I'm a person that loves organization, lists, routine or at least an idea of whats in store for an outing, the next day or an event. When you have a newborn, all that goes out the window. Before Zach, we had a basic routine. Ben knew when it was time for school. They knew we went to play group every Thursday. They knew lunch time was at noon. Now, we wake up later mostly because Zach seems to sleep best from 6-8am. After a night of crying, feeding and bad tv, I don't want to get up early! School gets pushed back a little or a lot if we want to leave the house, which actually isn't often. Play group is very random and lunch happens sometime between breakfast and nap time. Chaos is our new routine. It absolutely drives me crazy! I feel like the little things are slipping. I can't stand having a disaster for a house, but I hate ignoring the kids to clean. I don't like not getting school done first thing in the morning, but we would never leave the house if that didn't get pushed aside every now and then. I want to get back into walking/running, but I want to see my husband before I fall asleep on the couch at 8:30pm. I know it will get better. I know it doesn't matter if the house is dirty. I know Ben wont turn into a moron because we skipped a few days of school. I know once Zach starts sleeping better at night, things will fall into place. I'd just like to know when that will be so I can come up with a plan for us until then!
The Big Event
1 week ago
1 comment:
awww! hang in there! i remember feeling that way when cash was born. newborns are good at keeping you on your toes :). i think it would be perfectly fine if you bag school all together for a while. i mean...you just had a baby!
maybe instead of any formal instructional time, have the kids involved in helping you do the simple tasks of cleaning (give them a damp rag and have them wipe the cupboards, sweeping, unloading the utensils from the dishwasher, etc.). the work won't be perfect but they are learning important life skills when they're helping you clean. bring out the play-doh or paints and count that as school. play a board game together or work on a jigsaw puzzle while zach is sleeping (we have a couple of floor size ones that the kids enjoy). make craft supplies readily available so that they can create at whim. you can cut out a huge piece of butcher paper (or a few of them) and tape it to the floor and have them color/draw on it. we usually have 3 and i have crayons at 1, stickers at another, and stencils on the 3rd, setting them up like stations. they can move around from paper to paper using the supplies provided, and they're welcome to mix it up too. just some ideas.
remember that they are still learning even when it seems like you're not "teaching" them anything :)
Post a Comment