SAHMs, what does your day look like?

[pugz]

Today is day #1 at home with Gretchen now that dh has gone back to work. I'm not going back to work until November, and even then it'll just be a max of 2 days a week, if even that.

Curious what your day looks like, obv. it varies based on the age of your kid/kids but I'm curious how you structure your day.

my days are pretty consumed by feeding and pumping right now but eventually she'll wake up, chunk up, and we'll be able to do more than just that

[thatgirl2478]

My situation is a bit different than a true SAHM since I work at home - but lately DD needs more attention so I've been rearranging my work hours to take care of her as needed (I work early/late and during her naps). Pretty much the morning hours are reserved for at home chores & at home play. The afternoons post nap are out of the house errands (store, post office, etc) and if we have time we go to the park or the pool.

[Deleted]

Yeah, in the early days, it involved lying on the couch and nursing the baby, napping a lot, and generally being as lazy as possible.

Once I had recovered and he wasn't constantly eating, I tried to have somewhere to go every day. Monday was a church mom's group, Tuesday was BFing Cafe, Wed I lined up a volunteer gig (visiting a refugee family, she had a baby too), and then Thursday and Friday I'd try to find another mom to have lunch with or visit.

Then in the afternoon, I'd try to do a smidge of housework and figure out something to cook for supper. Some days I did lots of housework and cooked good food. Sometimes, not so much.

[sewpinkgal]

You're still in early days - napping and nursing and just generally resting are good things!

I, too, try to get out of the house every day. Tuesdays we visit the ILs, Thursdays used to be nursing group, though now we go to library storytime, Fridays are swim lessons. Monday and Wednesday are open days and I decide what the activity will be based on how tired I am from the rest of the week. LOL I like having a schedule, but also having it be loose enough that if I need to change things up, it's okay to do so.

[satama]

Yeah, it varies a lot based on the age of the kid. With DS1 I just fed him and myself, and tried to take a shower everyday. I would watch Tv and just hang out and talk to him. As he got older I started going out more, library, mall, family puppet shows and such put on at the malls., lunch with friends, park, zoo. We havent done any structured classes at this point, but plan to swim lessons in the fall and will start sports when he turn 3 (they do a little kids sports overview type class at the Y, or we may try soccer)

Anyway, we get up, dressed, eat, maybe throw a Tv show in there, then go outside to play or do activity out of the house, then we may meet friends or come home for lunch. Naptime is at 2, and daddy is usually home when the older one wakes up, so they hang out while I make dinner or we read or play while DH starts dinner.

But again, with a little tiny baby I would just go to target or the mall or have lunch with friends and take him along to what I wanted to do. When he was able to sit up he enjoyed just riding in the cart at target and looking around /being talked to.

[hannamaren]

Until she was about 4months, the most we did was go for a long walk everyday.
Then when she became more interactive, we go to early years centre (city run communty centres with circle time) playdates, splash pads, mall, grocery store, parks, library, etc.
I also joined Meetup and hear about a lot of activities there. Stroller fitness, coffee dates, etc.

We play on the floor together. We sing songs. And lots of laundry.

[Brie]

In a few months you can come visit me on mat leave.

[Deleted]

I have older kids so it's a bit different for us in that their activities and goings-on provide the structure to our days. When I just had the one baby, we did a lot of lounging around the house while I tried to get the bfing thing to work For my own sanity, I had to get out of the house at least once a day even if it was just to run some errands or go for a walk. When DS1 was about five months old, we started doing weekly Gymboree classes and I joined a mom's group that met a few times a month.

It's an unusual time for us right now in that my mom is staying with us for six weeks to help with the new baby. But basically, I try to make sure that the boys get out of the house twice a day, once in the morning for a few hours and once in the afternoon. DS1 goes to summer camp/preschool every morning from 9-12 and DS2 goes 2x a week. I also take DS2 to a Little Gym class one morning a week and he goes to my inlaws' house one morning a week.

DS1 does a Little Gym class 2 afternoons a week and then I or my parents take the boys out together for an activity or a playdate for a few hours on the other days. Today they're at the splash park for example. We have memberships to the local children's museum, zoo, science center, and two indoor play areas so we basically cycle through those places with a weekly trip to the library and the playground thrown in when the weather's nice. When my mom goes home, I'll have to hire a new babysitter to help me juggle the kids in the afternoon.

When we get home from our afternoon outing, I usually let the kids watch a little tv or play in the yard (it's fenced in) or color/ play with their playdough while I throw dinner together. Then we eat and do baths. DH comes home around 6:30 and takes over for a while and then we read a few books and put them to bed.

I will say that I much prefer being at home with older kids than with one tiny baby. It's tiring but sooo much easier and fun. So don't feel too discouraged if you find SAH with an infant to be hard and isolating. I think a lot of people do but it really does get so much better. GL!

[Deleted]

I had a few other SAHM friends so we hung out a lot.
Now that the kids are older, there's a lot of activities, school, and Playdates.

[drloretta]

In the newborn stage I became a total homebody and loved it. I'd wrap her up in the Moby and do stuff around the house (laundry, etc) and then we'd walk around and I'd point stuff out to her. We started a pattern of DD napping on my chest in the afternoons while I watched a movie When I finally ripped off the Bandaid and went out, I'd take her to Target or the grocery store on a pretty regular basis.

We also took walks around the neighborhood when the weather was nice. Sometimes I'd get together with a friend for coffee or lunch. Tiny babies are easy to do that with. Unlike my very active toddler

You may also want to look into a moms group with lots of infants, just for the socialization aspect of it.

[Mrs.Syntax]

My DD is almost 2.5. We get up around 7 a.m., eat breakfast, play and read books, then I let her watch a PBS Kids show for 15-30 minutes while I get myself ready. Then we either head to the gym (which has child care), to the library for story time, or do other errands. I leave the house every morning or else I will go insane.

We eat lunch, she naps from 12:30-2:30 usually, then we do stuff around the house or go outside until it's time to make dinner. Sometimes I'll try to squeeze in an errand or something in the afternoon too.

[bunch]

Find a moms group ASAP! Mine hosts events almost every day. We either attend one of those or run errands most days. Even if G isn't in to whatever they're doing, it's a great way to get out and talk. I am part of a baby playgroup that started when h was very young. It was so nice to have people in the same boat to ask questions to.

[grk2012]

DS is 4...

7am wakeup, play
7:30-8ish, breakfast
run (stroller) a few days a week
shower/get dressed
errands
lunch
tv show
nap
housework for me
playtime
dinner prep
dinner
bath
7:30-8ish, bedtime for him

[doctorsbaby]

Jul 23, 2012 13:57:44 GMT -5 bunch said:

Find a moms group ASAP! Mine hosts events almost every day. We either attend one of those or run errands most days. Even if G isn't in to whatever they're doing, it's a great way to get out and talk. I am part of a baby playgroup that started when h was very young. It was so nice to have people in the same boat to ask questions to.

This...we do activities with my MOMS Club a few times a week. It's a great way to meet other moms in your area. Mine is based in a certain geographical area so almost all of the activities are within 3 miles of my house.

[oukapu]

I didn't find mom's groups to be welcoming to moms on maternity leave.

This is what worked best for me:
- Wake up with H and get ready.
- Hang out with baby. Watch netflix. Nurse.
- Work out at home while she napped.
- More hang out with baby and nurse.
- Take walk. Baby sleep.
- Hang out with baby and nurse.
- Run errands or get out of the house.
- Get ready for dinner.

[DarcyLongfellow]

Join your local Moms Club!!! (www.momsclub.org) Greatest thing ever. Mine has playgroups based on your kids' ages, and I have made lifelong friends with the other moms in DD's playgroup. They also have activities on the calendar almost every day (most are free), so I never lack for activities.

Our schedule is to leave the house every morning (swimming class, play group, Music Together class, the moms club at my church, or just something from the moms club calendar). Then we either eat lunch out or come home in time to eat, then DD naps while I rest and read or watch TV, then decide to madly do some housework before nap time is over. Then we hang around the house -- DD plays while I make dinner. Then DH gets home and we all hang out, eat, etc. until DD's bedtime.

[Deleted]

Jul 23, 2012 20:06:28 GMT -5 oukapu said:

I didn't find mom's groups to be welcoming to moms on maternity leave.

This is what worked best for me:
- Wake up with H and get ready.
- Hang out with baby. Watch netflix. Nurse.
- Work out at home while she napped.
- More hang out with baby and nurse.
- Take walk. Baby sleep.
- Hang out with baby and nurse.
- Run errands or get out of the house.
- Get ready for dinner.

I'd fucking slit my wrists with this schedule.

I'm a "single mom" on Saturdays (sometimes Sun too, boo DHs job) so this is what we usually do:(no set schedule)

-library for songs/books (free)
- long walks at the park/playground/schmooze with other parents
- playdates! We have an outside bar with a playground nearby so we like to meet up there. Lol.
- visit my parents, swim in their pool. This also gives me a break and I can run errands or get a mani/pedi
- DD is older so we do lots of outdoor things like go to the playground, ride her scooter, draw with chalk, etc

When I was on ML, I also joined stroller strides, went to LLL mtgs, and a moms group from meetup.com

[pugz]

Thanks everyone! I looked up moms groups tonight. Lots of choices in my area.