Day in the life, newborn no-blogging edition

I can't seem to get around to blogging these days (and I miss you guys!), so I thought I'd chronicle my day to see where my time goes. 
Then I thought, 'hey, I can do that as a blog post!'
Then I thought, 'hey, why not do live updates?'
So here it is, a semi-live web log (get it? web log, web-log, weblog, blog) of our day.
Scroll to the bottom throughout the day for updates.


6:30 - Brooklyn wakes up to nurse. Last up around 2:30. Went to bed around 11:30.  Greg is getting ready for work.


6:45 - Breakfast smoothies for Greg and me.


7:00 - Greg leaves.  I finish my smoothie, make the rounds on the computer.


7:15 - Shower, bedmaking, etc. Met Dale & Ty getting up as I was going in to shower.  Alan up when I got out.


7:45 - Gave boys leftover smoothie. Cereal for Dale, cinnamon toast for everybody else.  Ate, read a few Psalms aloud.


8:15 - Started a load of laundry, began the boys' "morning jobs".


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8:30ish - Got completely distracted and began cleaning the boys' room.  Not a completely bad thing, as it needs it desperately. Constantly.


8:55 - Returned to kitchen to finish my morning cleanup.  Laundry into dryer.  Boys playing in their room.  Mostly.  Are we the only ones that have problems with tattling???


9:15 - Put away yesterday's jumbo load of laundry with the boys.  Reorganized Dale's pj drawer.  Pulled all the shorts from Tyler's drawer.


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9:40 - Nursed Brooklyn.  Read Bible story (Crossing the Red Sea), and boys colored pictures from the story.  Dressed Brooklyn.


10:25 - Boys took a break for juice.  Complete limbo time.  I played baby. Nursed her, changed her, burped her, watch her hiccup.  Dale worked on a blog post of his own, while Alan and Tyler waited patiently for the trash truck to arrive.


11:10 - Finally resigned myself to the fact that peanut butter was the best option for lunch.  Served up PBHBs (peanut butter, honey and banana) to the boys.  Leftovers for me.


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11:30 - Lunch cleanup.  Chicken into the crockpot.


11:40 - Realized that live-blogging one's day really puts the pressure on productivity.  Without live-blogging I would probably be on foodgawker, or One Pretty Thing, or going through my blog reader.  It is possible I might pick up my Bible and read a chapter or two.  As it is, I sat down at 11:40 to add to the blog, and started thinking... 'what next?'  Hmm... maybe I should do this live-blogging thing all week.  Think what we'd get done!


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11:45  Read a chapter of Deuteronomy.  Sat and stared.  Wondered what what to do next.  Decided to go ahead with some of our fall activities.  Our themes this week are squirrels and leaves.  Spent some prep time.


12:15 - Preschool time!  Rhymes, stories, coloring, all about squirrels  (And some multiplication practice thrown in for Dale.)


1:00 - Sat down at the sewing machine to take up some of Alan's recent hand-me-down pants. 4T = too small. 5 = too big.


1:10 - Boys head out into the beautiful sunshiny fall day, bare feet, pants legs rolled up.


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1:30 - Took Brooklyn out to join the boys while she nursed.


1:45 - Gramps showed up with a load of goodies to sort through.


2:00 - Sent the boys back outside.  Gave up on productivity, and even naptime.  Crashed on the couch with the computer in front of me and sounds of the boys playing outside behind me. 


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3:00 - Served an afternoon snack -outside!- to the boys.  Closed the computer and did some miscellaneous straightening up. 


3:45 - The boys' relatively new neighborhood friend showed up to play. 

Newborn Days

It's easy to forget how demanding newborn days are until you find yourself back living them again.

Oct. 9, Brooklyn's first trip to church

Even when things are going well (which they mostly are around here), your daily routines are turned upside down, and every spare moment is filled with taken care of someone or something.

These days it's about all I can do to keep everybody fed and clean, all the clothes clean, the beds made, the house picked up, and get a little school done.  Plus work in an afternoon nap.  But that never all happens in the same day.  I have to pick and choose.  

Dale, hard at work. And yes, that is clean baby laundry on my coffee table.

No matter what is getting done or not done, life is good.  I am enjoying this little newborn more than any before her.  Experience tells me how fast the first year flies by.  And the second, third, and fourth, too, for that matter!

Tyler, just because he's so darn cute.

Hands-On Learning For Boys

Hello, Friends!


I have more baby pictures and buffalo stories to share soon, but today please visit my friend KeriMae, where I am guest posting on a topic I know a wee-bitty bit about: Boys!

"I began my homeschool career roughly five years ago when the oldest of my three boys reached preschool age. Almost immediately I found myself on a rollercoaster as I not only learned to homeschool, but to homeschool a B.O.Y."  

Read the rest of my thoughts and ideas in this post: Hands-on Learning for Boys

Beauty Shop

When a person is born with a head full of hair, it needs to be washed often.

It's just a shame when a person can't seem to relax and enjoy a good hair-washing.

I mean really? What's not to love?

Warm water, sweet soap, a gentle touch.

Clearly Miss B knows how to savor the finer things in life.

And what girl doesn't need a little pampering now and then?

Complete with accessories, of course!

Our Week in Pictures

We are continuing to adjust very well to life with a newborn again.


Greg was home for a whole week!


And this week my lovely sister has been visiting, so we have spent lots of time with her and my mom.


The boys seem no worse for the wear with a new sister in the house.  In fact, I think things are going quite well for them.  While there has been a good bit of this...

...there have also been plenty of special treats and outings for the boys.


For one thing, people bring neat stuff when you have a baby.  Like Oreo ice cream rolls:

I've been so thankful the weather has cooled enough that the boys can spend extended periods of time playing outside.  In fact, it's cooled enough to need long sleeves if you go out first thing in the morning.  (And shorts and bare feet in the afternoons.)  The boys were excited to bust out in their matching long-sleeved shirts they were given a few weeks ago:

We don't keep a lot of matching outfits in their closet, but they love the ones they have.


The matching Rangers caps (how 'bout those Rangers, btw? Woot-woot!!) and the photoshoot were Dale's idea.

Something about a big-headed, short-legged toddler in an over-sized t-shirt and baseball cap was irresistible to me.

In addition to some sweeping and wiping while visiting, Mimi and Kristin have even done a little "substitute teaching" and done some table-time stuff with the boys.  As usual, Tyler got in on the action doing some gluing of his own.  I just didn't get a picture of his finished product. ;)

And Brooklyn?  Being surrounded by buffaloes seems to suit her just fine. :)