A Snapshot of my Day {20 April 2012}

It is amazing how quickly we forget how our lives have changed - day to day, month to month, year to year.  It is also amazing what other people think we do with our days - however we are 'classified'.  I mean, a stay at home mum drinks coffee all day and has a pretty stress-free existence...doesn't she?!  Well, in my case, NOT!  I thought that having just one child was hard work, well two is a lot harder.  A lot harder than I ever imagined...trying to keep them from injuring each consumes a lot of my day.

I figured that it would be interesting to have an ongoing record of what we did on a particular day (midnight to midnight).  Wouldn't want to bore anyone reading this {wouldn't want to bore myself either for that matter}, so I won't do it too often.  It would be a snapshot.  Obviously, every day is different.  It would be interesting, for me anyhow, to see how our days change as the little flowers get older.  If you are already bored, I apologise.

The first snapshot will be my yesterday {whoops, I got distracted and never posted this!} - Friday, 20 April 2012.  Here goes.....

Midnight Thursday
Sleeping until woken by Chloe.

4am
Chloe awake.  It took 20mins to cuddle and settle her.  Then I slumped back into bed until Ava woke.

6:30am
Ava awake.  I went to fetch her.  She had already de-sleep-nappied herself and was in panties.  She came back to bed with me for cuddles with Flower Daddy and I for 15mins.  I got dressed and we came downstairs.

7am
I dealt with wet laundry in the machine and tumble drier.  Let the dogs out and back in (boy, we really do need to get the cat flap operational again!).  Gave Ava breakfast of porridge.  Made Flower Daddy coffee.  Chloe woke up, I fetched her.

7:30am
Our much appreciated cleaning lady arrived.  She comes once a week and leaves us with a lovely clean house, which stays lovely and clean for all of 5minutes.  Coffee for me, porridge for Chloe - which is a 30minute operation!  Food get's flung everywhere (the wall behind her chair is always plastered in something).  De-clothed Chloe {for the purposes of porridge-smear-furniture-floor-adult & sister clothing-damage-limitation..get the idea?}.  Ava watched Peppa Pig (her current TV obsession) through much of this.

8am
Tidying downstairs and changing Chloe's nappy.  Milk for Chloe.  Washing dishes...this is always a tricky task with Chloe around.  She attaches herself to your leg, standing, so you can't move anywhere.  Hanging laundry...which requires lots of clothing recovery and re-hanging of laundry as Chloe insists on 'helping'.  Sounds funny - but is darn annoying when you are the target of her 'assistance'.

9am
Time for the girls to get dressed.  I managed a loo visit minus the audience (that is a Luxury and a half! and is very much worth recording!).  Chloe is a real wriggler, so getting her dressed is a wrestle.  Getting socks on her feet is especially a very bad joke.  Ava is now at a point where she won't wear anything unless it was her idea.  Yesterday, she didn't want to wear any of the pants on offer, so had an almighty tantrum...and I lost my cool.  Chloe sock drama + Ava pants drama = Mom verging on spontaneous combustion.

9:30am
Out the house to run some errands.  A ride in the car these days involves window negotiation with Ava.  She wants it down, I want it up...it was cold outside!  It also involves snack negotiation and pram negotiation - i.e. keeping her in the pram to make my life easier and her refusing healthy snack bribes to keep her happy.    Not-so-toddler negotiation...what a joke...no such thing.  You often hear 3 going on 13.  Yes, we are pretty much there.

11am
Getting Ava out the car involved bribery, again.  Chloe went straight from the car to her cot for a snooze.  Ava came and helped me hang laundry outside, 'helping' me with the pegs.  She passes me pegs from the peg bag.  It makes hanging take f-o-r-e-v-e-r.  More laundry in the machine.  Ava loo visit.  Much easier taking Ava to the loo when Chloe isn't around.  Of course the little wriggler wants to be in on all the action.  To makes matters worse, the dog food and water live in the loo too - and why wouldn't a baby want to play with dog food and water?!  Anyhow, she was snoozing this time, so that was an easier Ava loo visit.  I let Ava watch a little TV, while I started drawing up a circle skirt pattern for her birthday.  {I want to make a little twirly skirt and maybe a matching t-shirt for her birthday next week...if I ever get around to doing it!}

Midday

Chloe awake and time for lunch of beans on toast.  Post arrived for Ava from Granny - lunch forgotten and sticker contents take precedence!  Loo visit for Ava - this time Chloe is in on the action...so I have to lift the dog food and water out of reach and sight.  Chloe still grabs at Ava's legs and pants and loo seat.  (am I honestly the only person to ever have experienced this high-action loo business!?!?)  Another spontaneous combustion moment for me.  After we are all out the loo and the dogs have their food and water back, Ava and Chloe play with Ava's dolls house which is cute.  I carry on drawing the skirt pattern until Ava starts dragging Chloe around using her bib like a dog collar!  Argh!  I separate them - Ava draws next to me and Chloe carries on playing with the dolls house.

1pm

Ava is outside playing by her swing.  Chloe is pulling clothes off the airer - AGAIN.  She is also rocking the airer in such a way that it might fall over at any moment.  When Ava comes back in, we play and sing a bit - Old MacDonald - with Ava's animals.  Chloe takes them out of the bucket and puts them back in again and again and again.

2pm
We go upstairs to play for a bit.  I have a little dress to sew for our niece and am very eager to get started.  But there are tantrums/pushing/kicking to navigate and distract, so little sewing happens.  For 30mins I try and get Chloe to nap.  I give up and we come downstairs again.

3pm

Ava and I build a tower out of her blocks.  Chloe is so cute trying to help us put blocks on.  She was standing next to me - next thing she stood All By Herself!  Clever Girl!!!!!  She did it again and again and again.

4pm
Spaghetti bolognaise for supper - of course the wall, the dogs and the floor are plastered courtesy of Chloe. Another loo visit for Ava.

5pm
Early into pj's.  No bath tonight.  It is cold, so I light the fire and then worry that Chloe might stand up against it (it is one of those built in ones and is raised off the floor).  We had a short Skype visit with Flower Daddy (Chloe went bouncy NUTS) followed by a short and very noisy Skype visit with Granny.  Milk drink for both the girls.

6pm

I decide that I want to make a chocolate cake to eat with custard after supper.  Not the best idea ever with 2 tired and cranky girls to keep happy at the same time.

7pm
Bedtime for both girls and story time for Ava.  Chloe is restless and it takes some some settling.  It takes me an hour and a half between eating my dinner and getting Chloe settled.  Flower Daddy is out for the evening, so no back up tonight!

8:30pm
Peace at last.  Time for a bit of TV and blanket crochet.

10:30pm
Time to rest my head on a comfy pillow and snuggle down for as much sleep as the girls will allow me.