What do you do at home ALL day?!?!

Since I've had Drew I seem to get this question quite a bit. Some ask out of genuine curiosity as to how our day unfolds while others are really asking 'how do you not go insane at home, all day, everyday with an infant?'. I decided to outline our daily routine not only for those of you who are interested, but more so as a reminder for myself in the future when the next little nugget comes along. Keep in mind that this is what our ideal days look like.

8:30a
Drew wakes up. He's pretty consistent with his wake up time, which is nice. When he wakes up we spend a good 15 minutes snuggling, chatting, and singing. He's such a happy morning person- I love it! If we had a really good night, I'll get up before him and have some alone time (shower, watch GMA, and sip slowly on some decaf coffee). However, most days I get up when he does.

8:45
Change diaper, put on lotion, comb his hair (his fave), and put on his clothes for the day. If I'm still in my pajamas, I'll go back to bed to feed him, otherwise I'll feed him in the living room.

9-9:20 Drew eats. He's still exclusively breastfed, so this is sometimes shorter, sometimes longer... Ya never know.

9:20-9:35 I'll lay him in his pack n' play with his toys and put on the 'Raffi' pandora station and let him play alone. This is when I eat breakfast, put on workout clothes, brush my teeth, and comb my hair. If it's a day that I woke up earlier and those things are done, I'll do a quick chore.

9:35-10:00 Morning walk. I'll give him a toy and play music on my phone. He loves it!

10-10:30 Mommy & Drew learning time. I have a cute little Munchkin flash card book that I'll do with him. Letters, animals, numbers, colors, shapes...all the basics in English and Spanish (I try my best!). I just prop him up in his Boppy and he is intrigued the whole time. The flash cards only take about 5 minutes, then we'll play with his toys. He's rolling completely over now and figuring out that he can move, so a lot of the time is spent with him experimenting with movement. It's so fun to watch!

10:30-11:15 I'll put Drew in his bouncer in the bathroom while I shower. He loves playing peek a boo, so I'll just poke my head out every few minutes and he thinks it's hilarious. I'll dry off, get dressed, do my makeup, and IF he's still happy in his bouncer I'll blow dry my hair. If not, I let it air dry and that's that.

11:15-11:30 I feed Drew in his room in the glider after I change him. I shut the blinds so it's dark, and he almost always falls asleep for his first nap of the day.

11:30-12:30 Nap/cleaning time. I'll lay him in his crib and he'll sleep anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour and a half (and many times he'll wake up as soon as I lay him down). I take this time to make Andrew and I lunch, make the bed, start some laundry, and pick up around the house. Because his nap times vary, I can either get everything or nothing done. It just depends.

12:30-1:30 Andrew is usually on his lunch break during this time, which is awesome. Whoever gets Drew from his nap will change him and play with him while the other one eats lunch. Then we switch and repeat.

1:30-1:45 I'll put on a tv show that I missed from the night before while I feed Drew in the living room.

1:45-3:00 Since he's usually wide awake, we'll use this time to run errands, pay bills, go to the grocery store, etc. However, if we don't have any of that to do, we'll go see a friend or visit my mom at work for a while.

3-3:30 If Drew is content playing by himself on his play mat, I'll put on my exercise clothes and ride my spin bike until he starts fussing. Otherwise, I'll lay on the floor and do crunches and push ups. If he just wants to be held, I'll do squats while I hold him. If all else fails, we just play.

3:30-4 I'll change him and feed him in his room again. Most days he'll fall asleep again for his second nap.

4-5 While Drew naps, I'll get dinner ready. If he doesn't go down for a nap, I'll put him in his activity saucer in the kitchen with me. Either way, this is when dinner gets prepped.

5-6 Andrew gets home during this time and we eat... Most of the time together at the dinner table while Drew is in his bouncer, but sometimes we have to take turns.

6-6:30 Drew eats in the living room.

6:30-8:00 Daddy and Drew play time. While they play, I clean up the kitchen, and finish any chores that I started but didn't finish. If I didn't get a chance to workout earlier, I'll do it during this time. Some days I don't feel like doing anything but playing with my boys, so on those days I'll do just that.

8:00-8:45 Bath time! We take a bath together, so when Drew is done Andrew will come get him while I relax by myself for a few minutes. He puts on Drews lotion, gives him a massage with baby massage cream (lucky boy!), combs his hair, puts on his jammies, and reads him a story. This gives me time to get myself ready for bed as well, and we're usually done at the same time, so it works really well for us.

8:45-9:15 Drew eats and falls asleep for the night while I pray and sing to him. This is my favorite part of our day :)

9:15-10 If we're not too tired Andrew and I will have some alone time while Drew sleeps. We usually sit and talk or just watch tv together, or we don't do either ;). Whatever it is, I cherish this alone time, and I'm pretty sure he does too.

9:15-8:30 Sleepy time! Some nights Drew never wakes, while others he wakes once around 3am. Either way, this is the end and start of our day.

And that, my friends, is what I do all day.

:)

IG Shops...

Up until a month ago, Instagram was nothing more than an app on my iPhone that I could use to share an obscene amount of pictures on. That all changed when my good friend, Karissa, told me that there were shops on Instagram that had some pretty adorable baby clothes on.

I was immediately hooked, and became so obsessed with these shops that I opened my own. Whether you are a parent or not, you know how fast kids grow out of their darling clothes. Instead of packing them up or donating them, it's nice to make a couple bucks off of them by simply posting a picture on Instagram... Whoever started doing this is a genius! I have bought clothes not only for drew, but for myself as well, and have been nothing but pleased with what I've received. Do yourself a favor and go check out these shops, or if you are feeling adventurous open one yourself! Let me know if you have any questions, otherwise here is a list of my faves:


Baby Shops:
maxs_closet
liams_wardrobe (baby/toddler boy)
carterscloset (baby boy)
gapobsessed (cute headbands for girls)
lovedbyhannahandeli (custom leggings)
shopholeinmypocket (baby, boy, and girl)
dapperduds (baby/toddler boy. Some girl)
my_childrens_closet (baby boy & girl)
littleonesclothing (baby boy & girl)
paisleyjune (baby girl)
reinascloset (baby/toddler girl)
fromblakewithlove (baby/toddler boy)
girlwiththecurlshop (baby girl)
froufroubleu (baby/toddler boy)
paytons_closet (baby/toddler girl)
thedappermister (baby boy)
thevidocollection (baby, boy, and girl)
bahlbabiesclothes (baby/toddler boy)
shopmilascloset (baby girl and women's)
lemonsandlace (headbands/bows)
frances_bluebird (everything)
sugarhouseseconds (baby boy and girl)
theurbanowl (the cutest little girl and mommy headbands/baby boy bow ties)

My fave for myself:
raincitycloset (women's clothes/accessories)
mypolkadotshop (women's clothes)
shopmilascloset (women's shoes)

Love defined.

Over the past (nearly) 4 months, the word 'love' has been completely redefined and brought to life in ways I could never have fully imagined.

When I first began dating Andrew I fell hard and fast. After a few dates I began having strong, unfamiliar feelings towards him; feelings that my naive fifteen year old mind perceived as love. I'm not saying that I didn't love him or that my feelings were wrong, just that they were new emotions that my then-self couldn't quite figure out how to deal with or navigate through.

My teenage self believed love to be about power and control. If he did what I said, he loved me. If I did what he said, he'd never leave. This mentality did more bad than good to our relationship (surprise!) and the 'love' that we had became dangerous, volatile, really. By the time our relationship hit its all time low, there was a new change heading our way. It was time for Andrew and I to head our separate ways as I left for college, and as I said goodbye to him I knew that things with him would never be the same.

By the second semester of my freshmen year I had fallen in love all over again, this time with myself. Up until this point I had never realized how little I knew about the person I was...the person I wanted to be. I was nineteen, taking 21 units, and working full time at Victoria's Secret. My spare time was spent working out and hanging out with my girlfriends. I not only loved, but respected the person I was. I knew who I was and where I was going. My goals were clear as day, and, for once in my life, they did not include having a boyfriend. The best part of this chapter in my life was learning my self worth and how I deserved to be treated by others. Never again would I accept being treated poorly by anyone, and I credit that to these crucial years.

After the first year of college flew by, Andrew and I got back in touch on a regular basis, and, I immediately began falling in love with him all over again, but this time as a friend. It was apparent that we had both changed, and that was okay, great in fact. As our friendship grew so did my love for him. This time around love to me was so different then it had been before. It was acceptance, trust, and friendship. Acceptance of the person Andrew was, not of who I wished him to be or who I thought I could change him into. For once, I loved him for him and he loved me for me. Who we were was enough. Trust in the words we spoke and the love we had. And, of course, love meant having a friendship that was honest and fun. What had seemed so complex in previous years was now so simple and sweet. Though this love has greatly intensified and changed in slight ways, the foundation has remained the same from then to now (our 2nd year of marriage).

On December 11, 2012 love as I knew it was forever changed as a nurse gently laid my sweet boy in my arms. Seeing his eyes lock onto mine took my breath away. The love I felt that day and every day since then, is so intense, so overwhelming that it consumes my entire being. It's as if my entire existence before him had no meaning, no real purpose. The love I feel now is one that I will never be able to put into words, though I will spend my whole life trying. If I lost my sight tomorrow I would be content because I have seen my sweet boys face in front of mine. I have stayed up hours staring in awe, memorizing his every feature. The way his hair fights to form in the center of his head. The innocence and purity that fill his perfect brown eyes. The dimples that form at the corners of his mouth when he smiles. If tomorrow I ceased to hear, I would still smile with joy, as the sound of my boy laughing and cooing played over and over in my head. No matter what tomorrow brings, today with my boy brings enough joy, laughter, and love to last a lifetime.

Love has, and will continue to change throughout the years. But one thing that I know is that it only intensifies and gets better with time. I look forward to the years to come...