I’ve read lots of Day In The Life posts, but never really thought about writing one. Then I came across this woman (via nonsequiturchica) who does DITL posts quarterly (and has been for FIVE years) as a way of documenting the normal days that make up our lives (sidebar: she’s hosting a roundup and there’s still time to get a post in!). I wish I had done this from the time Sofia was a baby, but better late than never! It’s time-intensive, but I absolutely loved taking the pictures and writing down all the little details.
Note: I perhaps should have chosen a more typical day for this post, but I didn’t quite realize how far out of the norm it would be when the day got started. I have often read Day In The Life posts and wondered if they were totally true, as it always seemed like things were way more interesting than in my typical day. But now I see that it’s likely a combination of finding the noteworthy things midst the mundane and a big dose of Murphy’s Law.
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7:00am – Alarm goes off and I drag myself out of bed. (I’m embarrassed to admit I get up so late. Before having kids, and even after Sofia but before Andy, I was regularly up at or before 6am to work out, to get into work early, etc. Now? I simply can’t, nor do I have to. For the time being.)
7:15am – After checking email/facebook /whatsapp I get into the shower. I don’t typically shower in the mornings, unless I’ve gone for a run, but this evening is Andy’s first baby swim class and I’m, ahem, not pool-ready.
7:30am – Out of the shower and I can hear Stan in the kitchen making his coffee. I get half-dressed – waist down plus a bra – as I’m wearing a long tunic today and still need to nurse Andy.
7:35am – I start to blow dry my hair. Stan is doing his hair too and we’re fighting for mirror space in our tiny bathroom (the bigger of the two!). We hear Sofia open her bedroom door, but she doesn’t appear… After a minute or two Stan goes down to Sofia’s room and is met with, “Noooo!!! Waahhh!! No!! Mommy! Mommy!!! Mommmyyyyy!!!!” So it’s going to be one of those mornings, is it? I turn off the hairdryer and manage to coax Sofia out of her room. She is exhausted still (bedtime last night was a struggle) and just wants to be held for a couple minutes. I acquiesce.
7:45am – Stan has managed to get Sofia to join him in our bedroom to get dressed for the day, and I’ve finished my hair and makeup. (Ha! Sounds like I get all dolled up. Concealer and mascara are my only must-haves.) I go into Andy’s room to get him up. He’s asleep but wakes when I open the door and pull up the blinds. In stark contrast to big sis he is all smiles and giggles as I get him out of the crib and settle into the rocker to nurse.
7:50am – Sofia, now dressed and drinking a yogurt smoothie, comes into Andy’s room to give him a kiss and dance around. It’s adorable, but Andy is easily distracted, so I ask her if she can go pick out her hair bands so I can do her hair in a minute. She gets sidetracked from that task, however, and ends up sitting down with a book. I’ll take it. Happily.
You’re interrupting my reading.
7:55am – Andy is finished nursing so I hand him off to Stan to get dressed. Andy is in that crocodile phase where he just rolls and rolls when you try to change his diaper or get him dressed. It’s awesomely fun. Not.
A crocodile? Who? Me?
In the meantime I take Sofia into the bathroom to get teeth brushed and hair done. If she had it her way she’d never get her hair brushed, let alone lassoed into a “do” of any sort, but, as is apparent in the book picture above, her bedhead is legendary. After a bit of work she agrees to let me do “two braids like Ana.” I snap a quick couple of pictures, the first with a smile, the second with her REAL feelings.
8:07am – I’ve collected all (spoiler alert: NOT all) my things for the day, everyone has coats on, and we’re out the door.
Tiny Elevator
Sofia fusses that she wants ME to take her to school, but it’s merely a habit-complaint at this point. On the corner, I give my three loves their kisses goodbye. They head north towards the bus and I head south towards the train.
My commute takes me past the two fanciest streets in Madrid.
8:25am – I reach the commuter rail station and realize that the train I THOUGHT passed at 8:28 actually passes at 8:23. Oops. Good thing I’m in no huge hurry. The next train for me is at 8:39, so five other trains pass in the meantime. I people watch, and I text Stan, reminding him to take a picture on the bus.
8:45am – FINALLY my train arrives. There’s an open seat! I play THREES.
9:05am – I get off at my stop and head towards work. Parking near my office is in very short supply so people park everywhere. I know I’d do the same if I commuted by car, but I don’t, so the cars blocking the sidewalk annoy me to no end. I weave around them, grateful we still can manage to be a car-free family.
920am – After grabbing a coffee and porra at my office cafeteria, I finally reach my desk.
It was the longest commute ever (typically it’s around 55 minutes, today was 75!), but my office hours are flexible and I’m fine as long as I’m at work before 9:30. I discover my overnight oats-in-a-jar have leaked. Luckily all my day’s food was in a separate bag, so my purse is spared, but my clementines smell delightfully like cinnamon.
9:30am – I log on to my computer to get the day going and am greeted with an email with the subject line, “Change of Plans.” Not good.
10:15am – I hear from Stan that a photo of their morning proved impossible. “Drama on the bus. Sofia fell in a puddle of puke at the bus stop.” Um. What?!?! “She was playing jump-the-puddle, and the puddle won.” Awesome. Around now I suddenly realize that I have forgotten a second bottle for my double pump. I use two to pump but then consolidate and take just one bottle home, leaving one behind. So I’m one short. F-bombs.
12:50am – I take a call from daycare (I’d left a note for the director to call me) and we discuss Andy’s recent move to the toddler room. I had been feeling quite lukewarm about them lately but the conversation was great and I feel relieved and reassured that Andy is in good, caring hands. Since I’m thinking about it, I take a quick peek at the daycare website and am rewarded with new pictures; it’s always nice just to see my guy.
1:30pm – “Break” time. I grab my pump, stop by the break room to get a plastic cup to fill in for the missing bottle (planning to just pump one side at a time and use the cup to collect any leaks from the non-pumping side), buy a quick lunch from the cafeteria, and head to the handicapped bathroom.
I settle in to my bathroom floor picnic and get out my pumping supplies. HORROR. I am missing BOTH bottles. What. The. Fuck. Normally I have an extra bottle in my pump bag, or at the very least a storage bag, but because I am sooo close to being finished pumping (9 more days!) I don’t have any of that. I am already stripped to my waist, hands-free bra on, lunch spread out. I don’t know what to do. Channeling MacGyver I somehow I rig the plastic (flimsy as hell) cup to the bottom of my pump flange using my hairband and a random plastic toy loop. It works. I guess. I have to pump bent over and holding onto the cup. Of course once I finish both sides I still have to figure out what to do with the pumped milk… so I buy a bottled water, empty it out and use that. Not my best pumping day by a long shot, but I suppose I am glad to just have gotten something.
2:50pm – I leave work for the day. Normally I commute by train or bus back down to my neighborhood, but the milk/pump situation has thrown me and I just want to get the milk into the freezer, so a taxi it is.
3:05pm – I’m home and the milk is safely in the freezer. I have 45 minutes until Sofia gets out of school and I need to run by the sporting goods store to grab a swim cap for myself, but I should have enough time to prep a bit of dinner. I have all the ingredients for this crockpot dish so that’s what I go with.
3:20pm – Dinner is working and I’m out the door. It’s a gorgeous, sunny afternoon and I wish I could just lie on a blanket in the park and read.
3:45pm – After spending way too long choosing a swim cap I have to rush to Sofia’s school. Of course I’m still there before they’ve started releasing the 3 year-olds (a clear example of Spanish time). When Sofia does come out she’s frowning, and when she sees me she almost immediately bursts into tears. I don’t know what on earth is wrong, but I pick her up and carry her across the street to the park. As we sit down on a bench near the playground Sofia tells me that her ear hurts. A number of her classmates join us and Sofia perks up a bit to play with them, but she often returns to my lap, crying and complaining about her ear.
In between those visits I chat with the other moms and soak up the sun. It’s actually quite nice, until…
4:30pm – I ask Sofia if she wants to eat her snack and she agrees, but when she sees that it’s on the bread she only likes (instead of LOVES) she throws the sandwich on the ground. I’m actually stunned as this simply isn’t like her (she’s totally a handful and challenging in tons of ways but never like this). Not much later I decide it’s time to get going. She clearly isn’t feeling well and isn’t enjoying the park today. We say our goodbyes and head towards Andy’s daycare.
4:45pm – We pick up Andy and everyone at daycare asks Sofia why she’s crying (still). I make the executive decision to take a cab home instead of the normally-20-minute-but-surely-with-this-mood-30-minute walk. We pile into the taxi, Andy is fussing, I’m ready to be HOME, and Sofia suddenly launches into a monologue about not getting chosen to draw the peace dove in class today. Ah ha! Her grumpy mood makes sense! We talk about it for a minute and she seems happier, but then complains again about her ear.
5:00pm – We’re home. Sofia is in tears again so I get her some ibuprofen for her apparent ear pain. She asks if she can watch Frozen and I agree. I change Andy’s diaper and put him into his sleep sack; we nurse in his room and I put him down for a quick nap.
5:10pm – Andy is asleep almost immediately. (He never naps in the afternoons anymore, but I wanted to give it a shot today in light of our swim class in a couple hours.) I come out to the living room where Sofia is immersed in her movie.
She looks up and says, “Mommy! My ear doesn’t hurt anymore.” I have to force myself not to roll my eyes. Elsa is more powerful than any drug. She also asks for a snack so I grab a couple oranges and sit with her for a few minutes.
5:30pm – I piddle around the kitchen, checking dinner, prepping some broccoli, etc.
5:45pm – Andy is awake. I’m glad that his body apparently did just need a quick little power nap and didn’t think it was night-time or something. I get him up and he plays around in the bedroom while I get stuff together for our swim class.
Sofia comes in and asks for “her song,” so I turn on Avicii’s “Hey Brother” and we all dance. I manage to get myself changed for the class and Andy as dressed as possible (no swim diaper obviously).
6:05pm – Stan is home. He wasn’t sure what time I had to leave so he came home with plenty of time. Sweet man. With his help I finish packing and we discuss pending dinner prep; he expresses concern about cooking the rice (!!).
6:25pm – Andy and I head out to our first baby swim class. It’s only a few blocks away and at the same place Sofia has her swim class on Tuesday afternoons, so we know and like them.
6:45pm – Swim class. Andy is unsure at first. He loves the water but is, perhaps, a little cold. He clings to me early on but then relaxes and seems to enjoy everything except lying on his back. He even rocks two “submersions.”
7:15pm – Swim class is over. The showers that were “cold” before class (to acclimate us) are now blissfully warm. I know it’s just the flip of a valve but this detail surprises and impresses me. Back in the locker rooms I get Andy changed into his PJs and he plays around with the lockers while I change as well.
Yep, you bet I’m going to pinch my fingers and bump my head on all these doors.
7:45pm – After stopping at the grocery store for a couple last-minute dinner things, Andy and I are home.
On our way back I texted Stan to heat up some veggie soup for Andy. It’s past his normal bedtime but the nap seems to be carrying him through okay. He’s definitely tired, though, so it’s dinner and bed for our boy (Sofia ate dinner while we were at class).
8:00pm – Andy is finished with his soup so I take him and we nurse. Our morning and evening nursing sessions are the best as we both just kind of sink into the moment of calm. In the morning he starts out quietly squeezing my fingers and gradually becomes more active, poking me in the face and pulling on my hair. At night it’s the opposite – he wriggles and plays at first but then relaxes and just holds my hand.
8:10pm – We’re finished so Stan takes over the rest of bedtime – sleep sack and then songs in the dark of his room. Andy goes to sleep without even a token whine. I’ve come out to the living room where Sofia is watching some TV.
I swear, this was a second before I said, “Sofia, you’re too close.” I swear.
We talk about dinner and she tells me that she and Daddy had a dance party while we were gone. I tell her about Andy’s class. She asks if Andy, like she, will be able to swim all by himself in Abuelos’ pool this summer and she seems relieved when I tell her that he is still too little.
8:15pm – Bedtime for Sofia. PJs on and to the bathroom we go. A while back I bought her a little hourglass to encourage proper tooth-brushing (you can see it stuck on the mirror in the morning braid pictures). Sofia loves it – PINK SAND!! – but insists on trying to do all her bathroom things before the sand runs out. Sometimes I fight her on that. Not tonight. We head to Sofia’s room for stories and songs. We rotate storybooks but her favorites are Pete the Cat and I’m the Big Sister. After stories it’s song time and again she has her favorites – “Stewball” must be sung every night, the rest come and go. Lately she wants to sing “The Wheels on the Bus” and make her baby doll do the motions.
8:35pm – After stories, songs, and multiple drinks of water, Sofia is, if not asleep (she’s not), at least quietly in bed. I head to the kitchen to finish up dinner. Stan comes to help after watching someone from some team playing for some championship somewhere kick a penalty shot. (Or so I thought – turns out it was Spain playing HANDBALL! Men.)
8:50pm – Dinner is served. It’s the second time I’ve made this Thai pork and this time it’s better. I cooked the meat MUCH LESS and it makes a huge difference.
9:00pm – We’re finished with dinner and Stan cleans up. I’ve been making a concerted effort to cook more lately and he is always happy to clean up after. He packs up the rice (which came out quite well even if he made enough for an army) and other leftovers. While Andy and I were at swim class Stan prepped clothes, washed my pump parts etc., so we’re ready for tomorrow. It’s something I would never do – set out clothes for the next morning – but I love that he does it.
9:10pm – Time to relax. Stan flips around between some soccer team playing in some tournament and our standby evening reality TV (Pawn Stars and Storage Wars). At the grocery store I picked up a mint cream filled chocolate bar and we enjoy some. It’s divine.
I check facebook and email. My expat moms’ whatsapp group is always really active around this time so I check that too (there are around 20 of us on the chat – it’s awesome). We chat about babies biting, fever policies at daycare and baby sign language. I occasionally mention something of interest to Stan. He occasionally shouts “Gol!!!”
10:00pm – Modern Family is on so I say goodnight to my girlfriends and actually do just one thing at once.
10:25pm – Bedtime. Stan and I talk a little bit as we settle in for the night. I tell him about the peace dove thing with Sofia and he tells me more about their dance party. I fill him in on an HR thing at my work. He listens to the news on the radio. I play a game of THREES.
11:00pm (or there about) – Asleep. Hopefully/probably until morning. Andy has only been sleeping through the night for a couple weeks and still isn’t 100% (he occasionally wakes and fusses for a few minutes but doesn’t require anything from us). Perhaps half the time Sofia wakes up at least once to pee. But it turns out that tonight they’re both exhausted, and we all sleep through until morning.