I want to do an entire blog post talking about life with 2 under 2, since Luca will soon be 2 years old (I cannot believe it!) and I want to remember this challenging but fleeting time in our lives. But for now, I want to share what a typical (ha! typical!) schedule looks like for our family. Of course, every day is very different based on Roma’s naps (how long they last, when they start, etc) and when she nurses (sometimes she goes 4 hours, sometimes she’s hungry around 2.5 hours.) So, take everything with a grain of salt, but I know that many find comfort in seeing what other people’s day-to-days look like who are in the same boat.
But basically, in terms of a loose schedule, I’m following the lead of Taking Cara Babies‘ newborn sleep course, which has been so helpful for us to create somewhat of a routine and just to know when to feed, play, and sleep the baby. The idea is that a baby is awake for 60-90 minutes and feeds on demand, or no less than every 3 hours. That’s our guideline, but of course, it’s totally unpredictable, because it all depends on how long Roma naps at each “nap time.”
our daily weekday ‘schedule’
5:30am: Right now, Roma’s waking up at this time. I put a paci in her mouth and she goes right back to sleep.
6:30am: Luca wakes up and Lu gets up to go get him. He changes his diaper, gives him his vitamin, gets him some water, and usually plays with him in the living room.
6:45/7am: Roma wakes up and I change her diaper and feed her. After her feeding, I pump whichever boob she didn’t nurse on. Roma’s only nursing on one side 90% of the time, due to my oversupply. I pump for a little less than 5 minutes. Then, I come out into the living room and pour that milk into a straw cup for Luca. I usually give Roma to Lu so he can have some 1-on-1 time with her and I play with Luca, prep his breakfast, and tidy up/organize the kitchen for the day.
7:30am: Luca sits down for breakfast and Lu goes and gets ready for work. I play with the kids until our nanny arrives at 8am.
8:00am: Our nanny arrives and at this point, Roma is usually ready for her first nap of the day, so I go and put her down.
8:15-9am: Roma usually takes a super short nap first thing in the morning and during this time, I usually play with Luca a little bit and make my breakfast. He usually eats some of my breakfast, too.
9am: Luca usually leaves for the day with the nanny. He has music, gym, and art classes or they go meet up at the parks with friends. They go to the library, go play by the waterfront, or go to our playroom in our building for playdates. They might have a swim lesson in our pool or just swim around for fun. They love playing by the waterfront so Luca can run around and play with his balls.
9-10am: Roma wakes up around this time and we play for 30 minutes, I feed her, and then we play for another 10 or so minutes before I put her down for her next nap, which is usually a nice, long nap, about 3 hours.
10-10:30am: I make Luca’s lunch.
10:30am-1pm: After I make Luca’s lunch, during this time, Roma’s napping, so I’m either out of the house (making the most of her nap time!) or I’m at home. If I’m at home, I’ll do some work or household chores (laundry, cleaning, etc.) or if I’m lucky, watch some Netflix, but I’m usually too antsy and feel this need to be productive. I’m also trying to workout more now, so this will probably turn into my workout window.
12:15-12:45pm: If I’m home, Luca comes home during this time and we have lunch together. I love being home for lunch time and whenever he walks through the door he always says, “Mama!” (and he can’t yet see me), so it breaks my heart thinking that sometimes when he comes home and says Mama, I’m not home!! He’s just used to be always being home!
1-2:15pm: Roma wakes up from her nap and I feed her and play with her.
2:15/2:30-4pm: I usually put Roma down for a nap around this time but it’s always a really short one, so sometimes I’ll take a walk or run an errand, since she tends to hang out better in the stroller on the go and sleep longer. If I’m home, Luca usually wakes up around 2:30pm from his nap, so I’ll have snack with him. If I’m home, I’ll make him snack, but if I’m not home, the nanny gives him snack.
3-5:30pm: The nanny takes Luca back out for another jam packed afternoon!
4-5pm: This is a tricky part, because depending on how well Roma napped 2-4pm, she may be up or not and this is usually when I prepare dinner. If she’s up, I’ll put her in a bouncer chair and try to keep her ‘entertained’ while I prepare dinner. I’ll leave dinner on the stovetop with a lid or put it in the fridge for later, depending on what I made.
5-5:30pm: Usually around this time is when I’m trying to put Roma down for her early evening nap.
5:30pm: Luca gets home from his day and the nanny goes home. We usually call my mother on Facetime or the Facebook Portal and they chat for 15 minutes. He usually has a little “appetizer” while I warm up dinner (like part of his dinner.)
5:45-6pm: Dinner! I sit down and eat dinner with Luca.
6-6:45pm: During this time, Roma usually wakes up and so it’s me and the two kids until Lu gets home, which is sometime between 6:30-6:45pm. Lu plays with Luca while I am usually doing something with the baby or I’m tidying up with the baby, etc. Or, we’ll all play in the living room.
7pm: Nighttime routines start! Usually, Lu does Luca’s routine and I do Roma’s routine. It seems to work best this way, but if it works out where I’m not nursing Roma while it’s time to read Luca books, I’ll read Luca books and let Lu put the baby down or play with the baby until I’m done with books and then I put Roma down. Again, it all depends on when her last nursing session was and when her last nap ended. Usually, I feed her at 7pm, bathe her, put her jammies on, read to her, swaddle her, and put her down by 7:30pm. Luca is in his crib by 7:30/7:45pm.
8pm: Mama and Dada time! During this time, Lu has dinner (and I usually have seconds haha), we hang out, tidy up, shower, and just RELAX.
Of course, the weekends look completely different, but this is what a weekday looks like! We’re grateful to have a nanny that loves Luca and keeps him busy and challenges him with different activities and adventures. And I love the balance that having a nanny gives me to spend time with Luca during the day, even when I’m back to work!
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