I asked on Instastories what YOU wanted to read on this sweet little blog of ours, and quite a few of you asked for a day in the life. So thankful I asked because for some reason this one never popped into my head!

I think I’ll do these seasonally, because our schedule looks so different when the weather is warmer/when Austen is out of school. 

So here are are…the winter edition! 

6:00am Wake Up Call        

Hudson wakes up between 6:00 and 6:30. When he wakes up, Alex brings him into bed and I nurse him before heading downstairs for coffee. We got a new coffee pot for Christmas and it’s on a schedule. Waking up at 6:00 to a pot of coffee already made is like living in a dream. For a month or so I was getting up around 5:30 to do quiet time. I miss that. Then Hudson started teething and was waking up two-three times a night and I was exhausted. So I picked rest over quiet time. But now that Hudson’s sleeping until 6:00 most mornings, maybe I’ll try the 5:30 thing again. I’m a morning person, so I’m at my happiest early in the morning!

7:00am Austen Comes Down

Austen’s clock turns green {here’s the link to the clock we use} at 7:00. He usually wakes up earlier, but sits in his bed and reads books. When his clock turns green, without a doubt he comes to the top of the stairs and says SO excitedly “mom…my clock turned green…I slept for 10 minutes!” Every morning.

7:00-7:30 Chill Time

Austen will eat his “mins” {he gets one multivitamin, one elderberry vitamin, and two each of the Juice Plus green and fruit vitamins} while I drink coffee and relax. I’m not super strict about TV or playing or anything. Sometimes we watch a show, sometimes we listen to music and play, sometimes we read books. It just depends on how much sleep I got the night before. I’ve learned to give myself grace in this season.

7:30 Breakfast

Around this time we’ll do breakfast. Austen and Hudson usually have yogurt and fruit, a waffle, oatmeal or a granola bar. I’ll make a shake or make some eggs and then we eat and I’ll clean up and do dishes if I need to. On this particular day I actually made eggs for myself and Hudson. And because I know you’ll ask…yes…we put tiny pepperoni in our eggs sometimes…and it’s crazy delicious so try it! 

8:00 Get Ready For The Day

Austen will usually be playing at this point, so I take Hudson upstairs so I can get ready. Hudson plays in his room while I get ready, but when he was little, I would put him in his crib. And for 30 minutes he would on and off fuss and play. But I needed that time to myself. I love the routine of putting on makeup and getting ready. It makes me more awake, and a better mom to be honest. I usually take around 30 minutes {between makeup, hair, clothes} and he plays the entire time.

I get Austen and Hudson ready for the day after I get ready. Austen goes to school at 9:00 on Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday, so on those days we’re getting clothes on and brushing teeth to leave by 8:45.

Sweater / Jeans / Necklace / Glasses / Mirror 

9:00 Austen Drop Off

After we drop off Austen, Hudson and I have 2.5 hours to do whatever we need. My mom is retired, so on Tuesday and Thursday my mom will usually come and hang with Hudson so I can work or run errands.

 When summer hits, I’ll probably do some school/learning time for an hour or so in the mornings. Nothing too intense, but I want him to stay in the routine of learning and not lose what he’s gained in school. We’re really hoping to master all upper case letters this summer.

11:30 Pick Up Austen and Lunch

We pick up Austen from school and he is starving. This is what will change come spring time because in the spring we usually take our lunch to a park or we’ll walk home from school and stop at the sandwich shop! 

12:00 Hudson Nap

Hudson does down for a nap around this time and Austen will finish lunch and play while I get Hudson to sleep. We’re in the struggle bus time or moving from two-one naps a day. It’s just hit or miss honestly. He’s cutting his molars right now, so recently he’s been doing a nap while Austen’s in school and then taking a second nap around 2:00. But typically he does his one nap a day during this time. 

12:15-12:30 Austen and Mommy Special Time

Austen and I have special time. This is something we started after Hudson was born so that I have a time to interact with him just us two everyday. It’s a game changer! And we literally only do it for 15 minutes some days. Some days longer, but this is research based y’all…and research says that 15-20 minutes is all that is needed. We usually play a board game or do a craft of some sort. The real key to the research based part of this is that the child gets to decide what we do. So I ask him, and if he wants to snuggle and watch Mickey Mouse…we do that. If he wants to go outside and play, we grab the monitor and go outside. If you’re struggling with behavior issues…try special time! It was suggested by my behavioral therapist and it’s done wonders! 

12:30-2:00 Austen Quiet Time

Austen isn’t napping anymore so we’re doing “quiet time” Sometimes I get quite time too. We are definitely not in a consistent routine with naps for Hudson. Sometimes he’ll nap for 30 minutes, sometimes for two hours! It just depends if he slept in the car at all while we were running errands. This will change BIG time come summer because we’ll be out doing things or at the pool until 12:30-1:00 so I’m hoping for longer naps come summer time! 

2:00-4:00 Play Time

We play until dada comes home. Alex goes to work at 7am and gets off at 3:30. It’s the BIGGEST blessing having him home so early! If it’s nice we’ll bundle up and take a walk or play scooters in the driveway! If it’s yucky out, we’ll play with play dough or play in the playroom or something. On this particular day we headed to the library to play. You all…use your libraries! They are amazing and a great way to kill some time! I try to change up what we do during this time or I go insane! 

4:00 Mama Works Out

Dada is home around 4:00 and I work out! Usually. Sometimes I get my workout in while Austen is at school. It just depends on the day. But usually Alex will play with the boys outside or in the living room and I will get my workout finished. Right now I’m using Beachbody On Demand and doing Lift 4. I’ve already done one round of it and LOVE it! I’m finally feeling like my arms are becoming toned. However, I broke my elbow in January, so I can only lift 5 pounds, which is annoying, but 5 pounds is better than nothing!

5:00 Dinner

Alex usually starts dinner while I workout and we eat right at 5:00 typically. Our kids really would like to eat at 4:30 if we had it ready! We try not to do a ton of snacks, so they are HUNGRY at dinner time. We sit down all together pretty much every single night. I cherish that because I know when life gets busy and the boys have sports that will become few and far between. But we really make sitting down at the table together as a family a big priority! Dinner is usually pretty simple and we don’t make a huge deal out of it. We’re not crazy about them trying new things. We try to always offer something we know they will like. Austen has never liked meat. Ever. So we don’t push it. He’s one of the healthiest children I know, and I don’t want to fight over food. He just knows that dinner is dinner and if he doesn’t eat it, he won’t get anything else until breakfast the next day. But food is not something we fight about in our home. 

5:30-6:30 Family Time

We typically play as a family, but sometimes Alex and I like to pair off and take one boy at a time. We’ve really learned to love having that quiet time with each boy. 

6:30-7:00 Wind Down Time

If we need baths, we do baths at this time. If not then we do something quiet and try to wind down for the day Alex will usually play a board game or something with Austen. Hudson usually goes to sleep between 6:45 and 7:00. And now that Austen isn’t napping…he’s getting in bed and falling asleep almost immediately at 7:00. I know that time probably seems early to a lot of families when dads don’t get home from work until 6:00. But remember, Alex is home at 4:00! And no matter what time we put Austen to sleep…he still wakes up around 6:30. So I’d rather get him to bed early so he gets more sleep. Since Hudson has been born, I’ve done Hudson and Alex has done Austen for bedtime. Alex will read a few books, do affirmations with Austen {any interest in a post on how and why we do this…let me know} and prayers. Austen does prayers at night now and they are hilarious! 

7:00 Mama and Dada Time

After we get the boys to sleep, I typically take a HOT bubble

bath {here are links to my favorite bubble bath and favorite body scrub} It’s my way to wind down. I will do a face mask and watch Netflix and just relax. Alex and my differing personalities really come into play after we get the kids to sleep. I am DONE by that point and exhausted, while Alex gets energy once the boys are down. So he usually takes a run or does projects. But before bed one or both of us ALWAYS picks up the kitchen and living room and gets coffee ready for the next day! It’s a nonnegotiable in our family! 

9:00 Bedtime

You read that right…I legit get in bed around 9:00 every night. I’m a morning person thru and thru! I’m actually TRYING to get into the habit of meditating at 9:00 using the Calm App {my favorite} to get ready for sleep. When my anxiety is high, I will stop and do a meditation. But I would love to get into the routine of taking 10 minutes to calm before bed. I’ll keep you posted! Hopefully when I do this during the spring I can say I’ve been doing that routinely!

And that’s what our days look like right now. Obviously the weekends are a little different. Weekends are hard around here. Having Alex home changes the routine, so the boys are off. Especially Austen. So we try to keep a similar routine and just replace school time with some kind of activity.

I’m so excited for the spring days to come of evening walks, and park picnics, and eating on the front porch, and playing on the play set, and sitting on the front swing. But honestly, I really try to embrace the winter season. The season of hibernating, and relaxing, and bubble baths, and watching movies.

So tell me…how is your day different? I’d love to hear! Maybe you’ll spark some ideas! Especially for that 2:00-4:00 time frame…that’s the time of day that I tent to go a little nuts!

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