Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Getting Ready for Work

 photo 64fef83c1d7e11e38a5e22000a9f15ef_7_zpsb090d5e2.jpg
When I went back to work, I was so worried about how my morning would go with Ellie and how to work the timing for us. I asked all my mommy friends what they do and have been able to work out a routine that works for us. I’ve been back to work now for just over a month and my routine has worked great so far for us (even with some hiccups) and I thought I’d share what I’m doing with you. Of course, this may not work for everyone, but may give you some ideas on how to make getting ready in the morning a bit easier.

Here are some things to note:
- I am responsible for taking Ellie to Daycare each day (Matt picks her up)
- I’m alone in the mornings, as Matt leaves for work when I’m just getting up

 photo 6d7529fe213011e3990022000aeb0f0c_7_zps2e289157.jpg
Things I do the night before to make my morning easier:
- Shower
- Pack snacks for my lunch
- Pack Ellie’s daycare bag, all but the milk (toys & extra clothes)
- Pick out what I’m going to wear (even my jewelry) and lay it out ready to go

One of the best pieces of advice I was given was from my sorority big sis who advised me to give myself 2 hours in the morning before I have to leave to get ready. It would give me plenty of time for any baby mishaps whether Ellie woke up too early, had a blowout, whatever, I would have enough time to still fix the issue and get out the door on time. So far that has really worked for us!

 photo 4d3456f0218b11e38ea222000a9f1946_7_zps732645a0.jpg
Last week when Ellie woke up early we had enough time to read some Dr Seuss before leaving the house
Here’s how my morning typically goes:
  • 5am Wakeup call!
  • 5-530 Hair/makeup/bathroom break. The quickest I’ve been able to do my hair/makeup is in 18 minutes! I still do a “full face” and haven’t left anything out of my beauty routine. My hair is really easy to maintain and holds a curl well (see my secrets here) so I usually just have to brush it out and sometimes curl the front pieces and around the crown.
  • 530-6 I eat breakfast with one hand while I pump one breast at a time using my other hand (I keep one electric pump at home and another at work).
  • 6-610 Make my sandwich, pack Ellie’s milk for the day, and put my pump parts together and pack them in my bag (I wash them all each night after work and let them air dry overnight).
  • 610-615 Get dressed, but I leave any necklaces and sometimes my shirt off so I can nurse Ellie easier.
  • 620-645/650 Wake up Ellie softly, change her diaper, nurse, and snuggle.
  • 645/645-7 Take Ellie to Daycare, snuggle a bit more, talk with our daycare provider about her night/day and let her know when she last ate and such.

There have been a few days where Ellie would wake up at 4 or 5am to nurse and kind of throw off my little schedule, but I was still able to nurse her and put her back down and get ready in time. Last week she woke up Thursday and Friday both at 530 bright eyed and bushy tailed so we got to spend a lot of time together before she went to daycare. Some days I’m doing things to the minute and other days I’ll find I have some extra to myself or to wake her up earlier and spend time with her.

Depending on how our night went I like to keep Ellie sleeping for as long as possible, but I try and have her up for the last 20 minutes before I leave giving her enough time to wake up before daycare and it gives us time for any accidents. Sometimes she takes a minute to wake up and then be bright eyed and bushy tailed and then other days it takes her a long time to wake up and she’ll mostly relax or sleep on me for that time.

I'm always looking for ways to get ready quicker or make life simpler. If you have any suggestions, please let me know!

11 comments :

Sarah said...

Thanks for sharing this! I love seeing how other mama's are doing. My baby girl isn't even here yet and I am absolutely dreading going back to work. I have a 45-60 minute commute due to traffic and the only way to make it better is to leave earlier which I can't even imagine with a baby. My husband also leaves when I am getting up and I am just imagining lots of chaos and tears. I'll need to make sure I plan my nights better to make for smoother mornings.

KRISTIN said...

Sounds pretty similar to my mornings. :) Isn't it crazy how much time you need to allow yourself? But it's always good to have too much time! And doing as much as humanly possible the night before has saved me FOR SURE!

Lindsay Erin said...

I'm going to be a SAHM for the first 8 months of our baby's life but this will definitely come in handy when it's time to go back to work. Thanks for the advice! Already I lay out my clothes for the week because if I don't I stand in front of the closet WAY too long.

"B" said...

New commenter/follower:) Oh man, I need to wake up earlier (I only give myself an hour). We LEAVE the house at 6:00Am on the dot to drop off and for me to be at work at 6:45AM, perhaps I need to pick out my clothes before hand. I do everythign else at night though, a huge time saver. Definately helps. Also helps that she is a bit older (16months) so nurses at 5AM and then is playing while I finish everything else up.

Jess Beer said...

We do a lot of the same! I also have Abbie's milk and food ready to go in the fridge the night before, and try to pack my lunch as well. Setting out clothes is a great idea - I need to start doing that!

Kristin Thompson said...

She is just too cute & this sounds like such a great routine!!

Kristin
crumbsandcurls.blogspot.com

Meg O. said...

Sounds a lot like our routine was! Now Greg is taking K to school and I do the pick up. A lot more different now since there are no pumping/nursing parts to the equation. But we are still doing EVERYTHING (including packing her bag, lunch, diapers, etc) the night before so the morning is a breeze. Glad the routine is working out for you!

Morgan said...

Ellie is adorable. Your routine sounds pretty fool proof, good job momma. My best piece of advice I ever got was to get multiple pump parts. I keep one set at work just in case I have a mommy moment and forget something-that would not be good, or comfortable.

Tara said...

Sounds like you have a great system! I'm a SAHM but I still have trouble being on time to anything we have scheduled in the mornings :/

Tara said...

Sounds like you have a great system! I'm a SAHM but I still have trouble being on time to anything we have scheduled in the mornings :/

eliz said...

Wow 2 hours earlier! I can see why though since you are alone with her in the mornings. My husband and I leave at the same time (I make the drive to the daycare...but it is by my work vs. by home) We basically wake up at 5:50 and are out the door by 6:50...but I only put on half my make up the rest I put at the drive thru of starbucks...hahahaha