I always enjoy “A Day in the Life” posts from other bloggers to get a peek into their daily lives (AKA I’m nosy), but before Amelia came along my days were a string of “wake up, eat, work, eat, sleep” on repeat. Like most Nine-to-Fivers, I was too tired to do much at night and had to fit in chores, errands, and creativity into the weekend hours. Now that I’m at home full time, my days follow a loose pattern but each one is different.

Amelia actually had a full eight hours of sleep last Friday, so I took that as a good omen to start tracking the day. If you’ve ever wondered what a SAHM does all day, here’s a peek at life with a 3-month-old. With lots of baby photos, of course!

A Day in the Life

5:40 AM. Amelia wakes up (after 8 hours of sleep, woohoo!) and nurses for 25 minutes. We all go back to sleep.

7:30 AM. Sam’s alarm goes off and he takes a shower. The goal is for both of us to shower before he leaves for work, so sometimes I take a shower before he gets up, but if baby is sleeping then I try to do the same.

8:00 AM. Amelia stirs a bit, so I nurse her for 15 minutes and she goes back to sleep again. I’m up and check emails from bed.

8:15 – 8:30 AM. I take a shower and get dressed while Sam changes Amelia and gets ready for work. My standard uniform is leggings, nursing tank, and plaid button up; today is no exception! Sam is out the door at 8:30, as Amelia starts to wake up for good.

8:30 – 9:10 AM. We start the day with a change of clothes; off with the nightgown and sleep sack, and into a footie onesie. Amelia loves wiggling around on the changing table and talks the whole time. She wants to get those hands in her mouth, but we keep them covered during the night so she doesn’t scratch her face.

Then Amelia goes in the carrier while I make breakfast.

She loves the “cooking channel” every morning: two eggs sunny-side up, one mini bagel, and hot tea. Since we had a good night’s sleep I choose decaf Chai.

Sometimes Amelia gets fussy in the carrier while I eat, but today she’s calm, so I get to eat with two hands (life is all about small victories these days).

Amelia’s favorite part is cleaning up – she loves watching the water.

 

9:10 – 9:30 AM. Amelia stays in the carrier while I putter around a bit, opening mail, running the dishwasher, starting a load of laundry, and packing my toiletries for our trip to AL in a couple days.

 

9:30-9:45 AM. Amelia is getting fussy and tired, so I nurse her for 15 minutes, but she keeps getting distracted (if she catches my eye, she loves to talk; if she notices the fan, she pulls off to stare in wonder). While she eats, I sip my tea (carefully!) and catch up on Instagram. When she drifts off to sleep I put her in the swing to nap.

9:45 – 10:15 AM. Amelia has other plans. Even though I can tell she’s tired, she fusses in the swing and fights off sleep. I give her 15 minutes while I put in a second load of laundry, but when the crying starts to escalate I pick her up. The problem: a big ole stinky diaper. Fresh bottom coming right up.

 

10:10-10:40 AM. We talk and coo for a bit, and I can tell she’s still sleepy, so we nurse again for about 20 minutes, and then she goes back in the swing.

10:50 AM. Amelia finally gives in to sleep. I update my Ten Year Journal at the dining room table. (side note: This is the 3rd year that I’ve been logging just a couple lines a day in this journal that my mom gave me for Christmas one year. The longer I use it, the more rewarding it is, and so much fun to look back at what I was doing that day in years past.)

11:00 – 11:20 AM. Switch laundry loads, fold clothes, and finish packing my suitcase.

11:20 AM – 12:15 PM. Work on blog posts while A continues napping. I used to write and schedule each week’s posts on the weekend, but now I fit in blogging when I can. Since I’ll be out of town for a week, I’m working a bit ahead of time and scheduling a couple posts for next week. I add pictures to the WIP Wednesday post, finish up a draft of a book review, and start working on this post.

12:15-12:45 PM. I unload the dishes, heat up soup for lunch, and get about 2 pages into a book when Amelia wakes up. (I’m reading The Hypnotist’s Love Story, by Liane Moriarty, to fulfill the “backlist title of a new favorite author” category in the 2017 Reading Challenge.) I let Amelia fuss for a couple minutes but no dice.

It’s hard to get mad when she’s so happy to see me again!

I try to finish my lunch with her in my lap, but that only lasts a few minutes, so I change her diaper and lay her down on the music mat to play. I finish eating and then clean up the lunch dishes.

1:00 – 1:20 PM. Amelia nurses, and I scroll through social media.

1:20 – 2:00 PM. After another diaper change, I put Amelia in the bouncy chair so I can do some chores. She works on a teething ring, and I fold laundry, finish packing Amelia’s suitcase for the trip, and pop the teething ring back into her hands or mouth about fifty times.

 

After another diaper change, I change into workout clothes, and we’re ready for a walk.

2:00-2:45 PM. Amelia goes in the stroller, I load up a podcast (Pop Culture Happy Hour), and we walk 2 miles around the neighborhood. A dozes but wakes up by the time we get back home. I always start to drag around this time of day, so I’m in need of a snack.

 

 

2:45 – 3:00 PM. Read a couple books to A (Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin and Night-Night, Forest Friends by Amy Bach) until she’s ready to nurse again.

3:00 – 3:15 PM. Nurse, then back to the swing for another nap.

3:25 PM. Amelia is out, and I make myself a second cup of tea (yes to caffeine this time) and eat a cookie (since I’m being honest, it was 2 cookies… OK, 3.)

3:30 – 4:15 PM. I finish packing, clean up the kitchen island (it collects clutter like nobody’s business), get the mail, and catch up on email.

4:15 – 4:30 PM. Chat with Mom on the phone. We try to fit in FaceTime a few times a week, depending on Amelia’s cooperation, but today we just do a phone call. Lots of last-minute catching up to do before they drive up the next day.

4:30 – 5:30 PM. I feed the cats, then have a few minutes to cross stitch a bit and listen to an audiobook (and drink a third cup of tea). Amelia naps.

5:30 – 6:00 PM. After another diaper change, Amelia nurses. I read an eBook on my Kindle app (The Likeness by Tana French).

6:15 PM. Sam is home!

6:20 – 6:45 PM. Family play time: cooing, tummy time, a couple books, and lots of cuddles. Normally I would fix something for dinner around this time but we decide to go out for a treat.

6:45 – 7:00 PM. Sam changes A’s diaper and I change into real pants and shoes.

7:00 – 8:00 PM. We bundle up and head out to McAllister’s. These days the pay-at-the-front kind of restaurants are our best bets, so we can make a quick exit if necessary. Amelia is content with her crinkly book, though, so we enjoy our meal in peace!

8:00 – 8:30 PM. Back at home, Amelia is hungry again. After another diaper change, it’s bath time!

8:30 – 9:00 PM. Amelia loves her bath, especially sucking on a wash cloth. Whatever floats your boat, kid!

After her bath, she gets a new diaper and a lotion massage before changing into her nightgown.

9:00 PM. Lights out! I’m exhausted by this point too, so I go to bed at the same time. Sleeping through the night is still hit or miss, so I get any sleep I can.

…

Writing this post and tracking my day was actually super helpful. This was a pretty typical day at home, but Amelia’s nap schedule is still pretty flexible, so I never know if I’ll be able to get anything on the To Do list done… and some days it’s 8 PM and I wonder “What did I DO all day?” Now I know 🙂