An Ordinary Day

There isn't much I would change about our life except maybe the length of my husband's commute. Otherwise, our life fits me like a glove. Here's a glimpse of a typical day:

7:15am: Alarm Goes off. Shawn walks the dogs, I feed the cats. He gets ready for work, I sit at the computer and work for a few hours

9:00am: Caden begins to stir. I zip into the shower and then collect him.

9:30-1:00: Caden has breakfast. We play around the house. I do a few work-related tasks. We go to some morning activity about 3 days a week and then he has lunch.

1:00-2:00: Naptime. (Sometimes.) During this time, I either work, clean, or nap myself (not often!!) And it's not always an hour. Lately it's only been about 20 minutes!

2:00-6:00: More play time!! Occasional afternoon activity. I may tutor a French student some days and Caden has a neighborhood girl watch him.

6:00-7:00: Time to make dinner and for Caden, this means emptying the kitchen cabinets.

7:00: Shawn gets home, we eat dinner.

7:45-8:30: Playtime in the basement with daddy!!

8:30-10:30: Alone time for Shawn and I

10:30: I head upstairs to read, Shawn plays video games. (Alone time for each of us)

That's pretty much it! I try to do errands during the week so our weekends can be used for family activities. And that's worked out well so far.

I love looking at this timeline...there is so much playtime for Caden. During his playtime, he often occupies himself, climbs all over one of the dogs, or we'll sit and read. He loves to look through books and people aren't kidding when they kids are sponges. I can't get over what he retains. Last night he started saying "dinosaur" although it sounded much more like "dine-do-door". Too unbelievably cute.

Every parent does what's best for them and their child. Not everyone can stay home and I understand and respect that. I feel so blessed to be able to stay home with Caden. He has a large vocabulary, one-on-one attention throughout the day, social interaction with other kids several times a week, and occasional visits to daycare when I have a meeting.

I know this was the right decision for us. Even if it meant fewer vacations, fewer new clothes, and not as many toys and gadgets for a few years. Those things I can always have at some point in my life. Getting my two-year-old back when he's in college will be a tough thing to accomplish.

(I may actually have an adoption update later today as well. We may have found an agency!!)