the nap time hustle

A few months ago, my afternoon routine went something like this:  After the baby's lunch I would take him upstairs and put him down for a nap.  Then I would race downstairs, clean up his high chair, bib, and other lunch things.  Most of his toys had disappeared under furniture and his books were spread across the room, so I would locate them all and put them back on the correct shelves.  Then I'd vacuum our two main rooms (has anyone else noticed that toddlers are basically crumb-machines?).  If I needed to do any work for my volunteer job as key spouse for our squadron, I'd try to do it during this time.  It usually involved making a couple phone calls or sending some quick emails.  After that was done, I'd make my own lunch and try to multitask as I ate.  I usually read one of the books I was reviewing, wrote (or journaled), or caught up on a TV show.  When I was done eating, I'd finish whatever other household chores needed to be done.

But it seemed like most days I was just finishing lunch when Hadden started crying and my alone time was gone.  I never accomplished as much as I wanted to during those fleeting minutes.  At that time I was reading a parenting book and I kept thinking, "If you would just sleep a little longer, you would probably wake up to a better parent!"  Basically, from the moment he went down for a nap, I was on a race against his internal clock.  I call it the nap time hustle.

Since then I've gotten much better at getting things done while he's awake.  I always eat lunch when he does and I'm teaching him to help pick up his toys so I don't have to do that.  Today I was cleaning out the refrigerator while simultaneously making a meal plan and grocery list in my head.  Hadden was right there "helping" me.  Additionally, I've had less to do during nap time because my husband has been encouraging me to take time alone in the evening or on the weekends to write, read, and reflect. Because while I can juggle the household tasks and parenting, good writing really comes from solitude.  I used to feel like I was gasping for breath when Hadden went down for a nap.  Like I just needed a few moments alone to put things back in order and just think.  But since I've been getting that time alone in the evenings, I haven't felt quite so desperate for nap time.

So even though I'm balancing more as Hadden naps, I still fantasize about all the things I would LIKE to get done during nap time.  Here are the some of the usual items on my nap time hustle list.

- Clean the fridge
- Vacuum
- Watch TV
- Read!
- Eat lunch
- Respond to emails
- Write?
- Plan meals for the week
- Make a grocery list
- Do our online shopping for the month (we almost always buy gifts online and ship them directly to the recipient and I have a few other items that we have shipped from Amazon, like our diaper liners)
- Catch up on Key Spouse work
- Laundry (especially folding!)
- Read the news
- Clean up the toys
And (for those days when I'm sick) - Take a quick nap??

I understand that moms of multiple children do this all the time and make it look easy.  I'm not there yet!  :)

Since January, I've been learning exactly what I can do when Hadden is awake.  For instance, he he loves to be next to me while I do household chores and tries his hardest to help with whatever I'm doing.  But also realizing that some of these things are much better left until I can have a little alone time (e.g. writing and anything else that requires an open computer - Hadden thinks it's an invitation for him to type).

I know I'm not the only mom who feels this way!  What types of things do you have on your nap time (or bed time) hustle list?

staying organized during a PCS: part three

I've written before about the two notebooks that we use religiously during our moves.  We love these notebooks so much that we've nicknamed them Big Blue and Little Blue.  Today I'm going to share another hint to staying organized on your move: the first-to-unpack box.

Just like its name implies, this box contains everything you'll need when you get to the new house.  It STINKS to be in an empty home, in a new town with 100 boxes and missing something important - like scissors to open your boxes!  You'll never know where the movers put it!

The first-to-unpack box (or boxes, if you pack more than one) is the usually the last box you tape up at your old house and the last box to go on the truck.  Or you can even have it in your POV.  Here's an idea of what we usually have in ours.  Asterisks indicate something that I'll need as soon as I get into the house, but won't be able to put in the box.  For instance, moving trucks won't take any liquids or chemicals, so we put those in our car for the move.

First To Unpack:

• Toilet paper (one per bathroom)
• Hand soap (one per bathroom)
• Hand towel (one per bathroom)
• Trash bags
• Paper Plates, Plastic Cups, Plastic cutlery, napkins
• Paper towels
• Scissors/Box Cutter
• Swiss Army Knife 
• Phone/iPad/Computer Chargers
• Snacks
• Flashlight
• Bandaids, Tylenol, etc. 
• Printer Paper/Sharpie (label each room so the movers know where to put the boxes)
• Cleaning Supplies**
• Vacuum**

Second To Unpack:

• Shower curtain (and hooks)/bathroom rug
• Toiletries
• Bath towels (one per family member)
• Sheets and blankets
• Coffee pot/tea pot (if you require that first thing in the morning)

Additionally, here's a list of things you'll want to do soon after arriving at the house.

• Clean bathrooms and kitchen (probably just a quick swish as they should be cleaned before you arrive)
• Label each room so boxes get put in the correct room (if you have movers)
• Put trashcan/bag in kitchen (and in bathrooms?)
• Put toilet paper, soap and hand towels in each bathroom (and the shower curtain if you're staying the night there)
• Put dish soap and dish towel in kitchen
• Vacuum where furniture will be (if it's dirty - you'll probably need to vacuum the whole house after the movers are finshed bringing things in)
• Wipe down fridge
• Put sheets/blankets on the bed

What am I missing?  Anyone else have good moving tips to share??

p.s. the giveaway for The Tender Soldier is open for three more days!  I consider it a must-read for all Americans.



Staying Organized During a PCS - Part One
Staying Organized During a PCS - Part Two

staying organized during a PCS (part 1)

When you're in the military, moving is just a way of life.  I grew up moving, so I learned a lot of tricks from my parents and I've passed some of those along to my husband (like how to pack a box of dishes so none of them break!).  We moved to our current base about a year ago and this became my eleventh home!  And I'm only 25!

Organization is vital during a PCS (permanent change of station)!  If you're like me, you like to be organized all the time.  But when half your home is packed away in boxes and the other half is in random piles that are supposed to make sense to you, it's kinda nice to have a system to stay organized.

Here's our secret: a three ring binder

Yep.

We love our's so much that we even named it:  Big Blue (any guesses as to it's color??;)

Moving (especially in the military) means lots of paperwork.  Instead of trying to keep track of all the separate papers, we stick them all in Big Blue and then we just have to remember it!  If you've ever heard of the FLYLady, Big Blue is loosely based on her control journal.

Big Blue has page protectors and it has a couple binder pouches too.  The page protectors hold all the paperwork.  Here are some examples: copies of my husband's orders, copies of our marriage certificate, copies of birth certificate, printout of hotel reservations, maps to our location, copies of driver's licenses, reservation of moving truck, leasing agreement, **birthday/anniversary cards, map of the new base, etc.

**about a month before our move, we buy cards and get them stamped and addressed.  then i put a sticky note on the front with the date it needs to be mailed so we have one less thing to think about during those crazy weeks.

One of the binder pouches hold little things like our passports, stamps, random keys, etc.  The other is where we put all receipts pertaining to our move.  When my husband is in-processing to a new base, he needs those receipts so we make sure that every single one goes directly in Big Blue!  So far, we've never lost one!

Big Blue rides with us in the truck/car which means it's easily accessible at all times and,  at nights, it goes into the hotel with us.  It might seem like overkill to have printouts of everything (maps, hotel reservations, etc) because most of those things can be accessed online these days.  But let's be honest.  Murphy's Law seems especially true during a move.  One time we got to our hotel and their whole computer system was down, but since we had a printout with our confirmation we were able to still get into our room.  The LAST thing you want at the end of a long day of traveling is to have a technology fail.  The maps have come in handy at times when the 3G on our phones wasn't working well (i.e. driving through rural Arkansas).

Anyone else have moving tips to share?? :)

 Staying Organized During a PCS - Part Two
Staying Organized During a PCS - Part Three