Thursday, December 6, 2012

24 Hours with Julie Park

So I often read posts about "a day in the life" of the blog author and I decided that it might be fun to do something like that for this current stage in my life... Mother of an eight year old and 12 week old.

This was our Monday, 3 December.

12 a.m. - I'm finally getting to sleep. Hunter went down at 11 p.m. but I had to still clean up after dinner, download all of my photos for my blog post on the personalized Cheese Dome for the Dare to DIY challenge, and start a load of diapers.

4 a.m. - Hunter is starting to wake up. Time to change his diaper and feed him. I stumble down to his room still half asleep. I wake up fully when I'm using the nose sucker... He is NOT a fan! After clearing his nose and changing his diaper I settle into the glider in his room for our middle of the night feeding. He eats for 50 minutes... He is a SLOW eater as I'm sure you will see today! During this feeding I doze off a few times due to the dark room and comfy glider. Hunter also dozes a few times.

5 a.m. - Put Hunter back down in his bed. What a cutie... He isn't fully asleep but I pat him on his back and whisper that I love him. At night he is very good about going to sleep on his own. As I leave his room I head to the laundry room to move our diapers from the washing machine to the dryer (low cycle). Back up to bed for me. I feel fully awake right now but know that I will need the extra sleep later in the day.

... Laying in bed unable to go to sleep. Matt keeps snoring lightly and I am making lists in my head of all the stuff that I need to do. Around 5:30 I'm finally able to go back to sleep.

7:30 a.m. - Wake up! Emma wakes up at this time every school day and today Hunter also woke up at the same time. I take the dog out and after Sophie does her business I head down to pick up Hunter. Change another diaper and it's time for him to eat again!

So happy that I picked out Emma's clothes for school the night before! By the time up come upstairs after Hunter's diaper change I find Emma already dressed and laying on the sofa watching cartoons. I join her for Hunter's morning feeding.

8:10 a.m. - After 30 minutes I burp Hunter and hand him off to Emma so I can get breakfast together. Since Hunter is up this morning I opt for a speedy option. Fiber Plus Chocolate Chip Eggo's and strawberries. (If Hunter is still asleep in the mornings I will typically make homemade waffles or scrambled eggs with sausage...) I also take this time to make Emma's lunch.

Emma is holding Hunter and playing with him. They are just so cute together. She is such a great big sister and so helpful when I need just 5 minutes to get something done.

8:15 a.m. - Back on the sofa after my quick break and finishing up Hunter's feeding.

8:45 p.m. - Put Sophie in her kennel and hand Hunter off to Matt... who is still in bed. Hunter is in a milk coma and I think that he will be able to go back to sleep. Hunter and Matt have cuddle time in bed while I take Emma to school.

Emma and I head off so that I can drop her off at school. I love our drive to school. It is time when just the two of us can catch up on things. I also love my ride home after I drop her off... this is the only real alone time I get on a typical day. Those are beautiful 12 minutes!

9:15 a.m. - Back home and Matt and Hunter are still up in bed!!! YES some additional time to myself. I post my blog to the Dare to DIY series.

9:45 a.m. - Matt and Hunter emerge from the bedroom. Hunter has a nice clean diaper on and is in a super good mood! Matt is a sleepy guy  however and I make him some coffee and an Eggo with fruit.

10 a.m. - Matt puts Hunter in his MamaRoo so that he can head up to work

I get stared on some morning chores. I never know how long Hunter's morning conversation with his "monsters" will be so I run around the house at warp speed trying to get as much done as possible and I multi task as much as possible (example: at the moment I am pumping while typing this... maybe TMI?). Here is what I am able to get done:
  • Made bed
  • Opened all the blinds in the bedroom (I hate walking into a dark bedroom during the day)
  • Cleaned off the shelf behind the bed.. .with a baby this turns into a dumping ground each night. we have our cups of water, my lists, about 4 pens, Hunters nose sucker, burp clothes, cookbooks that I look at before bed, and sadly there are often wrappers leftover from our night time snacks. Looks like we each ate a bite size Milky Way last night...
  • Pumped 5 oz. my goal is to get an extra 5 oz each morning so that I have an excess before returning to work .

  • Did a quick clean up in the bathroom... putting all the tooth brushing supplies away... Emma's is not the neatest when it come to brushing her teeth. We are constantly cleaning toothpaste off the counter.
  • Fold all of Hunter's diapers that were washed last night and put them away.

    10:35 a.m. - Hunter is done talking to his monsters. We head down to his room to change his diaper and get dressed for the day... he is NOT happy to have his nose cleared out!


    10:50 a.m. - Time to eat. I head up to the bedroom with Hunter and turn on Revenge! (side note... best show ever!!!) Of course I take this time to multitask... I plan our dinners for the week and write out my grocery list.

    Revenge is over and Hunter is still eating. Time to catch up with some of my favorite Atlanta housewives.

    12:00 p.m. - An hour and 10 minutes later Hunter is done... like a said slow eater. I take this opportunity to get dressed in real clothes and out of my sweats. I get in my skinny jeans and brown boots... I feel like this is my uniform right now because to be 100% honest I only have two pairs of jeans that fit me.

    Matt takes this opportunity to come out of his office to have a little talk with Hunter

    and he is super helpful getting Hunter in his car seat so we can run our errands.

    12:15 p.m. - We are off to the store. On the way I remember a cute living Christmas tree that a saw on a blog this morning... as I drive by Home Depot I decide to stop in quickly to grab one for Hunter's room.


    Now that I have the tree I can get back on schedule and I get to Harris Teeter to get our groceries for the week.

    It is so nice out today! Look at the temp!


    At the grocery store... Hunter helps hold the list.

    Done shopping time to head Home..

    1:15 p.m. - Back home. I run the groceries into the house and bring Hunter in.

    As I'm pulling my sleeping baby out of his car seat I'm just praying that he stays asleep!!! I put him down in his bed... fingers crossed.

    The second I lay him down I start the mad dash to get things done.

    Here's what I was running around doing:
    • Fed Sophie  and took her outside
    • Removed old food from the fridge
    • Made a banana sandwich to eat as I'm putting groceries away

    • My wonderful Holly called to catch up
    • Put groceries away
    • Made a beet salad

      1:45 p.m. - Didn't get everything done or much eaten... you know you like that half eaten sandwich on the boxes that I still need to put away.

      but Hunter is awake so I head down to get him out of his room. Before we head upstairs Hunter gets his diaper changed.

      After we are all clean we head up to daddy's office so that he can see the cute faces that Hunter is making and so that he can see that Hunter is holding tight to my shirt... I tell Matt that Hunter is saying that he doesn't want mommy to go back to work!!! I try to talk Matt into letting me stay home and not go back to work about 3-4 times a day. Considering we are about to purchase a new vehicle... it is not going to happen anytime soon.

      2:00 p.m. - I place Hunter down on his floor mat and I sit beside him as I try to eat my yummy salad and check my blog.

      2:10 p.m. - Play time does not last long as Hunter starts sucking on his hand. Looks like he is a little hungry

      2:15 p.m. - Time to eat again! We head upstairs with my beet salad, computer, and some cooking magazines to find some recipes for our Christmas party. Real Housewives of Atlanta playing in the background.

      3:15 p.m. - Hunter's finished! Big stretch

      We packed up a few toys and head out to Emma's Monday playgroup.

      On Monday (weather permitting) there is a playgroup which meets because school gets out early. My amazing mother picks Emma up at 1:25 from school and takes Emma to the first half of playgroup and I meet up when I can after Hunters afternoon feeding.

      3:30 p.m. - Arrive at playgroup and get settled into the parents circle.


      4:30 p.m. - Managed to get Emma to depart playgroup without throwing a fit! That is not usually the case but I guess since her elf arrived this week she is on her best behavior. After playgroup we head over to a thrift store just to see if I can find anything to refinish. Didn't find anything good in the home section but I did manage to walk out of there with some stuff for Hunter. I spent $23 and took home:
      • 3-6 Month Baby Gap Brown snow suit... this will be perfect for the winter.
      • 2T Ralph Lauren Short Sleeve button up
      • 6 M Smocked Christmas outfit... will probably be too big but for under $3 I had to try :)
      • 3-6 Month Janie and Jack green and brown plaid button up
      • 12-18 Month Baby Gap black corduroy Pants
      • 6-9 Month Flease Zip up hoodie with Blue elephants
      • 6-12 months Janie and Jack Brown overalls
      • 8 Year olf Fleese PJs with Polar bears ... for Emma
      not too shabby for only $23

      5:45 p.m. - Drive home... Emma throws a fit in the car because Hunter is crying.

      6:00 p.m. - LONG ride with two kiddos crying. Time for some wine!! Thank the Lord we are home. I'm not sure that I would be able to stay sane for much longer in that car. I cannot wait to get our new car so Emma can watch a movie with a headset while Hunter cries.

      Matt meets us outside and carries in Hunter's car seat and changes Hunter's diaper while I get Emma into the shower. I also take this opportunity to get some brie, crackers, and a tiny glass of wine.

      6:10 p.m. - Feeding Hunter and watch some Sister Wives. Yes, I watch totally trashy TV.

      While I'm feeding Hunter... Matt is helping Emma with her homework

      7:30 p.m. - Hunter finishes... well I decided that he needed to be done. I cannot believe that it is so late and I do not have dinner made. What a slacker I am!! I heat up fish sticks for Emma so that she can eat and still get to sleep at a decent time (She goes to school an hour earlier on Tuesday mornings so we have to be firm about our Monday bedtime.)

      I start making fish tacos.


      While I cook Emma is eating, Matt is finishing some work, and Hunter has picked up his conversation with his monsters.

      8:00 p.m. - Emma brushes her teeth and gets into her pjs.

      8:15 p.m. - Emma heads to bed and Matt and I start to eat dinner. Of course the second we start eating Hunter begins to cry. Matt and I take turns eating and playing with Hunter on his floor mat.

      Who is that cute baby in the mirror?

      8:45 p.m. - Dinner done. I hop into the bath to relax and just have a few minutes to myself. As I start reading my Cooking Light Magazine I realize that I only ever had one sip of that glass of wine that I poured myself earlier... ehhh what a day!

      While I'm in the bath Matt has some quality dude time with Hunter. I can hear them talking downstairs. The second Hunter starts fussing again I decide that my bath time is over. It is VERY hard to relax when I hear an unhappy little guy.

      9:10 p.m. - Time for Hunter's bath! My favorite part of the day and his too! He LOVES bath time and just laughs and coos the whole time. He also loves standing up in the bath. Such a strong little man. He also loves to have his head massaged when I apply his shampoo. What a cutie!

      9:25 p.m. - Bath time is over and Matt gets Hunter a new diaper and his PJs while I get water and a few things together for the marathon that is about to take place.

      9:30 p.m. - Start the marathon feeding. No matter what I do or when I start feeding Hunter he eats for a minimum of two hours right before bed. TWO HOURS MINIMUM!!! Lights are turned off in the bedroom and the TV is on low. We keep talking to a minimum in the hopes that it will clue Hunter in on the fact that it is time to SLEEP. ** To put it into perspective Emma was a 30 minute eater.

      After about an hour and a half I start to fall asleep myself and Matt keeps waking me up because my head falls down and if I stay that way for too long I end up in pain.

      11:45 p.m. -  Hunter is finished and in a bit of a milk coma. He has the cutest little smile on his face. Eyes are wide open but I know that he is fighting sleep at the moment. We say good night to daddy and start to walk downstairs. By the time we get to Hunter's room his eyes are closed and I put him right down without a fuss.

      11:50 p.m. - Load dishes into the dishwasher from dinner and start a load of clothes. I'm exhausted and just pray that Hunter magically sleeps for 7 hours... oh a girl can dream.

      12:15 p.m. - night night. Time for mommy to go to sleep. Finally doze off around 12:30

      So that is my day! A full 24 hours with Julie Park. Just in case your wondering... Hunter woke up at 4 a.m. and we were up eating until 5:30 and back up for the day at 7

      1 comment:

      1. Goodness Julie I'm exhausted reading this!! Hunter is a beautiful baby! He's obviously being taken care of very well! :-( about having to go back to work.

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