Tuesday, September 15, 2009

How Do I...

I am here!

I am alone with the kiddos this week. Pete should be having some vacation next week- but for this week I am flying mostly solo- still getting some help from family here and there.

So....Um

How do I go to the bathroom?

I can't leave Jude alone because Eliza knows I am occupied and thinks it is a free for all. She takes this time to HUG her brother, POKE her brother, SCREAM in his face...and all that good stuff. I am currently sitting Eliza on the potty and reading to her while I go to the bathroom. Jude is stationed near by in his bouncy seat. OR Eliza sits on the big potty while I read to her and rock Jude in the bouncy seat. Oh the joys of motherhood. If my husband ever tells me he needs to go use the bathroom alone I might just smack him upside the head.

How do I cook dinner?

My answer to this is cook on weekends for the week, cook dinner in the morning when everyone seems to be in a better mood, and utilize the crock pot. Hopefully this strategy works! I can say the baby weight shouldn't last long because I have no time to eat.


Get Eliza to nap?
I still rock Eliza to sleep. So...I basically need to wait for Jude to either be sleeping or in a very good mood to rock E to sleep. If I lay with her she will NOT go to sleep. I can't lay with Jude and her because she is a whirling dervish and will smoosh him like a pancake. Wish me luck on this one.

Eat?
Eating dinner myself is not going to be easy. Jude, like most babies, can be fussy in the evening. Of course it seems like I am always the last one to eat. I need to work on this one stat- I can hear my tummy rumble!

11 comments:

Meredith said...

You will figure it out, and when it is all over you will look back and realize it really wasn't that bad.

Beth said...

You poor thing. I remember when I was a nanny of 4 young children it was really hard. I had to pee with the door open and they weren't even my kids! At least I went home at 6:00 every day. I can't imagine how you must feel with it being around the clock but I do hope to someday find out. I'm sure you will be a pro in no time and then I can turn to you for advice.

Anonymous said...

I nursed while I ate lunch today...sorry I'm no help. But it has gotten better!

Christy said...

Oh the joys of having a newborn and toddler! Such fun! You will never go to the bathroom by yourself ever again. SERIOUSLY. When Izzy was a newborn, I would prop him in the Boppy while I went potty (Porgie just ran around doing whatever the hell she wanted to do). To this day, they still tag along whenever I go to the bathroom. Don't even try to cook dinner. Get used to microwave burritos and frozen pizzas for a while. I used to have the opposite problem in the sleep department. The only way I could get Izzy to sleep was to nurse and rock him, but Porgie would keep whining at my knees or slamming bedroom doors. So I ended up using a baby gate to keep her in the living room while I put Izzy to sleep. Obviously, that won't work for you, but maybe it will help you later (when Jude has his own quirky sleep habits!).

Good luck friend! You will eventually figure out a routine that works. It is just a pain in the ass until you find that balance.

Lori said...

you will figure it out. I used the bouncy chair a lot with Colby. to make dinner I would put the tv on for Blake and put Colby in the bouncy chair on the island in the kitchen. I pretty much had one hand bouncing the seat and the other hand cooking. I too do a lot of weekend cooking and weekday heating. You do what you have to do. You need to eat because Jude needs the calories from you... I ate a lot while nursing as odd as that sounds

Unknown said...

These are all real problems I know! The bathroom one is what I did, have D come in the bathroom with me. As for napping, it basically dropped off completely except for car rides. At bedtime I was lucky to be able to lie next to D and she would fall asleep while I nursed E. I still do this. For the first 3 months I ate everything standing up with E in the sling! I know you're not supposed to but I also cooked with her in the sling being VERY careful. Overall it gets easier but the challenges do change over time!

Sheri said...

Awww, this made me giggle. Not laughing at you, just remembered going to the bathroom many times while still nursing. Grace watched a lot of movies in those early days. Honestly, putting Grace in front of the tv worked best for me. I learned how to go one handed if I had to hold Noah and go. hey, then you only have to wash one hand. :O
I would set up camp in the recliner(do you have one) with a movie on and both of them would nap on me. I always made sure I had a glass of water nearby(that is why I go through so many laptops :) ) It was the only way I could get her to sleep and get through the day. I would even get a nap this way. That recliner was the best thing I ever bought.
Showering: I know that you didn't mention this but I would bring the bouncy seat in the bathroom and leave the shower curtain open enough so I could entertain the baby. I would not pull up the faucet thingy up all the way so there was still some water coming out of the faucet when I was showering and I would put Grace in the tub with me. I still get my bath everyday by doing this. And we ALL get bathed.

Take out is your friend for now. Have your hubby stop on his way home if he comes home at a decent hour. I ate a lot of sandwiches and frozen dinners. I premade things like brown rice and pasta for spagetti and kept it in the fridge for Grace. I kept lots of fruits and yogurt on hand. Just eat anything that is quick. I ate so many peanut butter sandwiches I don't like them much anymore. Don't worry about cooking right now.

You will get through this and adapt to what works. It is a trial and error thing and it sucks I know. I still have to eat in the living room with a baby on my boob most days. Heck, right now I just typed this with one hand while Noah was nursing now he is asleep in my lap. LOL

Hang in there. You are doing a great job! Soon, you will be the one giving us all advice on what works for you.

Christy is right, unless there is someone else entertaining your kids, you will never go to the bathroom alone again. But your husband will for some reason? Seriously, I go upstairs to go sometimes and as soon as I sit on the pot, I hear "Mommy?!!" LOL

Pam said...

It sounds to me like you have some good ideas in place. If you ever figure it all out, let me know because I could use some pointers!

Funky Food Trisha said...

Get an ergo! Your tiny one will be able to go on your back soon which will make cooking a snap. You've got the right idea for the bathroom. As for naptime--pray the newborn is asleep when it's time for the big one to nap. And eating--stock up on Builder Bars by Clif bar. A ton of protein, decent source of fat and lots of other good stuff. My husband traveled alot when our boys were little. And at 20 months apart, I feel your pain!

Marcy said...

"You will figure it out, and when it is all over you will look back and realize it really wasn't that bad."

Um, maybe I'm different from other moms, but I look back on the first months with my son and YES IT WAS THAT BAD. ; )

As for you, Danielle, you = WONDER WOMAN. You are amazing!

Sheri said...

OMG Marcy, I would have to agree with you. LOL

It was definitely that bad! I must have been in survival mode.

Danielle, I thought about you last night when I was freezing up soup for later. (((HUGS))) girlie! Wish I was closer, I would bring you some.