Working Mom & Preschooler Daily Routine
Working Mom & Preschooler Daily Routine | Outfit Details
Dress // Sweater // Shoes // Necklace // Necklace // Earrings // Bracelet // Bracelet // Jackie's Dress (old, similar) // Jackie's Leggings // Jackie's Shoes // Jackie's Jacket
Working Mom & Preschooler Daily Routine | Balancing Work & School
I was planning on doing this post once we got into our routine when Jackie had full day school. But things changed so I had to switch everything up. I will be honest, it probably took me longer to get used to the new schedule than Jackie! I was used to having a full day to get work/errands/blogging/house stuff done on my own. All of a sudden, I need to squeeze it all into 5 hours.
I do feel like I have a better handle on every day now. The first week was crazy. I was running around, trying to get everything done, but not thinking about being efficient. Now that I have had some time to settle in, I am trying to be more deliberate about how I spend my time each day, and it seems to be working! I am also sharing an IGTV video today so you can see what our daily routine is like on video!
Working Mom & Preschooler Daily Routine | Mornings
Oh how I miss when I used to get up at 5 am! I was doing that every day this time last year. Oh well. Now I get up around 6, shower, get dressed, do my makeup and eat breakfast. I like to be all ready for the day by 7 am. This usually happens but depending on how the night before went, I can sometimes not be ready until about 8. Any time I have left before I get Jackie up is set aside for scripture study or blogging. I also get Jackie's lunch ready before I get her up.
I get Jackie up at 7:55 am so we have enough time for her to get ready for school. About half the time she wakes up before that so she has lots of time to hang out, eat breakfast and get ready to go. I get her dressed, do her hair and let her hang out & eat until it's time to leave for the bus. Then we put on her socks & shoes and say a prayer.
We head down to the bus stop, which is just outside of our building. We can wait in the lobby and watch the Here Comes The Bus app until the bus is at the end of the street. When it is close, we go outside so Jackie can see the bus and knows where to wait. I then help her on the bus and wave goodbye!
After Jackie gets in the bus, I do one of two things. Some days, I stay home and work from home. I do this if I am going to take Jackie to my parents' house after school. This allows me to already be home when the bus drops her off. I will try and get as much done as possible during this time. I will run errands on these mornings too so I can get stuff done alone. On other days, I will go straight to my parents' house to work for the morning. These days will be if Jackie and I are going to stay home in the afternoon. I usually do this if I need to be in a meeting or work on something with someone else in the office.
Working Mom & Preschooler Daily Routine | Afternoons
I get Jackie from the bus at 1:30. If we are going to my parents' house, I will have all of our stuff in the car already so we can go straight to the car. On those days, we usually go to the house and help Paris with things around the house and play outside. It is much harder to get work done on these days but if I need to I can. I do try to get a lot done in the mornings so I don't feel like I need to get as much done in the afternoons. It's amazing how productive I can be during those mornings!
If I have spent the morning at the office, I like to get home with enough time to take my stuff up to our apartment before I get Jackie off the bus. She and I will spend the afternoon playing and I do get some work done too. Jackie will sometimes nap, but that is becoming less and less common.
Working Mom & Preschooler Daily Routine | Evenings
No matter what we do during the afternoon, we try to by home by 7 pm at the latest. Jackie's bedtime is 8 pm pm so I like to have some time for her to wind down. If we beat The Husband home, or we are already home, I will make dinner while Jackie plays. This allows him to have some time with her when he gets home.
We do her bedtime routine which is reading, brushing her teeth, prayers and snuggling so she is in bed by 8. One of the things we have been struggling with since she stopped drinking out of bottles is making sure she eats enough during the day. Otherwise, she can be up until 10 pm eating. I am trying to carry snacks around more so I can feed her in the car on the way home from work. I also try to keep food out for her whenever she is playing at home.
After Jackie is in bed, I try to get some laundry done, read scripttures if I haven't already, work on blog posts and get ready for bed. The Husband and I then catch up on our favorite TV shows. This is our time together during the week and we try really hard to protect that time. We turn everything off at 10:30 and go to bed. Since Day Light Savings, I have been having a harder time falling asleep before 11 pm but I know it will catch up to me soon!