Greetings from Lexington!
We were gone all of February in Minnesota, so it’s great to be back in Kentucky. It’s nice to be back with our toys, things, and in our house 🙂
Today I’m going to share a day in the life with a 14 month old. It’s never the same but we do have a pretty consistent routine. I LOVE reading these on other blogs, and I hope that this snapshot will be something I will enjoy in the future. Granted, things are a bit different courtesy of COVID-19, but our days haven’t really changed that much. Enjoy!
7: get up!
I know a lot of people set alarms to wake up before their kids, but I don’t do that 🙂 I usually wake up a few minutes before she does though. Thanks to Taking Cara Babies we have a great sleeper!
Then we nurse and go downstairs to play. I make some coffee and then make us both breakfast. These are the plates we use with her because the suction is super strong. She loves these cups too! Some of our current go-tos are:
- Oatmeal with PB or Almond Butter & Fruit
- Banana pancakes
- Fage 5% yogurt
- Eggs – hardboiled, scrambled, or made toad-in-a-hole style
After breakfast we play some more and I do some quick cleanup. Playing now involves taking a toy and just walking around as long as possible 🙂 She just takes laps around our family room and kitchen. It’s the cutest and she’s so happy!
9:45-11:15ish: nurse & naptime
I nurse her before her nap and put her back into her sleepsack. During her nap I clean up from breakfast (or anything left from dinner the night before) and check my work email. I love to listen to the radio or podcasts while I’m cleaning.
I also have gotten into a groove with riding my Peloton bike during her morning nap. It’s my most consistent workout time so I try to get at least a 30 minute ride in. It makes my day so great!
11-2:30: fun time of the day!
Right now she is *obsessed* with books – so the second she wakes up she wants to read. Up, grab those board books, and she’s happy. So we play in her room for a bit and then venture downstairs for lunch and playing. For lunch we do leftovers or some type of sandwich (disassembled for her into toast and pieces!) or quesadillas, etc.
Before COVID we would use this time of day to run errands or see friends. We would hit Target, Costco or Aldi – depending on what we need. This is the easiest time of day to run errands because she’s awake and nothing is too busy.
Now we are spending our days at home and trying to get a walk in daily. Social distancing is super easy when you’re just walking around the streets! We haven’t ventured back to the park with all the COVID precautions – but we might try sometime soon. I would be comfortable on the swings if there wasn’t anyone around and I could wipe it off.
Currently our favorite book is The Circus Ship – she loves to page through it and point out all the animals. She will sit on our laps happily for 30 minutes! She also loves any and all Berenstain Bears books as well!
2:30-3:45: quick nap
We are still napping twice a day and she takes an hour long nap in the afternoon. I know lots of kids do a short morning nap and long afternoon nap, but she has always napped much longer in the morning. I might cleanup, check my work email again, and then spend some time doing “whatever I want”. Or preparing for dinner 🙂
4: quick snack
For snacks I love hardboiled eggs, fruit, avocado toast, or cheese. We try to avoid prepackaged snacks and I serve items that don’t need to be cooked. But I treat this just like a meal and serve as much as she wants – so sometimes she really eats a ton and I want to make sure it’s nutritious. I should mention that I use our Dyson vacuum 3 times a day (after every meal basically) so clean up. I can’t live without it now – highly highly recommend.
Then we play and I work on dinner! With everything that’s going on we watch Gov. Beshear’s daily briefings everyday at 5. They’re super informative and make me feel very reassured.
6: dinner
We used to just eat “dinner” at 5 because baby girl would get hungry when she woke up. So now she has a snack when she gets up from her nap and then we eat dinner together around 6. Sometimes she eats a ton, sometimes she just eats a few pieces. I only make one meal for all of us (I do NOT want to become a short order cook) but I make sure to include one food I think she’ll eat. Maybe that’s a side of blackberries, but if she starts eating she will usually continue to eat and try everything on her plate.
6:45-7:15: bedtime routine
Our routine involves a bath sometimes, but mainly PJs (our favorites are Hanna Andersson and Primary), some Vanicream lotion, and then nursing before bed. If my husband is at home he will sing to her and put her down when we’re done nursing. She LOVES their cuddles and will look around for him when it’s just us!
7:15: bedtime
She is usually asleep within 10 minutes after talking to herself in her crib 🙂 We can check on her with our Nanit – highly, highly recommend.
After she is in bed we cleanup and then watch TV! Sometimes I might hop on the bike if I didn’t ride in the morning, but that’s pretty rare. I have usually lost all motivation by this time of the day haha.
10: bedtime for the adults
An early bedtime is key when you have early mornings! Luckily they are later than when she was a newborn, but I’m a sleep person and I need a lot of sleep to function.
There you have it – a current day in the life! I love our routine and the predictability helps me plan our days. Routine is even more important in these crazy times, so I hope this post is informative for you guys.
