Class starts next Monday. This week I rehearse getting everything necessary to get to work on time. Slept till 8 today (thanks, kiddos). Between:
feeding Boy (2.25 yo),
getting him pottied,
getting him in a pull-up
getting him dressed,
nursing Girl (0.3333 yo),
getting her changed and dressed,
packing Girl's frozen milk and change of clothes, putting my pump together, gathering materials for work, and more,
I left the house 2.0 hours later.
And with the following bags:
Breast Pump
Diaper Bag for Girl
Milk Cooler for Girl
Gym Clothes
Work Bag (books, papers etc)
Purse
Little wallet with Baby Phone that I keep always on me
Babyphone?
By the time I got Boy dropped off and to Girl's daycare, It was 2.5 hours later, and time to nurse again. So I nursed Girl for 30 min at the daycare. And got into work at 11 am. That simply won't do. Moreover, I forgot parts to the pump that got washed last night, so now I have to run home to pump.
Two daycares?
Time's gotta come down, Number of Bags has gotta come down, and pre-prep has to go up.
Any suggestions?
I'd love to buy another breast pump for the office so I don't have to tear down, wash and piece back together about 30 parts, but that's expensive and still doesn't solve the problem completely. Thanks, Micro Dr. O for making me laugh in solidarity.
her post, corrected. Sorry
I had a similar problem with the pump. I was always forgetting pieces at home or at school. Eventually, something broke and I had to buy a new set of all the attachment parts. This is when it occurred to me - I just needed two sets of the attachments. I carried the actual pump back and forth, but had a set of all the rest at each place. I wish I had actually thought of this myself, but I guess that was too much with the amount of sleep I was not getting.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I have ever commented here before, but congrats on the new addition and thank you for your blog. As a graduate student with a young daughter and a husband who is also a graduate student (at a school in another city which is at least close enough that we can live together) it is hard to describe the emotional support an anonymous blog like this provides for me.
Dress them the night before & have them sleep in their clothes? Worked for me, where "worked" means I did it for years, and how would anyone know!
ReplyDeleteDitto Kristine's comments. Depending on your model, they make these nifty bags that let you sterilize in the microwave, so it never really has to come home.
ReplyDeleteToddler can eat in the car, most likely. Consider switching meal types (toasted frozen waffle with a bit of peanut butter and a milk box for example). At minimum, revise breakfast to be something you can work with easily. Work with him on dressing himself and only buy clothes that he can work for now.
Gather work materials the night before. Until the girl goes on solids/nurses faster, limit the amount of stuff you take home to what you will actually, for sure, do at home. You'll feel guilty, but the amount of work you do most likely won't change.
Take a bag of enough gym clothes for the week once a week.
Finally, spend some time looking for alternate routes between the daycares and your home. When we moved here, I was seriously thinking that I was either going to have to pay someone to get Bun from daycare or put her in a crappier one closer to my work because it took me so long to get there. It turned out that just parking in a different place on campus makes it a straight shot to get her that avoids two VERY slow traffic lights and mostly eliminates the problem (although I do still walk out on meetings that run long).
I didn't carry a purse until my kids were out of diapers. If you have to leave a diaper bag at daycare, stock it with the stuff you need, and just switch the stuff out as needed. If you carry it with you, get a model that has someplace for your personal stuff and use it as a purse as well.
Good luck. It's a hard time!
Wow. To think I ever complained about taking care of my DOG in the mornings! You are a rock star.
ReplyDeleteI also bought a second pump. Worth the money.
ReplyDeleteI eventually got our routine to under an hour in the mornings, mostly by prepping everything the night before.
Even laid out breakfast in advance (no debating what to make.. it is already sitting there.) Clothes (mine and theirs) laid out, daycare bags (including bottles/lunch) prepped, work papers/computer, purse, etc all packed and IN THE CAR (seriously, I couldn't stand running in and out of the house with kids in tow)
It will become a well oiled machine. Change/dress one and while they sit down eat, pump/feed other..
You can do it! Practice makes perfect.
I only have one kiddo and barely get by some days but a few suggestions that others have mentioned...Get two sets of all the breastpump accessories and one of those sterilizer bags mentioned if you have a microwave- this really helps. Also, my BP came with a little cooler and a ice block thingy (blanking on what this is called) that you freeze and reuse. It holds 4 bottles of milk - just pump and stick the milk in there.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if you can keep all the gym clothes in the car (if you work out 4 times a week have 4 outfits) and just bring in the dirty ones. Replenish once a week (same day each week for ease). You will have to purchase a few bras depending on how often you work out but it will be worth it.
Do what you can the night before. Keep items you have to have with the babyphone and other purse items in your workbag or other bag - or get a tiny purse that will fit in the workbag (this is what I do). My purse fits in both my diaper bag and my workbag.
And when I was nursing I kept some disposable nursing pads everywhere...in my backpack/computer bag, my diaper bag, my car...you get the idea. I found that I got caught up in things when on campus and always leaked.
Good luck! I am amazed by all of the moms and professors/students out there. That is one reason I read so many of these blogs - for inspiration to know that I can do it too.
So useful! I am pregnant with my first and reading all this helps me understand the challenges ahead of me. Thanks
ReplyDeleteSorry for the late comment, you probably already have a second pump. I have a little fridge in my office (the less than $100 jobby, $25 if used) and refrigerated my pump parts while at work. Yes, I'd take them out of the fridge for pumping :o. If you're careful, they don't have to get all messy. It meant that I did not have to wash them at all at work. I'd take them home and wash the two sets together in the evening.
ReplyDelete