My journey in the new life of motherhood: July 2018

These days I have a routine

Glad finally I have a routine, never thought I'd eventually get there

Bub has early morning milk 5am-6:30am

Bub wakes up 7am-9am, on average is 8am-8:30am

I go to toilet

Change bub nappy and moisturise her legs

Put B5 on her face

Sterilise dummies

Clean bub's water bottle

Clean pink bucket (for sisi)

Bring bub downstairs

Now I can prepare breakfast whilst bub roam around downstairs even though it is still a bit tense

By 8:30am-9am bub would be getting hungry, I want to give her solid rather than milk

Solid is usually oats + rice milk + fruit + yoghurt, or bread + yoghurt + fruit

I would eventually like to try to give pancakes (apple pancake, banana pancake, blueberries pancake) and weet bix

Lucky the baby takes time for eating her meal (and she eats them herself, bless)

I use this time to eat myself, cleaning, putting out dishes from dishwasher, clean her plates and utensils

After breakfast I clean her - if clothes are bad, I changed it and whilst I removed the clothes, I moisturise her upper body, put B5 on her face again.

Then I offer her water bottle and let her play
During this time I will either play with her or sort out her laundry and everything else that need to be done upstairs.

I need to remember to check on her poop, not just before she is super tired to sleep, but beforehand.

About10-11am I give her milk

Sometimes at the same time she would sleep (feed to sleep)

Otherwise I will put her to sleep a bit later 11-12noon
If her face need more treatment, I used my breast feeding time to wipe her face, put more creams (B5, moisturiser, or calendula - I dont tend to give her steroid unless its after bath).

There is generally a variety of choices I can do after breakfast is for me to go out (say from 9am to 10:30am - so 1.5 hour including travel time to go somewhere, rhyme library, buy something in Westfield, etc. If I have a plan to go, then I will keep breakfast simpler / easier to clean the baby afterwards. Sometimes just wipe her hand and face and go, no need to go upstairs again. But it can be a little intense so unless I am in good state mentally and physically, I won't even attempt it as it can be quite tiring.

She then has her first nap.

The first nap goes from 1 hour to 3 hours. Used to be 2-3 hours averaging 2-2.5 hours - during this window I can actually fit work / productive things in it. But nowadays she slept 1-1.5 hour which I think is good, I dont want it to be too long as it will stretch her night a lot more. She actually sleeps better at night if her day naps arent too long like 3 hours.

So there is a pro and con, if she naps more during the day I can get work done, but otherwise I can try to get work done at night once the bub is asleep. I feel like it is a fair game.

First thing that I do once baby naps is to prepare for her lunch, and if I am hungry for myself to eat first. That includes cleaning the high chair, the utensils, continue with dishes. Preparing lunch often involves just defrosting meal.

First nap - what I do depends on what errand I have to do, how tired I am physically and mentally, how ready I am to cook

Short errands
+
Short prepare meal (defrost)
+
Short rest

OR

Large errands (for example work)
+
Short prepare meal
(stress)

OR

Full rest'

OR

Long prepare meal (for example cooking up a dish from scratch)

-------

,, you get the gist, I think the key is to prioritise and be realistic.
This is also because I dont know how long / when will the baby get up.

Whatever I can't get done (e.g. eating my lunch, finish filing out form) I try to do it whilst baby is awake after nap, but I try not to do it too long. If I plan to go out after baby's lunch I will also prepare to go out (e.g. for me to get changed first). Often it depends on my mental state, when I am in not anxious / depressed mode, I can get a lot done. However on the contrary too.

After first nap is generally 12:30pm to 2pm. When she gets up usually she is pretty happy because of the ample sleep. I put cream on her face and ensure she has no poop. Then its time for baby to have lunch.

After lunch range from 1pm to 3pm. That includes cleaning the baby, putting B5 cream on her. Depending on the length of her first nap, determine how long she will be awake for. But generally 2-5 hours - averaging 3 hours (or more if she naps more) which is how long can I go out for. Of course there can be exceptions whereby she will be out and about for longer but that is the risk I need to take, and whether I go on my own or with Jack, where can she nap if she get tired earlier - e.g. car. If we have big errands, then I may have to pack lunch, which I have not really done successfully yet.

I have basically dived down to each one of these areas and have somewhat found my happy medium.

Baby

Care for my baby, physically, emotionally and developmentally

Business

Support husband for the business

Self Care

Go to gym 3x per week
Walk outside once a day
A timeout for myself to reflect and re-energise

Kitchen

Cooking
Preparing for meals
Feeding baby nutritious food

Running a Household

Laundry
Cleaning
Tidy Up

Balancing Families

Managing their expectations
Somewhat regular catch-ups and connecting

Seeking Inspirations & Outside Life

Meet mom friends
Talk to friends

Productive Projects

Be realistic
Chew it in bite sized pieces but be consistent

Judge Less and Accept More

My current routine (bub 10.5 months)

My life

My New Life as a Mom - Part 2

What I need to do every day :)

Find ways to connect with your baby

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