Monday, May 16, 2011

A Day in The Life

...of A Single Mom to Twin Babies.

Saturday, May 14th

4:20 AM:  Awakened by rare night time cries from the Dynamo. I bring him in bed with me.
5:00 AM:  Return the Dynamo to his crib. Sweet Potato does not wake up.  Go back to bed.
6:30 AM:  Both babies awake. Morning bottles and mat time until breakfast. 
7:15 AM:  Head to the basement to feed kitty.  Make coffee!
7:45 AM:  Breakfast!  Babies in high chairs.  The Dynamo chomps on a Mum-Mum while I feed Sweet Potato oatmeal with banana mixed with pears.  Then switch.  Four tablespoons cereal each.
8:15 AM:  Clean faces and hands and wheel high chairs over to sink so babies can watch me wash baby bottles, bowls and plates and unload the dishwasher.  I sing and dance along with the radio while they play with rattles and teething rings.
8:35 AM:  Play time in doorway jumper and walker. Shoot this video -



9:00 AM:  Nap time in cribs! 
9:10 AM:  Strip my bed sheets and throw in wash along with other linens.
9:25 AM:  Straighten up play room, eat bagel, change out of my pjs, clean out storage cabinets in mud/laundry room.  Restock downstairs changing table.
10:45 AM:  Babies awake!  Mid-morning bottles which they don't finish.
11:15 AM:  Change babies out of pjs. Play time in nursery while I sort through their old clothes. Take apart, clean and box up nursery humidifier*.  Replace it with table fan. 
12:00 PM:  Lunch!  The Dynamo picks Cheerios off his high chair tray while I feed Sweet Potato chicken with rice, green beans and carrots.   Then switch.  
12:30 PM:  Play time in the exersaucer and musical sit/stand toys. 
12:45 PM:  Switch morning laundry, do a full load of twins laundry.  Hand wash the Dynamo's swim trunks and swim diaper and my bathing suit for swim class.
1:10 PM:  Read emails and blog posts.  Order diapers, wipes and this swimming pool from Amazon.com.  Eat quick lunch.  Rescue Sweet Potato who has tipped over from a sitting position.
1:25 PM:  Play time with floor toys.  Kitty joins us.  The Dynamo pulls chunks of cat fur off kitty while Sweet Potato laughs.  Kitty tolerates the love.
1:45 PM:  Afternoon naps in cribs.
2:00 PM:  Vacuum kitchen, foyer and play room floors.  Unpack box of jars of baby food, put on storage rack and take inventory.  Organize pantry. 
2:15 PM:  Babies awake?!  More play time in the nursery as I continue my clothing sort.  Generate five bags of clothes for friend of a friend who just had twin boys via a surrogate. Watch the Dynamo move around the nursery on his belly backwards; pull him out from under Sweet Potato's crib.  Help Sweet Potato practice rolling over in both directions. 
2:45 PM:  Relocate to play room (rainy day kept us indoors!).  Finish mid-morning bottles.
3:15 PM:  Switch laundry, make bed, wash bouncy seat head rests and Sweet Potato's monkey.  Drag bins of my winter clothes from upstairs to basement storage. 
3:45 PM:  More mat time; reposition babies from belly to sitting, from sitting to belly, pull the Dynamo out from under the changing table where he has backed himself into on his belly.
4:25 PM:  Read books to babies: Dr Seuss' The Things You Can Think! and There's A Wocket in My Pocket!.
5:00 PM:  Dinner!  Oatmeal with banana mixed with apples.  Five tablespoons cereal each.
5:20 PM:  Babies play on mat while I clean up dinner dishes.  Join them on the mat and fold laundry.
5:50 PM:  I have quick microwave dinner.
6:00 PM:  Babies in jammies.  They play together with blocks and Sesame Street pop-up toy and sit in front of their musical sit/stand toys.
6:30 PM:  Evening bottles.  Babies in bouncy seats watching Baby Einstein DVD.  Lights down.
7:00 PM:  Sweet Potato in crib.  Dynamo fighting sleep.
7:30 PM:  Dynamo in crib.
8:00 PM:  Clean up play room, get mail, take out trash.
8:30 PM:  Go to bed!  Catch up on news, blogs, FB on smartphone.
9:00 PM:  The Dynamo wakes up; bring him in bed with me.  Feel tip of very first bottom tooth poking through gums!
9:30 PM:  Back to his crib for the Dynamo. Back to bed for me.
11:50 PM:  Teething strikes again: the Dynamo wakes up....

Notice there are no entries for bathing either myself of the babies in my Saturday schedule.  I often stay stinky on Saturdays and only bathe the twins right now when someone else is in the house.    

Next Saturday's "Day in the Life" consists of childproofing!  I live in a split level house with no railings. Baby gates here we come.

*Switching out the humidifier with the fan was a bit premature as my heat is back on in the house!  

Update: Click Here to read a typical day in the life when the twins are six months older.

9 comments:

  1. Damn. I'm exhausted just from reading that. Still, you sound good.

    I remember that era as one of doing laundry and watching cooking shows on the weekends while LG pulled books off the bookcases and tormented the cat (she was crawling and pulling herself up by 6 mo). Good. But tiring!

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  2. Wow you are very organized. I don't have twins and don't get that much done in a day. Were you always this way or did the twins bring it out in you?

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  3. Like Gwinne said, I'm tired also just reading that. Tell me your secret, how do you stay sane?

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  4. you deserve a huge gold star! what a crazy schedule. you make me feel lazy with just one.

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  5. I don't bathe anyone on saturday either, unless I'm around company (neither DH nor the baby nor the dog counts as company). I have convinced myself it's better for the skin and hair to take breaks every now and then.

    You do get a lot done! It makes me think maybe a second baby, one that doesn't sleep in so much, will be a good forcing function to get me out of bed and getting things done.

    Thanks for the look into your life, it sounds wonderful and I am as happy for you now as I was when you first got that final bfp. Perhaps moreso.

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  6. Here from Creme de la Creme and wow: this is amazing. Major hats off to you for doing such a kick-butt job of being a twins mom. This post has inspired me to be a better twins mom.

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  7. Stopping by from Creme de la Creme! Wow, Looks like a VERY busy day for you and your twins! My twins are only 3mo old so they are not quite that active yet. Your post gives me something to look forward to! I really enjoyed reading!

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  8. Wow, you are super momma!

    Visiting from the Creme de la Creme.

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