Will Jaegar is a full-time stay-at-home dad and part-time college student. He lives in Denton with his wife Stephanie and their two children: Thomas, 2, and Frankie, 6 months.
5:25AM Our 6-month-old son wakes up. I zombie walk to his room and get him out of his crib when I realize he slept through the night for the first time. I celebrate our good fortune by handing him off to my sleepy wife to nurse him and go back to sleep.
6:08AM Sleepy wife hands him back to me.
6:40AM Our 2-going-on-10-year-old son wakes up. While my wife tends to him, I set our youngest down on his activity mat and scramble to make myself breakfast before our oldest finds his way to the kitchen to steal half of my food. I love my kids, but I'm not a fan of sharing my meals.
7:10AM Two-year-old enters the kitchen just as I finish my waffles and bacon, so I win. I happily prepare a waffle for him.
7:20AM As 2-year-old eats and 6-month-old plays, I fold some laundry that I started two days ago. Mommy is getting ready for work.
7:32AM Our oldest has finished breakfast and we sit down in the living room with the baby to read some books.
8AM Two-year-old is working a puzzle while I get a quick breakfast ready for Mommy to take to work. Baby is nursing one more time before Mommy leaves.
8:30AM Mommy and 2-year-old are piling into the car to go to daycare and then work, while baby is in his ExerSaucer watching me put away that laundry that's been waiting around so long.
9AM Baby gets a little fussy and I can tell he wants a nap. I get him down and put away some more laundry. Laundry around here is eternal, unending.
9:05AM I make the bed. It may seem like a small thing, but my goal is to make the bed every single day. Sometimes, it's the only thing I can get done around the house, but somehow it makes me feel like I got something done.
9:30AM I sneak to the garage to get in a quick workout while baby is still napping.
9:35AM I forgot our contractor is coming by with a couple of subcontractors to look at our garage. We're converting it to an air-conditioned space, a playroom to be exact. It's only slightly awkward to be doing chin-ups while they’re discussing measurements and materials just a few feet away.
9:59AM Baby wakes.
10AM Contractor is gone; bottle time for baby boy.
10:15AM Post-bottle, baby boy and I put away even more laundry.
10:30AM I sneak another meal. Hunger around here also seems to be constant, unending.
11AM After a little bit of play, we put on jackets and go for a walk. Our neighborhood is generally nice and quiet, and it's a beautiful day. One of my favorite things to do with the boys is go to the park or the pond (to feed ducks) or just take a stroll. Unfortunately, baby doesn't share my enthusiasm and we cut our walk a little bit short.
12:05PM Mommy comes home with our 2-year-old. Baby gets to nurse while I get to play drums in the garage with big boy.
12:15PM Two-year-old gets lunch while Mommy and I talk garage renovation. Baby supervises.
12:30PM Baby goes down for nap No. 2 and big boy uses the potty.
12:39PM Big boy down for a nap. Time for Daddy's second workout of the day.
2PM Everyone still asleep. Daddy's done working out; now time to sneak a tuna sandwich and glass of milk. Oh, the little things in life.
3:20PM Two-year-old is up.
3:30PM Baby is up now, too. We are very fortunate to have such good nappers. They nap and I get to put my feet up. It's a win for everybody.
3:45PM Bottle time for baby; snack time for big boy. Still relishing the tuna sandwich from earlier. I’m barely even tempted to sneak a bite of my 2-year-old's cereal.
4PM I announce that we're going to the park.
4:48PM We're finally on our way to the park. Wow, getting ready to go places with little ones takes a lot of time and preparation — also a lot of patience and bribes.
5PM We stroll into the park to play. Baby supervises from the stroller while 2-year-old chases a basketball around. I only take six or seven pictures.
5:30PM We load up and head home, because Daddy needs to start getting supper ready soon.
5:45PM Big boy is watching Curious George, baby is back in the ExerSaucer exersaucing and Daddy is making sweet potatoes and buffalo burgers.
6PM Mommy's home. TV goes off and we visit a bit before we eat.
6:15PM Suppertime. We almost make it through a meal together before baby needs to nurse.
7PM Bath time, pajama time, story time and then bedtime. Baby boy goes down without a fight and 2-year-old follows suit. Daddy counts his blessings and makes some tea.
8PM Just about time for bed for me. I visit with Mommy for a bit and then crash. We get to do it all over again tomorrow.
Diaries are penned by moms (and dads) in the North Texas area. The authors volunteer to share a day of their choosing and are not paid or endorsed by NorthTexasChild. Send your diary to editorial@dfwchild.com. All submissions are subject to editing and may be cut for space.
Published June 2014
