The Shape of My Days with Yogi at 17 Months

I’m such a creature of habit that every time we settle into a new groove that seems to hold for more than a few days, I’m over the moon.  We’ve been in this particular groove long enough to create a record of it.

5:00 - Mama Wake-Up

I’ve started setting my alarm for crazy early because this is the only time of day that I can reliably get to myself.  It’s just me, my coffee, a book and my laptop.

6:30ish - Yogi Wake-Up

Although he occasionally shows signs that he notices its’ absence there is no warm bottle when Yogi wakes up these days.  There are lots of snuggles though.  Most of the time he wakes up happy and chatty, but there are mornings that begin much earlier (5ish) and with tears.  Snuggles are better.

7:00 - Breakfast

The boy is still eating his super porridge each morning, now with a side of milk in the sippy cup.  Four mornings a week he also gets a hard-boiled egg yolk stirred in.  I jazz things up with banana and occasionally blueberries, which Yogi calls “bee-bees”.  Last week we got him a new high chair that pushes right up to the table allowing him to eat with his bowl on the table sans tray. 

8:00 - Getting Ready for the Day

Getting dressed seems to get more challenging every day.  Gone is the baby who would lay (mostly still) on the changing table and allow his clothes (and diaper for that matter) to be changed without a whole lot of trouble.  These days the changing table is a no go for wardrobe change.  After making a choice between two shirt options (I think this is fun and he loves to point to his choice - if there is a car on one of them, that will be the winner) I unzip his pj’s and he walks them over to the hamper and tosses them in.  In between playing with toys, I manage to get on a shirt, some pants and a pair of socks.  This usually takes somewhere between five and fifteen minutes.

8:00 - Heading out of the House

The day seems to go better when we get out of the house bright and early.  On school days (Tuesday and Thursday) we head for school and on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays we typically go to one of the following places:

Story Time at the library
Play date at a friend’s house
Grocery shopping

11:30 - Lunch

Another change in the meal routine is that Yogi finally has his own stool that allows him to stand in front of the sink and wash his hands without being dangled.  Unfortunately this does not mean that he enjoys washing his hands, but we’re doing what we can.  We’ve got the stool and we sing songs and try not be frustrated and I guess that’s all we can do.  I’ve mentioned that he’s now eating from his own plate, but I continue to be wowed by it.  Things like yogurt that have to be spooned are still fed by us most of the time, but he likes to do a few of the spoonfuls himself and he’s surprisingly coordinated.

11:45 - Stories and Wind-Down

By the time lunch is complete and everything has been cleaned up, Yogi is ready to go upstairs for nap.  He takes the stairs on his own these days and when he gets to the top he marches straight to his crib and points for his lovey and paci.  We are still using the paci at nap, but we’ve been talking lately about breaking that bond.  Anyone have tips?  I’m thinking cold turkey is the way to go, but would love to hear from you if you’ve been there, done that.

We do a diaper change and then pick two books to read in his rocking chair.  He’s gotten bossy about which book we start with and there are some days when he doesn’t care about reading at all.  If he gets fidgety while we rock, I tell him that he can snuggle or get in the crib and he is able to let me know very clearly which choice he prefers.

Noon - Nap

I use nap time to eat lunch, check email and do whatever chores needs to be done around the house.  Trying to clean the bathrooms/mop the floors/sweep/dust with Yogi has become an increasingly bad idea.  He prefers to be right.in.the.middle of everything I do and I prefer not to spend any more time than I have to in the service of housework, so I‘ve shifted these tasks to nap time.  I’ve also been cutting reality TV out of my nap-time routine and not only do I feel less ridiculous, but I’ve been getting more done.  Go me!

2:00 - Afternoon Playtime

We usually spend this time at home doing something like:

Going for a walk with the dog
Playing outside in the yard or at the neighborhood park
Playing with toys in our play area

4:15 - Preparing for Dinner

Keeping Yogi entertained while I cook is not always easy.  He now understands what I am doing and that dinner will be coming soon and he usually starts rubbing his belly (which he believes to be the sign for “please”) feverishly.  I hold him off with milk and bites of banana.

5:00 - Mommy’s Home and Dinnertime

When Mommy gets home, it’s time for dinner.  I usually have the food ready to go and when my wife gets home she feeds him while I clean up the kitchen.  Dealing with the dog is a big hurdle at this time of day as he gets excited about the fact that everybody is home and he gets VERY excited about Yogi’s dinner.  Recently Yogi has begun finding it quite fun to share his food with Baker which nobody (well except the two of them) likes.  We’re working on keeping him in a stay in the living room while Yogi eats and that’s working pretty well.

6:00 - Bath Time

After dinner and Mommy playtime it’s time for Tub.  The boy still loves the water and he is a huge splasher.  I’m usually buzzing around the house while all of this is going on, but it’s fun to pop in and watch the two of them together.

7:00 - Yogi Bed Time

My wife still does bed time, but now Yogi gives me a HUGE goodnight hug while saying “Ba, Ba!” before the two of them head for his bedroom.  I LOVE it.  She reads him a few books and they snuggle and nurse a bit before she puts him in the crib.

7:30 - Mommy and Mama Time

When my wife comes downstairs with the monitor we sit down to eat dinner.  Afterwards we usually watch something on TV (we’re totally into Lie to Me at the moment) before heading upstairs for reading/talking/adult time.

Posted in: SAHM Thoughts, Sixteen Months