Rachel Nichelson is a home-school mom and designer for her clothing line, Madeline Wood. She lives in Denton with her husband Eric and their three children: Owen, 9; Claire, 7; and Tate, 2.
5:30AM Tate wakes up crying. I get him and bring him back to our bed. Now back to sleep for a few more hours.
7:30AM I want to get up and run before Tate wakes up but decide not to. I can’t pull myself out of bed.
7:45AM Still thinking about getting up, but lying in bed feels too good.
8:05AM Tate is awake and pulling me out of bed. I get us both some water, and we go to the living room to let him play. I check my email; I have an order from my Etsy shop that I’ll need to work on today.
8:25AM I start making breakfast and get some coffee going. Kids will be up in a little while. Eric is off to meet his bandmate for coffee and then to the studio.
9:04AM Claire comes into the kitchen. Sits next to Tate at the bar, and I give her some water and a plate with eggs and fruit.
9:15AM Owen finally comes into the kitchen.
9:35AM Breakfast is over and the kids go get dressed; I remind them to feed the animals before we start school. Owen goes to feed our two dogs and his fish, and Claire feeds Gracie, our cat.
10:05AM We are all sitting at the kitchen table working on school for the day. Tate is playing with stackable blocks; I’m working on math lessons with Claire and Owen.
12:12PM After finishing most of our schoolwork, we come to a stopping point. I fix lunch. Eric will be home soon, and I need to get him something to eat.
1:15PM Everyone is done with lunch, and the kids get a Popsicle and go out on the front porch for a little dessert and playtime. Eric leaves to go back to the studio.
1:40PM I take Tate back to his room for his afternoon nap. I read a few books: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Goodnight Moon and Five Little Monkeys.
2:05PM Tate is sleeping. I get Owen and Claire started on afternoon reading so I can work on my Etsy order.
3:35PM Tate is up from his nap, and we’re off to see neighborhood friends for a craft play date and maybe some afternoon tea. Almost out the door, and I remember I’m supposed to bring my hot glue gun. Got it. Tate is in his stroller. Claire and Owen have already taken off down the street.
5:05PM On our way home from our craft and play time. Kids on their bikes. I’m telling them that as soon as we get home, they need to get their stuff together for baseball and ballet. We’ll have only 10 minutes before we have to leave.
5:25PM Heading out to the car and just remembered to get our water bottles. Oops – I need to change Tate’s diaper too. I’ll have to do that when we get to Owen’s baseball game.
5:31PM I run Claire inside to ballet practice and tell her I’ll be back before class is over. She’s learning a new dance and wants me to see some of it.
5:42PM We get to the baseball field just in time. I change Tate’s diaper and let him play a little before we head back to get Claire.
6:15PM Walking into ballet practice with Tate – and a couple of Hot Wheels cars to keep him occupied while I watch Claire dance.
6:37PM Back in the car and heading to Owen’s baseball game. Everyone’s getting hungry, and I know his game won’t be over till around 8pm. I decide to go through the drive-through at Schlotzsky’s and grab some sandwiches.
7:15PM At Owen’s game, and he’s playing catcher. Claire sees her friends and runs off. Tate and I sit in the grass to eat and watch Owen.
7:35PM Eric arrives from his church gig where he plays guitar and sits down with us to eat his sandwich. Claire comes back to finish hers.
8:10PM Heading back to the house.
8:22PM I start Tate’s bath water while Owen and Claire decide what game they’re going to play before bed. I tell them to take baths before they play Spin Uno.
8:30PM Tate and I are heading to the kids’ room to read some books and get him in bed. All my kids share a room, so sometimes bedtime doesn’t go that smoothly. But tonight seems OK; Tate is tired.
9:14PM I’m back in the living room with Owen and Claire, who are playing their game. They want me to play, and I tell them I’ll play one round before bed. Well, of course one round turns into two.
9:40PM Owen and Claire are in bed, and I’m bringing them water. I tuck each one in and pray with them.
10:05PM Kids are all finally asleep, and now I can finish cleaning the kitchen from lunch and load the dishwasher. Quickly start a load of laundry.
10:20PM Into my sewing room/studio to finish a dress for an Etsy order and complete some alterations for a customer who is coming by tomorrow.
12:15AM Eric just got home from his studio, and I’m done with my sewing.
12:30AM Finally comfortably in bed! One of my favorite parts of the day. Now to get some sleep before Tate wakes up.
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 September 2013
