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Wednesday, March 31, 2010

What do you Think?

To schedule, or not to schedule... Let me just start by saying, I am a schedule person. I love schedules. I don't like surprises. Sometimes I have trouble accepting a change in the schedule - even if it means a pedicure. Don't worry - I get the pedicure, its just hard to change gears. So - do you have a schedule? Is it written down, in your head or just jumbles. What do you find works best for your kids? How do you incorporate school/learning in your day? I will probably always be a schedule person, although I imagine that I will have to be more adjustable when I am home full-time...

Here is a look at our schedule:

4:45AM - Max's alarm goes off and by 5:10am he is out of bed and out the door. I get up when he leaves and I get ready for the day.
5:30/6:00AM - KayLynn awakens. I try to let her get up on her own because she is so much happier if I do. Some days I wake her and take her to the babysitter in her pjs - but usually she is dressed and ready for the day.
6:00AM - KayLynn gets her soy milk and toast while she watches about 15 minutes of cartoons - actually she spends this time waking up fully.
6:20AM - We pack up the car and the kid and we head to the baby sitter's house. KayLynn and I chat the whole way - she usually talks about whatever babysitter she is going to see that day, and their pets.
7:00AM~3:30PM - I work. KayLynn plays at babysitters
3:50~5:15PM - 2 days a week I Pick KayLynn up and we go play till I workout. We either go to the park, or the library, or home and I use this time as condensed playtime with her. The other days, I work out and then I get her and we go play.
5:35~6:30PM - Workout/spin class
6:45PM - Home getting dinner for KayLynn, and then afterwards she gets a bath and we read books till bedtime - she is in bed before 8pm
8:15PM - Clean up the house and get dinner for Max on. Pack our stuff for the next day, and pack lunches for KayLynn and Max.
9:45PM - Max gets home and we eat dinner. I try to wait and eat dinner with him, but sometimes I am too hungry!

Of course, Mondays are a little more complicated because I try to do Pilate's from 7:30~8:30 as well. My dad is watching K for me, in the church nursery, so that I can do it, so I should be able to be more consistent with that. Wednesdays Max is off, so I workout in the morning or afternoon, depending on how I feel, then we have family time or I get some time by myself and KayLynn gets daddy time. What do you do?

3 comments:

jbhinman said...

I think with kids schedules are very important. Mine isn't rigid though because it is also important to be flexible. The things I am pretty rigid on are preschool, meal times, nap/quiet time, reading time at bed, and bedtime. the things I'm not so rigid on are bathtime, playtime, reading time, organized activities time. these are on as needed basis. Bathtime when kids get gross and the rest when they start to get out of control and or it is time for something new. As a teacher I taught many kids that weren't on schedules and they were the most difficult. The MOST important one for us is to keep them on a good bedtime schedule.

Anonymous said...

We are very scheduled. :) Almost everything has its own time and place, within reason. School always begins at 8, the kids get up at 7, lunch is at noon, rest-time is at 2-4, etc. Mom lets the kids have some choice in the order they do their school, and they can do what they want in their free time, but the things that must happen are scheduled. The things that are irregular (such as doctor appointments, playdates, friends coming over, extra rehersals, etc.) go on the big calender in our kitchen.

~Haley

Erika said...

I don't really like to call it a schedule as much as a routine. Days are so different around here. Adam doesn't leave at the same time, I work some days throughout the week plus my regular Friday, so we just try and do things in order-ish so that when it isn't the same it isn't as hard to adjust for everyone including Ez.