5am A CD of my favorite music comes on to gently “wake” me out of my slumber.
5:20am My alarm goes off and I manage to hit snooze without waking.
5:35am The alarm on the far side of the room goes off and I set about looking for my gym clothes.
5:50am Out the door.
6:05am Arrive at the gym and begin my workout.
6:40am Back in the car, I’m headed home; who turned the heat on? It’s hot!
6:55am I slip in the back door, hoping not to wake any of my three kids. They’re usually up by 7.
7am The shower is on and I wake my husband. My younger son, Zade, appears in the bedroom wearing wet jammies. I get him undressed and let him rinse off with me.
7:10am My husband is up and takes Zade to get him dry and dressed as our older son, Ian, walks in. He announces that he turned off the computer but he didn’t scoop the cat box for us, a habit we’ve been trying to break.
7:20am I’m out of the shower and my husband, Shiloh, starts the boys’ breathing treatments. With two nebulizers it goes quickly but loudly. The baby starts crying so he gets Sophie up and dressed while I make breakfast and lunches.
7:45am The boys are eating, Sophie is dressed, and lunches are packed. I sit down for a bowl of cereal even though my hair is still in a towel on top of my head.
8am Ian and Zade have scarfed down their pancakes and fruit and now want cereal; my mom calls. I make three phone calls and serve round two of breakfast.
8:12am Shiloh takes the boys upstairs to brush teeth while I dry my hair and put on some make up. Sophie plays in the dining room with someone’s shoes.
8:35am Everyone is ready to go (finally!) and we head off to school as Shiloh leaves for work.
8:50am I manage to snag a front-row parking spot and begin to unload everyone and their belongings.
8:57am Sign-in the boys and chat with their teacher about the upcoming class party.
9:05am I strap Sophie into her car seat and stop by the grocery store for a few things.
9:40am We’re back in the car and Sophie is singing to me. As we pull into our drive way she goes quiet. I unload the groceries and see that she’s fallen asleep. I manage to get her out of the car and upstairs without waking her. Score!!
9:45am Put away the groceries, start a load of laundry, make a cup of tea, and check emails.
11am Sophie is awake and looking for lunch.
11:25am Shiloh calls and we manage to chat for a bit, phone under my ear, feeding Sophie, warding off the cat, before she dumps the bowl of beef/green beans/banana berries into my lap.
11:50am Lunch is done and Sophie chases said cat around the living room.
12pm Put another load of laundry into wash, make 15,000 trips upstairs to deliver clean clothes, and make my lunch.
12:52pm Sophie shows sleepy signs so she goes down for a quick nap and I surf the Internet.
1:45pm Wake the baby (argh!) to go pick up the boys from school and run a few errands.
2:25pm Arrive home, unpack backpacks, put in a Caillou DVD for the boys, and make Sophie a bottle.
4pm Make the boys a snack and clean up the kitchen.
5pm Put Sophie down for another nap and begin dinner. Shiloh is able to come home for dinner tonight before his class.
5:50pm The babysitter arrives just as I’m putting the final touches on dinner.
6pm Shiloh leaves for school and I begin to run down tonight’s routine with Miss Kirby in front of the children so that everyone knows what I really said.
6:20pm I make Sophie’s dinner and leave for work. I have a non-traditional schedule, which can be nice, as it doesn’t require regular childcare but occasionally causes conflicts with my husband’s school schedule. Thank goodness for a favorite sitter.
8:55pm It was a slow night so I was able to leave early. The baby has fallen asleep in Miss Kirby’s arms and she is afraid to move her. I hear noises from the boys’ room and I go upstairs to investigate.
9:02pm Ian is tucked back in, Sophie is still asleep in my arms — despite the rocky transfer, and Miss Kirby is paid and out the door. I place Sophie in bed and see that Ian is still up.
9:45pm Shiloh comes home and finds me asleep in the upstairs chair with an awake-Ian in my lap. He puts Ian back in bed.
9:47pm I fall asleep on the sofa while receiving a back rub.
10:30pm Shiloh sends me to bed and gives Sophie her final bottle.
10:42pm I’m aware of voices on the boys’ monitor. I hear Shiloh coughing and decide that he is taking care of whatever it is. No one wakes in the middle of the night so I sleep the entire night through. Yay!
