As promised in my post looking back on maternity leave…I’m gonna let you in on a day in my life as a working mom. (Lucky you, I know. This might be really boring for most of you, but hopefully interesting at least for new moms or moms-to-be. I think it’s interesting to see other mom’s and babies schedules so hopefully some of you feel the same.)
Currently I work in the office 3 days a week and at home 2 days. Obviously, my schedule is different on the days where I am home and the days where I go to work. Friday’s are
a little different too because I get to work a little later and leave later…add in a 5:30am client and feeding CJ before work on those days.
Wednesdays I don’t workout so I sleep in until 6:15 or 6:30am. Yes, that’s sleeping in.
As I was writing this I got an email from one of my good friends. She lives close by and we always wonder why it’s so hard to get together more than we do! Here’s part of her email….
I tell you – we are just so freaking busy …I thought to myself how would this all work with a baby? …With a new job and literally having plans every weekend until November I get a bit worked up about the regular day-to-day stuff like cleaning bathrooms, laundry, banking and going to the gym! I don’t know how your surviving with little CJ on top of the day-to-day. I guess/hope that when you’re a mom you just have more energy or something! (haha please tell me its true!!)
Mom’s out there…do you have more energy as a mom? I sure don’t, but my whole attitude has changed and there are so many essential things that I just do without thinking twice (taking care of my baby, making bottles, changing diapers, doing laundry…). I have no choice but to let some ‘optional’ and less important things slip, like cleaning bathrooms, making home cooked dinners and vaccuuming. I also have to say no to more social events, etc.
That said, I love my life. I love my little family. I’m more than okay with saying no to most of the invites that require us to stay out too late since we have to take care of CJ. I’m slowly getting more okay with my bathrooms being a little dirty sometimes. (I’ll never be fully okay with that one, but would you rather clean bathrooms or hang out with this munchkin?)
A Day In the Life of a Working Mommy:
5:00am – wake up and pump (CJ still sleeping)
5:30am – workout
6:30am – make a shake and coffee and put my 1600 bags into the car (work bag, pump, purse, daycare bag…)
6:40am – shower and get dressed as quickly as possible
7:10am – wake CJ up, get him dressed and in his carseat
7:20am – leave for daycare
7:35am – leave daycare for work
8:15am – work
1:00pm – eat lunch
1:30pm – pump
4:15pm – leave to pick up CJ
4:45pm – arrive at daycare (best feeling ever is seeing your kid when you miss him so much all day!)
5:00pm – play or take a walk
5:45pm – feed him and make dinner
6:30pm – eat dinner
6:50pm – couch time, snuggle time, play time
8:00pm – fold laundry, unload dishwasher, make bottles, pick up house
8:30pm – pump (daddy usually gives CJ his bath at this time)
8:45pm – feed CJ
9:10pm – crash into bed (going to try to change this as I need some more time with hubby)
So as you can see…it’s a pretty full day. The days I am home are just as full…more full really since I am balancing feeding/changing/playing with working. It’s hard to believe, but I usually get more done when I’m working at home because I don’t waste time in the car, going to daycare, tuning out a million conversations going on around me and running to meetings. One hard part about working from home (and I’ve always found this) is turning things off at the end of the day. Everything kind of blends together.
Either way though, the balancing act of being a mom and working full time is not easy. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise or make you feel guilty for not being able to manage it all. I have breakdowns literally almost every single day some weeks and I find myself struggling with a bit of guilt. When I’m working I feel like I should be with my son. When I’m with my son I feel like I should be working.
I sure hope it gets easier, but I have a feeling life from here on out is just going to be an all new kind of busy and I just have to deal with it. And you know what, it’s okay. Like I said above, I love my life, no matter how crazy it is right now. Do I love the way I feel completely exhausted some days? No. But I’m working on that and hoping that my body adjusts to the new, busier lifestyle that comes with being a mom and still working.
Oh, maternity leave. I miss you.
You? You’re like Super Mom. I have no idea how you manage to stay awake with every day being SO FULL. I’m in awe…and at the same time, I feel blessed that I will not have to balance a full time job and a baby. I seriously don’t know if I could manage! Gold star for you…lots of them, actually.
HA…I don’t know about that. I definitely do not feel like Super Mom, especially on the days where I’m running on fumes. But you’ll see…you just do what you gotta do. That’s definitely awesome that you won’t have to balance a full time job and a baby. Count your blessings. 🙂 🙂
Superwoman! 🙂 Have a great weekend!!
Hope you have a great weekend as well. 🙂
I love that you’re still able to fit in working out by doing it in the morning. You are superwoman 🙂 Now, imagine having 2 or 3 or 4 kids?! 🙂 All you moms are amazing!
Okay girly…let’s not get ahead of ourselves!!! 🙂
Yay for this post! Life is crazy now! My day is similar, except for more pumping! Do you have a dog or any pets? Sounds silly, but fitting pet time in is difficult too! My Bjorn comes in very handy!
I haven’t been able to fit the gym in very well; so technically I’m just donating to the YMCA at this point 😛 … But thank goodness Clara does well in a jogger!
And Amen to the shout out to the bag ladies! I look like a crazy person. All of my bags are black in an attempt to minimize the “I’m moving into my office” look.
I don’t know how you’re squeezing in so much pumping! Good for you. 🙂
Donating to the YMCA…ha! Once you cut back on pumping you’ll probably feel like you have a lot more time and can make it a better part of your routine. CJ loves being in the stroller too most of the time! Jogging w/ a stroller is no joke…I don’t do it much, but have a few times.
No pets…I knew I couldn’t handle having pets and babies. LOL 🙂
oh this is exactly my life! i’m down to pumping once a day now…which is AWESOME, but takes about 30 mins and I squeeze it in somewhere in between crazy conference calls.
and I have a gym at work, so I drop the kids off (4.5 years old and 8 months old) at 730, then race to gym, and workout/shower at work, then run to office at 9 for my day of meetings.
and my evenings are nonstop bottle washing, bag repacking, laundry folding, and sorting of things. I have basically given up on the social activities for a while, but I prioritize everyone getting enough sleep and getting my workouts. that way- I’m way less grumpy.
you’re doing a great job!
That’s great that you have a gym at work and squeeze it in before work. That’s the only way I can get it done is to do it before the start of the craziness! 🙂
When you cut back to pumping only once did you get more milk during that one time??
Sounds like we are prioritizing very similar things. 🙂
Thanks for sharing your experiences and leading the way for future moms…I’m sure this will be helpful to me someday! =) Love you
Love you too. 🙂
Loved reading your schedule and routine. I don’t know how you do it, but you’re right that you just have to get it done and figure out priorities – even if it means giving up some smaller details. Funnily enough, I had a post planned for tomorrow sometime related to somethign similar to that. 🙂
Oh yah! Looking forward to reading your post (as always). 🙂