A Schedule to Conquer and First Bites

I do not do well without structure. This is not a new revelation to me, but it seems that no one gave Levi this information. Our days continue to be a hodge-podge of naps (some good some not so much), play time, eating and diapers. I suppose that's normal but I am longing to have some more predictability in my life.

I am taking a history class this quarter and being in school, even part time with a baby is a challenge when we don't have a set routine. I would love to spend his awake time giving him lots of really good attention but when I don't have guaranteed "me time" to study or work out or cook or clean I find all my time with him seems divided between him and another task. That, of course is an exaggeration, he gets plenty of undivided attention, but I believe that him sleeping longer and more regular naps would allow me to do lots of these tasks when he wasn't around. In a side note, I was convicted this weekend that i am spending too much of the time I spend with him behind a screen. Computer, TV, or phone, I want to put down and turn off these devices for the majority of the day. We actually decided that while Levi is awake during the day, we won't have the TV on at all. Partly so we are not distracted, but also because Levi is a little addict and cranes his neck to watch the tube at every opportunity.

I know that parenting is all about flexibility and I am willing to be flexible but I want to have parameters to be flexible within :)

I read two blogs this morning that were inspiring to me. Both my mothers of two, whose kids are slightly older than Levi but are an encouragement that their can be structure in parenting :) One wrote about her day, and when/how she is able to fit in chores, and activity planning as well as blogging while her girls are sleeping or having times of independent play. The other one wrote about having an evening routine which gets her prepared for the next day. Her routine includes time to read before bed which is something I have wanted to do forever.

So I am embracing the desire I have for structure and predictability and deciding to apply my word of the year. Conquer. I will conquer the chaos of my day to day. I will fight to make a schedule that I can stick to; one that has flexible times to accommodate Levi's napping. Giving myself a week to formulate it (remember, I have little to no time to do things like this!) and then start implementing.

In other news, something that is faairly predictable ids Levi's eating. He has yet to eet a food he doesn't like, although there have been a couple that don't like him - or perhaps that lie him too much because they don't want to leave his body in a timely manner.  Luckily his crazy jumping sessions in the Jumperoo help things along - sometimes. I know somethings up (or out) when the frantic bouncing stops and the intense staring and eye watering starts :)

Anyway, Levi has conquered eating the purees from a spoon, drinking water from a sippy with a straw and from a cup, and he is starting to refine is fine motor skills to be able to hold rusks and gnaw on them. I have some of the mesh food holders that you can put slices of pears, or pieces of banana or steamed carrots (as examples, in. Babies hold them and chew on the item in the mesh bag so they can eat but not get any lumps. I love the idea, even though it's messy and I am hoping it will encourage his hand eye coordination as he learns to feed himself. I am already starting to think dressing Levi in clothes that coordinate with the food he is eating is a good idea. I am sure that will only make more and more sense as he is more of a self feeder. Roll on rummer when I can st his naked except for a diaper butt in the high chair and let him go at it before hosing him down when he is done!!

I started looking at swim suits for Levi yesterday when I was fighting my cabin fever with a trip to Target. It suddenly hit me that when he needs a swim suit - I will need to be in one too. Yikes. Suddenly taking my long walks and getting on the elliptical even for a half hour a day seems much more vital to fit in :)

Go schedule!!!

I mentioned how much Levi loves to eat - this is his sad face when he realised that when I washed his face it had signaled no more food for that day. I am biased but I am pretty sure this is the cutest kid I have ever seen!