For the working Mommies

What is your morning (before) and evening (after) work routine with DC? Are you handling getting yourselves and DC ready yourself or does DH help you? Can you let me know DC age, when you wake, dress yourself, dress DC, feeding, dropping DC at daycare (or babysitter) and then your routine going home?

DH's schedule is too unpredictable for him to help me (he's usually sleeping in the AM and working early afternoon into evening) and I'd like to know how you all handle this. Thinking about it now seems so overwhelming


Thanks for your help!

Re: For the working Mommies

DD is 3.5months. Are morning usually is i wake up (6:30am), (if dd is still asleep) I will wash up, pump, pack up my pump, make sure diaper bag is finished being packed (with bottles from dishwasher), pack up BM. Then get dressed. If DD is still asleep I just pick her up and put in Car seat in pjs(by 7:20am). shes just going to my sis's house so its better not to change her if i dont need to, that way she stays asleep and wont be crankie.

If my dd does wake up before i get in carseat, my DH will usually change her while I pump, or I will breastfeed (if dd will take).

Its easier for me in mornings for the reason im in the medical field so i wear scrubs to work. I dont have to worry about being all dressed up, just gotta look clean and presentable.

Re: For the working Mommies

My son is 2, but our mornings run pretty smoothly. We wake up at around 6.30, my husband goes downstairs and has his coffee and breakfast while I have a shower, I dry my hair and am usually finished by 7.15, at which point my husband or myself wakes up Noah (my husband brings up his milk) and he has his milk in my bed while watching his tv shows and chatting to us. I get him dressed while my husband gets himself ready (note we both dress casual for work, so no ironing or anything like that) We are ready to go out at about 7.45/7.50. I take him to daycare in the morning, I get him in and take his coat and shoes off. He goes into his classroom and I am back on the road at about 8.15, I am usually at my desk by about 8.55. My husband picks Noah up from daycare at about 5.30, he eats dinner at about 5.45, we play for about an hour, and we start bathtime at about 7 pm.

And thats a day in the life...

Re: For the working Mommies

Hi!

Thomas is 8 1/2 months.

I get up at 5:30 a.m. shower and get dressed. DH gets up at 6 a.m. Usually (and hopefully) DS sleeps until 6 a.m. or 6:15 a.m. so I can give him bottle and get him dressed as soon as I'm done getting ready. If he wakes up while I'm in the shower, DH gets him and brings him to bed with him for 20 minutes - 1/2 hour.

I take DS to daycare. We leave the house about 6:50 a.m. Daycare opens at 7:00 a.m. I get on the LIRR at 7:17 a.m. (two blocks from daycare).

Daycare gives DS 3 bottles a day and breakfast and lunch.

I get out of work at 4:30 p.m. (midtown Manhattan). My train gets in at 5:36 p.m. Daycare closes at 6 p.m. I run to my car and drive to daycare (again only two blocks from train) and pick DS up around 5:50 p.m. DH picks up his other two sons from their mother's two nights a week from Queens, but on days when he doesn't have them, he can usually get to daycare to pick DS up before I can get there about 5:15 p.m. So he usually picks him up about 2 - 3 times a week.

I give DS dinner when we get home around 6 p.m. while DH usually makes dinner for us. I get DS ready for bed around 7 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. He's pooped after his long day at "school".

Let me know if you have any questions!

Good luck!

Re: For the working Mommies

Ryan is 16 months and it's gotten much easier over time. I get up at 6, get myself ready, make my lunch, make his breakfast while DH gets Ryan up and dresses him, gives him his nebulizer treatment. Sometimes DH can't do it and I do it all after I'm dressed. We try to leave by 7:45 but sometimes it's later - get to daycare by 8 and I'm at work by 8:30.
I usually leave at 5:05, pick him up and we're home by 5:45. Get him some dinner (usually reheat leftovers bc there's no time to cook - he is hungry and tired when he gets home) he eats then bath, treatment and bed by 6:30 or 7.

Re: For the working Mommies

DS is 2 this month and DD is 4 months. The mornings are just me, since DH leaves for work at 6:45. Luckily, I have a very flexible work schedule and don't HAVE to be at work at a specific time, and I work from home mostly.

I wake up at 6 am and shower and get ready before they wake up, which is around 7. I get DS up and dressed, give him his cup of milk, and put on Noggin. Then I get DD up, dress her, and give her a bottle. THen I get dressed for the day, get them in their coats, hats, warm up the car, and off we go to Grammies. They get to my mom's by 9 M-F. I pick them up by 2-2:30. DH gets home by 2:30, but somtimes has to work later, or has classes at 4-6. So again, it's mostly me. If I have work things to do at night, DH takes them.

DS goes to bed by 6:30, so his dinner and bath are done by 6-6:30, then teeth brushed and off to bed. DD goes in around 8 or so and is fed her last bottle and cereal around 7. Baths for her are normally at night or in the morning since I normally have time.

My schedule is much different than other working moms, since I don't have to be anywhere at a specific time. I make my own schedule for the most part, unless I have a meeting in the office, then I have to be there in Melville by 9.

Re: For the working Mommies

DS is almost 17 months old so it is alot easier now than before plus MIL comes to house to take care of DS so that helps a lot. I do a lot of things at night. I get all my stuff ready, get things ready for DS that MIL would need for during the day. When I come home, I cook dinner and than after dinner I give DS a bath, pjs, etc. Than DH takes care of him while I do my stuff.

Re: For the working Mommies

DD is 4.5 months- and has been going to day care since the beginning of November. Our schedule is a little hectic because she goes to daycare on Mon, Wed, and Fri and goes to my MIL on Tues and Thurs.

Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday nights are all the same- I get all of DD's stuff together for day care. Sunday night, I prepare her bottles and put them in a bottle carrier and then in the fridge- and I also get a jar of baby food and put together a container with her cereal in it.

The mornings are all the same and they go like this: I get up around 6:45, shower, wake up DH (who takes a shower and leaves for work), get myself ready (incl make up and blow drying my hair), then I wake up DD, dress her, feed her her bottle, get her ready to leave, and am usually out the door by 8:15. I drive either to day care or to MIL's and am at work by 9:15.

On Mon, Wed, and Fri, I only work until 5- so after work, I drive to pick up DD from day care, get home usually by 6 or so. I make dinner the second I get home, and *try* to have it ready for when DH comes home at 6:45.

Tuesdays and Thursdays, I work until 6, then drive to pick up DD from MIL- and get home usually around 6:45. Then make dinner.

I've basically got it down to a science, so its not as overwhelming as it was in the beginning.

Re: For the working Mommies

DS is 6 months
I work 3 days a week, on those mornings, i get up at 6:15 and get myself ready for work. By 7 my DS is up and i get him dressed and give him is 1st bottle. At around 7:25 my DH gets up and finishes giving him the bottle so i can go warm up the car, then i leave by 7:35-7:40 to drop him at my SIL (one day a week my DH takes him, so on that day the schedule is switched and hes doing the AM routine). I get out of work b/t 1-2 and go pick him up, we get home and then he either gets a bottle or is due for a nap. Then he gets up, we play and he goes down for one more small nap n/t 4:30 and 5:30, he gets dinner around 6ish, then DH comes home so we all hang out/play, most nights DH makes dinner, for us, then bath time (every other day), bottle and sleep, he was going to bed b/t 8-9 but we started giving him more ounces in the bottle and less bottles through the day, so last night he was out cold by 7:15. I am hoping this will become his regular routine bedtime

Message edited 1/8/2008 9:47:17 AM.

Re: For the working Mommies

Hey momma! You know you can always get my 2 cents on this...any time!

Mornings:

DH and I get up (he makes the bed and works out and I jump in the shower)

Switch - I am out of the bathroom and he goes in. DS usually wakes at this point so I quickly get on as many things as I can and then go to him. Get him dressed and give him a bottle.

DH finishes in the bathroom and then quickly gets dressed

Switch - DH takes DS and goes downstairs to put the daycare bottles in the bag and pack his bag up. I finish up - clothes, makeup and clean up a bit upstairs. I bring down everything DS needs for his bath that night.

DH takes DS to daycare and leave the car at that local LIRR stop. I park the other car at our LIRR stop near the house.

Fast forward to the evening....

I pick the car up at the train station near daycare and get DS. Once we are home I get his bath set up and get a bottle ready for him. If he will allow me to I try to get changed as well.

I give DS a bath and DH usually gets home. We try to switch off every other night putting DS to bed.

While one person puts him to bed the other cleans up...washes all the bottles from daycare and heats up dinner (I try to make them on the weekend so we can warm them up easily during the week).

Once DS is asleep we eat and then split up the responsibilities:

Washing dishes
Packing Daycare bag
Preparing next day bottles for daycare
Making breakfast and lunch for work
Packing our bags
Straighten up a bit

Then off to bed. We do this over and over again each weekday.

For the weekend we have an agreement. DH gets DS at night and I get up with him at 6am to start the day.

Now that DH's busy season is starting I will have to do this all on my own!

Message edited 1/8/2008 9:46:07 AM.

Re: For the working Mommies

Posted by Ang-Rich

Hey momma! You know you can always get my 2 cents on this...any time!

Mornings:

DH and I get up (he makes the bed and works out and I jump in the shower)

Switch - I am out of the bathroom and he goes in. DS usually wakes at this point so I quickly get on as many things as I can and then go to him. Get him dressed and give him a bottle.

DH finishes in the bathroom and then quickly gets dressed

Switch - DH takes DS and goes downstairs to put the daycare bottles in the bag and pack his bag up. I finish up - clothes, makeup and clean up a bit upstairs. I bring down everything DS needs for his bath that night.

DH takes DS to daycare and leave the car at that local LIRR stop. I park the other car at our LIRR stop near the house.

Fast forward to the evening....

I pick the car up at the train station near daycare and get DS. Once we are home I get his bath set up and get a bottle ready for him. If he will allow me to I try to get changed as well.

I give DS a bath and DH usually gets home. We try to switch off every other night putting DS to bed.

While one person puts him to bed the other cleans up...washes all the bottles from daycare and heats up dinner (I try to make them on the weekend so we can warm them up easily during the week).

Once DS is asleep we eat and then split up the responsibilities:

Washing dishes
Packing Daycare bag
Preparing next day bottles for daycare
Making breakfast and lunch for work
Packing our bags
Straighten up a bit

Then off to bed. We do this over and over again each weekday.

For the weekend we have an agreement. DH gets DS at night and I get up with him at 6am to start the day.

Now that DH's busy season is starting I will have to do this all on my own!

Re: For the working Mommies

My dd is only 2weeks old....and you are right. It does seem overwhelming!!! B/c I'm going to mostly do things by myself, since dh has work and school full time. I'm already thinking about it, so good question.
btw HOw are you doing Donna???

Re: For the working Mommies

My DS is 3.5 months and for two days he is with my mom and for the other two he is with my SIL.

For the days that he goes to my mom's, my husband takes him, so I just have everything ready and packed the night before. I wake up around 6 am, I nurse him, change him, put him in the car seat in his PJs and off they go...they're out the door by 6:30 am...my mom usually changes him into his clothes when he wakes up with her around 9:30am. I then have time to get ready and do my thing before I head out at 7:45am.

For the days that DS goes to my SIL's, I take him there (she lives a couple of blocks away from me) and I actually meet her half-way since she drops her son off at his school right next to my house. We wake up around 6am again, I nurse him and change him. My husband hangs out with him while drinking his coffee and watching TV while I get ready. My husband leaves at 7am and by that time I am ready. I nurse DS again and he usually falls asleep by then. I finish up getting all my stuff together and we are out the door by 7:40am and on our way to meet my SIL.

So far its been good. I hope it stays that way. Its rough, but I think the key to make everything run smoothly is to have everthing ready the night before...I even have my and DS's clothes laid out.

Message edited 1/8/2008 10:30:56 AM.

Re: For the working Mommies

my mom gets to my house about a 1/2 hour before I have to leave and he usually doens't wake up until she gets there. If he does then I give him his bottle and get ready super quick when she gets there.

I get home about 7pm and I give him a bath and put him to bed as soon as I get home.

Re: For the working Mommies

I work 7-3 so DH has the mornings.

It's so much easier for him to get ready and get DS ready then it is for me.

All he has to do is shower, shave and get dressed. That takes 15 minutes tops.

I take 20 minutes to dry my hair alone.


I leave work at 3:00 - grab DS from daycare, run any errands with him, go home, eat dinner around 6:00.

Bathtime at 7:00 followed by bottle, book and bed by 8:00.

Re: For the working Mommies

DD is almost 7 months old. We're lucky because on the days both me and DH work my mother (or his mother) actually comes to our house. I usually get up around 6:45am or so, shower and get dressed, by that time DD is usually up but will sit on my bed and watch Sesame Street. My mom gets there around 8-8:15 and that's when I leave for work. DD usually doesn't get her bottle till my mom gets there, just a diaper change when she first wakes up.

I get home from work around 6:30 or so and feed DD dinner while I try and cook dinner. DH gets home around 7 or so, we eat dinner and finish feeding DD. 8pm it's pajama time for DD (I try and fit a bathe in there but sometimes I'm just too tired) then 8:30-9pm she does her final bottle and we put her down to be. I usually go to bed around 10:30-11 so that gives me some time to get things done around the house. Then we get to do it all again the next day...LOL!!!

Don't worry, I was overwhlemed at first but you really do just fall in to a routine.

Re: For the working Mommies

Hi Donna! Graham is away half the month so I have an unpredictable schedule too.
Luckily DD started sleeping until 7 now so I can get ready, then get her up and get her dressed. She has her bath the night before so we have to do it brush teeth, change dipes and get dressed. It takes about 10 minutes total. I have her bag packed for day care the night before- I just have to make her cereal and put it in and take the bottles from the fridge.
We leave the house about 7:20, I drop her off and then head to work.

Pick up is at 4pm but I can call and ask her to watch her longer in case of emergency since its in her home which is a huge help. Either DH or I pick her up depending on whether or not he is home. If we are alone, its actually easier since I will just have something easy for dinner for me, like a sandwhich while she eats. If DH is home, I have him play with DD while I make her dinner. We try to eat as a family now since she eats what we do. DD walks around now so she will come into the kitchen and play in the tupperware drawer while I cook sometimes which is a big help. After dinner, we do bath, then have a bottle while we read a book. Then she plays for a little bit and I rock her to sleepy but awake and put her down by 7:30. Then I clean up, get her bag ready and do whatever stuff needs to be done for the next day.

I hope this helps.

Re: For the working Mommies

My DH takes care of everything in the morning b/c DS is still sleeping when I leave for work.

I pick DS up in the evening around 6:00-8:00pm depending on if I go to the gym or not (my Mom and MIL watch DS so i have a lot of flexibility). Then DS and I go home and I bath DS feed him and get him ready for bed.

Re: For the working Mommies

Posted by dooodles

What is your morning (before) and evening (after) work routine with DC? Are you handling getting yourselves and DC ready yourself or does DH help you? Can you let me know DC age, when you wake, dress yourself, dress DC, feeding, dropping DC at daycare (or babysitter) and then your routine going home?

DH's schedule is too unpredictable for him to help me (he's usually sleeping in the AM and working early afternoon into evening) and I'd like to know how you all handle this. Thinking about it now seems so overwhelming


Thanks for your help!

Message edited 1/8/2008 12:56:55 PM.

Re: For the working Mommies

Jacob is 13 months old and he goes to daycare.

During the weekdays, here is our schedule:

5:15am: I wake up, take a shower, get dressed, and get Jacob's lunch and snacks together for the day.

6:00am: I wake up Jacob (DH wakes up at this time and gets himself ready), give him a bottle, change his diaper, and get him dressed. He also plays for awhile while I do some other things like brush my teeth and blow dry my hair. I usually put on the disney channel and he watches JoJos Circus.

7:00am: DH puts Jacob in the car and I put Jacob's stuff in the car. I drop him off at daycare and then I go to work. I have to be there by 8:30am.

I pick Jacob up at 4:30 from daycare. We usually get home around 5:30pm. DH gets home shortly therafter. We give him dinner, a bath, a bottle, and play with him for awhile. DH puts Jacob to bed at about 7:30 or 8pm. Usually I clean up the kitchen after dinner while DH gives him a bath.

Re: For the working Mommies

My only expectation from DH in the morning is to get himself dressed and take the dog out (which I still end up doing some mornings).

I wake up and shower. I'll pick the boys clothes out if I didn't do it the night before.

I wake up DH and then he goes to the bathroom. By this time the baby is up, I change him and dress him. Put his on the bed and then dress Nate. By this time DH is done in the shower and I'll send Nate in to get help brush his teeth. Then I'll get dressed and then do my hair.

We go downstairs. I'll make Nate breakfast and then get them ready to go to the car.

In the evenings, I usually make dinner while DH feeds the baby. I'll bathe both of them and put them down for bed. DH will wash bottles and pack the diaper bag for tomorrow.

Re: For the working Mommies

DH leaves at 5AM and comes home between 7-9, sometimes later, depending on the night, so I never get any help...

Cailen wakes up anywhere between 4:30-6:30 depending on the morning.

When he wakes up, i take him into bed with me and play with him a bit, or give him his bottle in bed if he's hungry... we do this for about 15 minutes...

then, i take him downstairs, and either give him his bottle in his bouncy seat while he watches Noggin (if he didn't want the bottle in bed with me - usualyl he just wanst to play.) When he does that, I prepare his bottles and food for the day for daycare. When he is finished, I put him in his PNP and go upstairs and shower and get ready for the day. Then I get him dressed and ready. Then I load up the car, get him , and away we go.


When we get home, its pretty much all getting him ready for bed. We get home around 5:30. I let him play for about 15 minutes, and then feed him. after he eats, he gets his bath. After his bath is usually a story and we play a bit. Then he gets his bottle and starts nodding off.... Thats it...

Message edited 1/8/2008 2:18:30 PM.

Re: For the working Mommies

DD is 5 months and goes to my mom's anywhere between 2 to 3 days a week. On the other days my mil comes by me to watch her. Yes very lucky and very grateful for both moms. DH leaves at 5:30 every morning so that's out. I normally wake her up anywhere between 6:30-7. I nurse her and then she falls back asleep. I then jump in the shower get ready and get all her stuff together. I load up the car and once I am done I change her diaper and stick her in the car in her pj's. I can get to work at about 9. DH get's out at 3 but he has a long commute so he picks her up at about 4-4:30 and takes her home. He feeds her dinner and entertains her until I get home at about 6:30 to 7. On my late nights it gets hard because I nurse her and that is the only way she really falls asleep. So last week was bad she waited up for me. So after working about 15 hrs I had my munchkin to put to sleep.

Re: For the working Mommies

Thank you so much ladies for all of your responses! You all deserve so much credit for doing all the Mommy duties (and DH's who do the Daddy duties) along with working! It did make me feel better knowing they feed cereal also at daycare. That took some worry out of my mind

Re: For the working Mommies