8 months in

A couple months back I wrote about what life was like with a 4.5 month old.  Things change so fast with babes that I thought it might be fun to do an update.  Especially because I was thinking about it today and I know 9 babies being born this year (and 2 next year!) so maybe some of those future mamas might be interested in seeing what they have to dread look forward to.

4:38 am - Thatbaby wakes up for a bite to eat.  I no longer use this time for google reading because, frankly, I don't have the luxury of sleeping in anymore.  Inevitably I end up falling asleep while he's eating.  I wake up and put him back in his crib before heading back to bed myself.

6:00 am - Thatboy wakes up and takes the Thatdog out for a walk.  I stay in bed curled up trying to catch a couple more zzzz's.

6:15 am - both Thatbaby and I are up.  Thatboy takes baby duty while I shower.

6:30am - TRADESIES!  Thatboy hits the shower and I feed Thatbaby and change his diaper.

6:50am - TRADESIES!  Thatboy gets dressed and plays with Thatbaby while I do my hair and makeup.

Hey dad - wanna play ball?

7:12 am - Family breakfast.  We all have something a little different.  I have oatmeal, Thatboy has yogurt, and Thatbaby has some cantaloupe and a mini-blueberry muffin.

Mom - my watermelon tastes funny.

7:36 am - Thatboy leaves for work.  Thatbaby gets dressed.

7:45 am - Thatbaby plays with his toys while I clean up our breakfast mess and get our bags ready to go.

It starts out a little something like this...

but he always ends up like this.

Our bags - Thatbaby's daycare bag, my "odds and ends" bag for work with my lunch and a water bottle, and my pump.

8:02 am - I try to sneak in one last feeding for Thatbaby.  Partially so he needs less bottles at daycare (which seems to be a futile endeavor on my part) and partially so I can go longer without having to pump at work.  However, when he wakes up to early (like this morning) this last morning meal usually results in a mini-nap.

I let him sleep while I finish getting myself ready.

8:26 am - It's raining outside, so we put on our shoes (me) and jackets (both of us) and head out for the day.

8:35 am - Drop Thatbaby off at daycare.

Thatbaby immediately starts playing with his friends.  Mom?  Who's she?

8:45 am - I hook up to my pump so I can get in a quick pump session while I head to work.

9:05 am - Work!

I spend the morning arranging depositions, finalizing settlements, and other things of a similarly thrilling nature.

12:00 pm - My first pump break.  I use this time to eat lunch.

Mini-chocolate chip cookies, jelly beans, ham and cheese sandwich, carrots, broccoli, strawberries, and blueberries.

12:40: Back to work.  I try to get some emails taken care of that got ignored during trial prepping, review discovery, and more fun fun fun.

3:35 pm - Second pump break.

4:10 pm - back to work.  I meet with the head honchos and go over some of the things that need to be taken care of this week.

5:08 pm - Leave work!

5:22 pm - Pick Thatbaby up from daycare.  Today he had 2 naps and 4 bottles.  He spent the day playing with science buckets and "patting" his toys.

5:30pm - I wrap up Thatbaby and we take Thatdog for a walk.

The only way to travel.

During our walk we inevitably run into Thatboy as he gets home.

5:45 pm - Thatboy entertains Thatbaby as I get dinner started.

Tonight's dinner - Bobby Flay's Chipotle-Honey glazed chicken.  This is my new favorite chicken dish.  It's so good, we had it two nights in a row.  Monday night (as pictured) and Tuesday night over salad.

Chipotle-Honey-Glazed Chicken (from Bobby Flay)

1/2 cup honey
2 tbsp pureed canned chipotle chilies in adobo
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp ancho chili powder
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp Spanish paprika
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/2″ thickness
1 tsp sesame seeds

1. Heat your grill (or grill pan) to high.
2. Whisk together the honey, chipotle puree, mustard, 1 tbsp ancho powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tbsp oil in a small bowl.
3. Stir together the remaining ancho powder with the coriander, cumin, and paprika in another medium bowl.  Add the chicken breasts, the remaining oil, and toss to coat.  Season with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper.
4. Place the chicken on the grill and grill for 3-4 minutes.  Flip the chicken and brush the pieces with the honey-chipotle sauce.  Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes.  Flip the chicken again and brush the other side with the sauce; cook for 1 more minute.    Flip once more and cook for another minute. Remove chicken from the grill and brush on more sauce as desired. Sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving.

6:18 pm - Family dinner time!

Thatbaby doesn't do spicy, so he got regular grilled chicken, cucumbers, rice, and a whole wheat roll.

6:48 pm - Thatboy and Thatbaby head to the bath while I clean up dinner.

7:27 pm - TRADESIES!  I give Thatbaby a last nursing session and put him to sleep while Thatboy finishes the dishes.

I'm ready to be done with this guy mom.

8:00 pm - I make lunches for all of us.

Thatboy and I get chicken soup with rice, some pepperjack cheese, butternut squash, strawberries, and grapes.

Thatbaby gets butternut squash, string cheese, strawberries, and grapes

8:15 pm - I get to relax on the couch with Thatboy.  We watch some tv, I get to play a little on the computer.

9:00 pm - Pump and wash bottles.

10:00 pm - We head to bed.  I had my book club last week, and hadn't finished the book, so I'm really pushing myself to read a chapter every night.  Problem is, the book, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is really sad.  So I end up crying myself to sleep every night.  I know.  Woe is me.