As of Wednesday, Bo and I were on our own with Katie, ready to embark on our life as a family of three. While we loved having so many friends and family members come visit the past two weeks, it has been nice to start finding our groove together. While everyday brings new adventures and a child means that nothing in life is predictable, we are loving every moment even on the most sleep deprived of days.
While I have a few longer posts drafted in my head, this afternoon I wanted to check in quickly for a Day in the Life post. Things are a lot different around here these days, so I thought it would be fun to share what a “typical” day looks like. I laughed as I typed the word “typical” as there is no such thing as typical with a newborn. Instead, let’s call this a glimpse at what my life looked like today.
Keep in mind, Bo and I have chosen to follow the Moms On Call schedule and method as of week 2 and therefore we have a schedule that we do our best to stick to each day, realizing that sometimes the baby or day’s activities will require some flexibility.
1:45 AM – My alarm goes off and I quickly head downstairs to warm a bottle of formula. The goal at this point is for each feeding session, especially the nighttime feeds, to take no more than 30 minutes. Based on my milk production, right now I am giving Katie 10 minutes on each breast before giving her 2.5-3 ounces of formula via bottle.
2:34 AM – She is milk drunk in no time and after changing diapers twice during the feeding session, she is sound asleep when I set her back in ther bassinet.
5:45 AM – My alarm goes off and this time Bo wakes up to head downstairs to get the bottle warmed and ready while I immediately start feeding Katie. Bo has been a champ these past two weeks, since going back to work, and wakes up so he can squeeze in time with Katie before going to work. After I feed her, Bo takes her and gives her the bottle and changes her diapers before doing 10-15 minutes of skin to skin time on his chest while I go back to sleep for a bit.
7:00 AM – When Bo heads to the shower he wakes me up so I can watch Katie and start my day. I swear that extra hour of sleep is sometimes the most quality sleep I have all day. While Bo is in the shower I take the monitor downstairs and make coffee, prepare his breakfast and snacks and make my own breakfast. I’ve been having oatmeal most mornings since oats are a lactation power food. This morning’s oats were paired with fresh berries, flax seed and a drizzle of almond butter.
7:15- 9 AM – Since Katie tends to nap like a champ in the morning, I front load my to-do list. This morning that included running a few loads of wash, emptying the dishwasher, making the bed, and writing thank you notes.
9 AM – I wake Katie for her mid-morning feed which also includes 15 minutes of playtime. Since she’s in a good mood, I decide to read to her while she relaxes in her Boppy lounger. During each of the daytime feeding sessions, we spend 15-20 minutes playing together, enjoying skin to skin or rocking depending on what she seems to enjoy most at that point in the day.
9:45 – 10 AM – I hook myself up to the pump, which I have a love-hate relationship with thus far. I love it because it’s helping me with my milk production and can be used hands-free but for my sanity, I am only pumping 3-4 times per day.
10 AM – 12 PM – I spend time downstairs baking Gina’s Lactation Cookies before heading back upstairs to shower, change clothes and put on some makeup. So far, I have stuck with my goal of showering every single day and changing clothes each day. It’s amazing what these two simple acts, even when squeezed into a five minute period, can do for me mentally. I have a few spare minutes before my alarm goes off and indluge by curling up in my favorite chair to read for a few minutes.
12-1:15pm – This feeding doesn’t go quite as smoothly as Katie puts up a fight when I change her diaper and then proceeds to explode her way through three diapers during the change. She finally calms down enough to enjoy a quick Facetime session with my mom before a bit of tummy time.
1:30pm – Hear my stomach growl and quickly dash downstairs to grab lunch from the fridge. Today’s lunch is leftover Sweetgreen salad which my friend Colleen brought over when she came to visit last night. So thankful for an easy lunch as this tends to be the witching hour most days, so I have no idea how long Katie will nap.
1:45 – 2:55 My friend Elizabeth, who has an eight-week old, texts to see if I want to join her for a walk. I quickly move Katie downstairs, attaching her basinet to the stroller, and head out the door. We spend the next hour chatting and running a few errands around the neighborhood, including a stop at the library as well as mailing a pile of thank you notes. Katie sleeps peacefully during our entire walk, enjoying the bumps in the sidewalk and the fresh air.
3pm – 4pm Time for the late afternoon feeding. I go into this feeding each day mentally prepared for lots of fussiness as babies tend to get fussier in the afternoon. Katie feeds quickly and is clearly hungry but is still wide awake when we finish the entire routine. I try putting her down in the bassinet, hoping that she’ll go to sleep even though her eyes are open. Since she starts crying when I put her down, I spend the next five minutes soothing her while she’s in the bassinet. A little bit of rocking, rubbing the stomach and shhhing goes a long way and by the four minute mark she’s asleep. 
4pm – I head downstairs to make a quick smoothie snack since my stomach is roaring. Our kitchen is quite bare since I haven’t been to the grocery store and therefore have to rely on what is in our cabinet and freezer. I put frozen raspberries, protein powder, flax seed, water, milk and one tablespoon of almond butter together and blend for a delicious and filling smoothie.
4:15 pm – I sit down to check email and write a post. I hope to have time this weekend, while Bo is home, to write the birth story post as well as my two week reflection post. For today, I decide that sharing a day in the life post is interesting and a lot quicker than either of those two options.
4:55 pm – Push publish on this post and then head downstairs to pour myself a glass of wine and read for a few minutes before heading back upstairs for the 6pm feeding.
It’s been a really good day overall, though I’m looking forward to having Bo around this weekend. At this point in maternity leave I definitely feel a bit isolated. It’s helpful to have friends nearby who are also on maternity leave and I’ve made it a goal to enjoy at least a few dates each week with them whether it’s breakfast, lunch, play date or a walk around the neighborhood. Thank you again to everyone who has sent text messages, Insta messages, comments and emails with tips and tricks for making it through this first month.
