Stomach Bug & Our Typical Days

Sorry I have been MIA for a while. I had every intention of blogging at the end of last week but instead got the stomach bug and spent the entire weekend in bed. Trust me it was not fun and I am still recuperating. At least so far its just me that got it and Nathaniel and Chad are still healthy. Lets hope it stays that way. Chad was on Nathaniel duty most of the weekend and thankfully things ran pretty smoothly.

Playing in his tunnel

 A friend commented on one of my last post and asked what I do with Nathaniel all day since he doesn't watch TV. Well our days and weeks seem pretty full most of the time. A typical at home day starts around 7am with breakfast then getting dressed. Then we play in the playroom with blocks, trucks, books, music table, etc have snack and usually more inside play before lunch. I usually try to work on Nathaniel's therapy throughout the day - he is supposed to walk with his walker and work on walking without. I also have to make him sit legs straight out and do stretches - we get creative with our play to try and make this fun. After lunch we read stories then its down for a nap. If I am lucky he sleeps for about 2 hours but here recently that has been a hit or miss (sometimes I only get 1 hour). After nap if it is nice outside we try to get out with the dogs and his walker and play. He also loves to swing and watch Aries and Eve run around and chase toys. One of his other favorite things to do is play in the cars and pretend to drive - he would do this for hours if I would let him sit and drive the steering wheel and push all the buttons.

Blocks

Since I work from home sometimes he has to play on his own while I make phone calls or take care of a few things. I try to do the bulk of my work before he wakes in the morning (I get up between 5 and 5:30) or while he naps but if the phone is crazy he has to play by himself for a bit. On days where I have to run errands or have planned activities with Nathaniel (play groups, therapy, story time, MOMs Club activities) we are normally out most of the morning then home for a late nap. After nap we either play inside with toys or go out for some fresh air before coming in to fix dinner. Nathaniel will usually play in the 1 cabinet in my kitchen that he is allowed to touch while I pull dinner together. After dinner he takes a bath then usually Daddy is home to play before bedtime stories and night night. I usually only spend one day at home then a day out and rotate through the week. If we spend too many days at home we get board but with errands, story time at the library once a week and MOMs Club activities we can stay pretty busy. TV just doesn't fit in the schedule and I don't really want him watching it much at this age.

"Helping" with laundry

Now I will say if he is really fussy and clingy and I have to make a couple of phone calls or take care of some work stuff that can't wait till nap I will turn on PBS and let him watch a few minutes of an educational show. We are also able to stay away from the TV because in our house the only TV on the main floor is in my bedroom. The family room with TV is in the basement and my cell for work doesn't work very well down there so we usually only spend weekends when Daddy is home downstairs. My family room upstairs has become Nathaniel's playroom since it connects to the kitchen and my laptop for work sits on the kitchen table during the day.

Reading to mommy

So that's what our days look like!