So last night after a zero-word count day, I had a mini-meltdown on Twitter where I vowed that today would be laundry, cooking, and sleep-training free so I could actually get some writing done. I intend to stick with that vow and take some time for me, myself, and I.
My one goal for today: WRITE. Any amount of words at all. And blog, because it's been far too long. My biggest obstacle in doing this, of course, will be my son. So let's see how I fare.
8:00 a.m. - I have already changed a poopie diaper and fed Andrew. I am currently eating a bowl of cereal while he sits in his bouncy chair watching Super Why and the Super Readers. Because, an adorable cartoon about solving problems with books? YES PLEASE.
8:05 - Andrew starts fussing and sucking his thumb, which usually means he's getting tired. So I stick him in the bathroom for a nap.Yes, I said the bathroom.
He sleeps best in total darkness, and it's the one room with no windows. Now would normally be the point where I deposit him in his crib and spend the next 30 minutes to an hour alternately letting him cry and comforting him until he falls asleep, because he HATES his crib. He's been sleeping in a Fisher Price Sleep-n-Play ("sheepie") since he was born, and it's been a hard habit to break.
But today is all about me. So sheepie naptime in the bathroom it is.
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| Geez, Mom, I'm trying to sleep over here! |
9:07 - 346 words written and I hear Andrew stirring in the bathroom. Hoping he'll find his thumb and go back out if I ignore him for a little bit.
9:09 - Nope. He wants out.
9:15 - Brought my laptop down to the living room, put the baby on his Einstein mat hoping he'll amuse himself for a bit.
9:28 - He rolled onto his belly. Is now spazzing because he doesn't know how to return to his back. *sigh*
9:52 - Stopped to give Andrew his Prevacid. Had to change his pajamas because he spit most of it out all over himself. Not that I'm complaining. What's cuter than a naked baby?
10:40 - Andrew had a random bout of crying and thumb-sucking, which told me he was still tired. Unsurprising, after his so-called "nap" this morning. I flipped on the vacuum to relax him (I swear, this works like a charm. White noise is a GEM) and put him back in the bathroom. Took the opportunity to wash and prep his bottles, because when he gets up again, he's going to be hungry. (hint for moms who bottle feed: pre-filling bottles and pre-measuring formula can be a lifesaver if your baby thinks waiting is for the birds like mine does!)
Am now terrified to turn the vacuum off in fear that he'll wake up as soon as I do.
11:11 - He's up again. Total word count is up to 622.
11:48 - Fed Andrew his bottle. Tried to put him in the bouncy chair, but this was the reaction I got:
Currently shoveling some lunch down my own throat while he watches TV in his sheepie. I am still in my pajamas. I have not yet washed my face or combed my hair.
12:32 - The fussing and thumb-sucking is starting again. Total word count so far: 960
1:07 - Took a break to change the baby and play with him, because making him smile is the best part of my day.
He's now back in the bathroom for a nap (fingers crossed) after I caught him doing this:
1:26 - Andrew is asleep in the bathroom. I swear to you, it's not normally this easy to get him down. I may have to scrap crib sleep training altogether until I finish this book. Which, BTW, I just HAD AN EPIPHANY ABOUT HOW TO END IT while washing my face. Hooray!!
2:30 - Remember that time I shunned housework and let my son sleep in the toilet and did a live blog to prove how little time I have to write, only to have said son nap like a champ and let me get 1336 total words written by 2:30 p.m.?
2:49 - He's up again. Time for another feeding!
3:45 - I caved (been doing a lot of that today) and loaded the dishwasher and made the bed. The sight of dirty dishes and rumpled sheets makes me twitchy. Andrew ate and is amusing himself in the bouncy chair. I'm going to attempt to order some Thank You cards from Shutterfly while they're still having a New Year promo.
THE NEXT DAY...
So I know this blog is technically no longer "live," but I felt like it needed some sort of conclusion. I ordered my Thank You cards and then got too wrapped up with dinner prep, subsequent dinner cleanup, bathing Andrew, and and attempting to have him sleep in his crib to do more blogging.
That last part didn't go so well, and today I'm exhausted. Since I didn't do any laundry yesterday, I had to make up for it and do two loads this morning. It's now 12:24 and I've yet to write a word. Andrew is napping, but I'm pretty sure I just heard him stir, so it will probably be a while before I can get to the WiP.
And that, my friends, is a day in my life as a writer and stay-at-home mom. So tell me - what did you do today?
Your son is so adorable. I'm enjoying this post. Happy New Year, Gina.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Tracey!
DeleteThis is so great! Another thing I think people don't realize is after each interruption you have to gather your thoughts and get back into the zone all over.
ReplyDeleteCongrats though on a good nap day! Those are the best!
Great post! My close friends just had a baby, and every time they share their current crazy schedule I wonder how on earth authors keep writing when they're home with young children. Thanks for sharing a glimpse into that reality and how it can be done in bits and pieces and naps :-D.
ReplyDeleteA big belated congratulations Gina!!! He's gorgeous! Yes, this is why I've written about six pages since Phoebe was born!;) Anxiously waiting for my muse to badger me into getting serious about my next project. So good to see you two happy and healthy! Happy 2014!
ReplyDelete