past 3PM when we head home. The ride home is always frustrating. Today Rosie whines even before I sit her in the car seat. Do you know a baby who hates being in the car seat? I thought they were supposed to like car rides. Not this girl. She jolts and extends her body just so I can’t strap her down. She fake cries and tries to scratch her face. After a struggle, she’s strapped down, I give her a kiss, a toy and a cookie. The cookie will give me at least a few minutes of quiet on the road.

Being stuck in the car is one thing. The fact that it’s late afternoon is another. No matter how great our mornings are, the afternoons always tend to go downhill.

Stay tuned for A Day In The Life Of A Stay-At-Home Mom Part 3. If you missed A Day In The Life Of A Stay-At-Home Mom Part 1, be sure to check it out!

PS. I never intended to have a 3 part series. I was envisioning one blog post covering my whole day but I guess that was ambitious. Who would’ve thought I’d have so much to rant about.