A Typical Day: 4 1/2 Months

I know it is the mundane that I will forget, just the stuff we would always do.  I know someday I'll want to tell "little boy Jake" what "baby Jake" did all day, so at 4 1/2 months old, here is what our days look like. 

6am to 7am

Jake wakes somewhere in this hour.  Usually there are some snuggles with me and some time with Papa before he leaves for work. He gets a clean diaper right away because the one he is wearing usually weighs 5lbs.  If I haven't showered yet then Jake lays on a blanket on the bathroom floor patiently cooing and chewing on stuff until I am done getting ready.  Then we go to his room and if he didn't eat when he woke up, he'll have something now, I put lotion on him, get in the first outfit of the day.

7am to 9am

Getting ready and play time fill the early morning.  Usually some rolling around in a diaper, some tummy time, and then its ready for his morning nap. He is ready about 90 minutes after he gets up. So we start the nap routine - new diaper, a few books (if he isn't already over tired and squirming), light goes out and I rock him and then bounce in the room a bit singing him a remix to "hush little baby." My lyrics involve "wine"....why? because it rhymed. 

I put him down awake and on a good day, he fusses a little and does his "wind down talking" (a series of babbles when he is getting ready to sleep) and he is out for 30 to 40 minutes.  On a bad day, he will cry off and on for 20 minutes and then take his nap.  

As soon as Jake is in his crib I run around the house like a crazy person getting after any chores so I can spend his awake time playing and talking with him.  This time usually involves blogging, laundry, bills, ironing, cleaning something, empty the dishwasher, dinner prep and eating my breakfast and having some tea. It is amazing how much I can accomplish in 30 - 60 minutes. 

9am to noon

This next block of time I think of as "activity time".  It is usually our longest stretch of the day to get out and do something.  Some days it might be planned, others I might just get an idea.  Lets be honest though, with this "type A mama" it is usually planned.  Almost always there is another feed, a walk to Starbucks, and diaper changes.  Then we might go meet friends or family, go shopping, go to Mom's Group, run errands, or grocery shop.

Jake will often take another 30 - 45 minute nap in the car seat, about 2 hours after he woke up from his morning nap.  

noon to 3pm

When we get home I am always anxious to get Jake out of the carseat and have some play time on the blanket. He also needs to eat again. I will put him in the bouncy seat in the kitchen while I make myself some lunch and then I sit on the kitchen floor and talk with him while I eat.  Most of my leave it has been the same, some kind of sandwich, a couple oranges, and a cookie...or 2...or 3.  I go through streaks where I only eat one kind of sandwich, for a while it was salami and pepper jack - right now it is a toasted peanut butter and jelly.

We will play on the blanket and practice sitting up and tummy time, look at ourselves in the mirror, sit in the bumbo seat and do raspberries at each other.  When I start to see his tired signs - rubbing his nose or eyes, fussing a bit and wanting to be held we will head upstairs for the nap routine again.  Another 30 to 45 minute nap. 

Undoubtedly he always wakes up and cries before he is really ready to get up, so when I go get him, we sit in the chair for a while and take our time getting ready for the rest of the day.  We then play some more and eat again.   

3pm to 6pm 

Once the afternoon nap is finished I don't usually drive anywhere.  I don't know why really...if something really had to get done I would, but at this point in the day it is just nice to read some stories, play some more and head out for a long walk.  In this new routine of naps I haven't figured out how to get my exercise in.  My husband so innocently pointed out to me the other morning that I had "all day" to get a run in...hmmm...if only it were that easy.   I've found that these walks can satisfy my urge to move and while the muscles in my legs are not what they used to be, priorities change.  Jake gets another late nap in, ending before 5pm, and about 30 minutes. 

We don't watch any tv all day, but around 5:30pm  I am usually trying to get the last of dinner going and am running out of steam, so I turn on Brian Williams and Jake gets caught up on current events for a few minutes.  Then maybe a couple more books before we head upstairs. 

Evening to bed time

Brian gets home between 5:30 and 6:30 on most nights.  He has some time with Jake before we start bath time and the night routine.  Bath time in our house is a full family affair.  Brian gets the tub and all the "accessories" ready.  I strip Jake down and get the pjs and clean diaper ready.  We get Jake in the tub, which he loves, and I wash his body and hair while Brian gives him his vitamins and holds his hand.  It is pretty cute.  I put lotion all over him when he is out and get a clean diaper and pjs on.  Brian cleans up from bath time and finishes up any work he needs to downstairs.  I take Jake in his room where I feed him, turn down the lights, sing my made-up songs and put him down.  Over night he will wake up once or twice to eat but he is an awesome sleeper.  Since he is in bed around 6:30 to 7pm then Brian and I can have some wine, enjoy dinner, chat, and watch some tv before we go to bed too.  I look forward to this time with my husband too. 

I treasure every second of the days with Jake.  Sometimes I feel like my heart will explode for the love I feel for him and Brian.  I get sad when I notice him getting bigger or acting more self-sufficient, but then I realize how much there is to look forward to.  I get to be this little man's mommy for the rest of his life.  I know he won't always look at his Mama like he does right now so everyday I take a mental picture of that smile and the way he lights up when I am around.  Baby Jake has rocked my world so irreversibly and if these typical days are my new days, then I am the luckiest Mama around to spend them with him.