An example of our routine with Charlie at four and a half and Eve at three months. I'm on maternity leave and Tom's office has moved to London Bridge.
4.30am - Eve wakes for a feed, this is good, she's slept for over six hours. I burp her and she falls asleep I put her back in the moses basket, not so good she won't settle. I burp her again, feed her again, burp her again and she's asleep in her basket at 5.20am.
5.45am - Charlie wakes up and comes into our room. I shush him so he doesn't wake Eve, give him a hug and take him back to his room with the Kindle. He's been wetting the bed recently but is dry today which is good. Charlie plays on the tablet and I go back to bed. Tom gets up at 6am and gets ready, then gets Charlie dressed at 6.45am.
7am - Eve is still asleep, so I get washed and dressed whilst Tom gets Charlie's breakfast. T then leaves for work and as the baby is still asleep I'm able to put the washing on, continue unpacking our bags from last week's holiday and polish Charlie's school shoes. I also eat a banana and make a coffee.
7.50am - Baby still asleep so I wake her to give us enough time before the school run. I change and dress Eve then bring her downstairs for a feed. Charlie is playing Rayman on the PlayStation.
8.20am - We pack Charlie's reading bag with his reading book, contact book, completed homework sheets and toy dragon. We put on coats and shoes and I put Evie in the sling.
8.30am - We walk through the drizzle to school. On the way we see a missing cat poster and I chat to the mum who put it up and promise to look out for the cat, she got spooked by fireworks and not come home. At school we wait for the gate to be unlocked and I talk to another mum about the half term holiday. When Miss K unlocks the gate C rushes through and waits to say goodbye at the classroom door.
9.00 - Back at home I grab an orange juice and oat bar and feed E whilst watching the new David Attenborough wildlife documentary on iPlayer. We have 2 hours before we need to be at E's music class. Baby is grumpy before epically filling her nappy, so I change her then put her back in her cosy cow suit and into the sling. It's raining outside so I put my parka on around both of us and get out the brolly. We have a walk through the park and although soggy, it's nice.
11am - We arrive at the nice pub in the park for our Boppin' Babies music session. I meet my friend K with baby C and she introduces me to some of the other Mums. The session is brilliant, lots of songs, instruments and props including a parachute, bells, rubber frogs and scarves. Eve is the youngest there but likes taking it all in and is tired out by the end. We stay for a coffee and a chat, E falls fast asleep.
1.30pm - We walk home through pretty torrential rain, E is snug in the carrier under my umbrella. At home lunch is a mishmash of canapes and salad leftover from my brother in law's photography exhibition launch. I feed and change E whilst watching TV, then it's time to collect her brother.
3.15pm - Charlie bursts out of school brimming with excitement from the day. It was little Miss R's birthday and she picked him to help her make cupcakes for the class. He also got his very first reading book with words in which he is v proud about. At home he eats his cupcake and has some juice. He has an hour and a half before tea to choose what he wants to do. Whilst I feed Eve he watches a little of The Busy Town Mysteries on Netflix and then plays Rayman.
5pm - C's tea is ham sandwiches, a babybel, cucumber and a couple of mini sausage rolls. After tea we go upstairs and C helps with E's bath. He selects a sleepsuit for her and washes her tummy with the sponge. I dry her in the cot whilst C plays with his 6 plastic Halloween rats in her bath water. We then tip the baby bath into the main bath and run more hot water and bubbles for C. He can undress himself but needs help getting in and out of the bath. Once in I leave him to play and rescue a screaming Evie, I take her through to watch her big brother and she calms down enough to go back in the cot with the mobile on. I wash Charlie's hair and he begs for 10 more minutes, we settle at 5 and I entertain E whilst sorting through her baby clothes, she's into 3-6 months now so the things she's grown out of need to be packed away. I help C get dried whilst holding a crying baby, then we all head downstairs. E has another feed and reads his books to me.
6.30pm - Daddy's home and he chats with C and gets a smile from the baby. It's bin day tomorrow so Tom sorts the recycling and cleans the cat's litter tray whilst I finish reading with C. At 7pm T takes C to bed where they clean teeth and read a story. I continue to feed E.
7.15pm - T takes E whilst I get my tea, she starts grumping so I have to eat fast then take her back for a feed. She feeds and snoozes on me until we go to bed at 9pm.
9pm - Bedtime, I'm exhausted, E's woken up as T took her upstairs whilst I got changed. I feed her in bed and get her fast asleep in her moses basket at 9.45pm. I fall asleep pretty much immediately ready to do it all again tomorrow.
