6:00 PM: Time to whip up dinner! We get a box delivered from either Plated or Blue Apron every week and our nanny helps with a lot of the prep including washing and chopping everything so that it’s ready to go when I get home. I can usually get everything cooked and on the table under 15 minutes! I actually have a few free boxes with Plated available since I’ve been using them for so long so feel free to email me if you’re interested!
6:45 PM: Since I didn’t do a lunchtime workout, I fit in a little exercise after dinner. The kids are usually still full of energy so I’ll put Mei in the stroller while Dylan rides his tricycle. Adrian isn’t keen on working out after dinner so on the days that I go jogging with the kids, Adrian will stay home and help clean up. Dylan and I usually make a game of catching each other as we do a quick 20-30 minute run around the neighborhood!
7:15 PM: Time to start the bedtime routine! Adrian and I get the kids bathed and into pajamas. Both kids love playing in the water so we usually have to cut off bath time to just 15 minutes! We spend the next few minutes putting on lotion (both Dylan and Mei love smearing it on their skin and my skin too! It’s actually one of my favorite times just to be silly with them.
7:45 PM: Storytime. Dylan has been wanting to do a joint storytime with Mei so usually he’ll pick out one book while Mei picks out the other. Current favorites in our rotation include Hiding Phil for Dylan and Huggy Kissy for Mei!
8:15 PM: Adrian helps tuck Dylan into bed while I take Mei over to her room and nurse her for a bit before she falls asleep. We shoot for an 8:30 PM bedtime although sometimes the kids take longer to fall asleep and it’ll get pushed to as late as 9PM.
9:00 PM: After catching up with Adrian for a bit, it’s time for me to sit down and blog! While I used to use a combination of Lightroom and Photoshop to do my picture editing, I’ve been loving the latest Barcelona preset from DreamyPresets and have been able to do everything in Lightroom (details of how I edit at the bottom of this post)! Still, it generally takes me about 1-1.5 hours to go through pictures and edit them before I can upload. I love this quiet time at night though and catch up on an audio book (currently listening to this one) while I plug away on the computer.
11:00 PM: I’m in the middle of writing up my post when I hear Kennedy crying. She’s still had issues with sleeping through the night (even with sleep training…) so I go in and rock her for a bit to settle her down.
11:30 PM: Mei is out again and since it’s getting late, I go in and wash off my makeup and change to get ready for bed too (details of my nighttime skincare routine). Adrian has already fallen asleep and I’m already feeling pretty sleepy so I hold off on finishing the blog post until tomorrow morning. I check a few emails in bed (so bad, I know…) before I turn in for the night too!
OVERALL:
Time breakdown: work (8.5-9 hrs), blog (3.5-4 hrs), sleep (6-7 hrs), exercise (30 min – 1 hr), family (2.5-3 hrs)
Having so many responsibilities usually means that I end up sacrificing sleep a bit more but I do try to make up for it on the weekends. Similarly, now that I’m working full time, I don’t have as much time that I can spend with the kids on the weekdays since it’s just a small window from when I get off work to when they go to bed at night. We do try to make a point to have something fun planned on the weekends though where the whole family can do something together. I also cherish the brief playful moments I get with them in the mornings when they come into our bed as well as in the evenings as we wind down from the day. It was easy to take certain things for granted when I was a stay-at-home mom, but now I feel like my time is so precious with my family that I make the most of every minute!
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++ All pictures were taken with this camera (just upgraded!), lens, tripod, and remote.
Great post and you have nailed it down! Thanks for the tips on photo editing 🙂
Lisa
http://www.theeverydayelevated.com
I love your blog! Thanks for posting your routine. You are just as busy as I am and I like how you manage to fit everything in in one day. I used to run a photography business but gave it up as it was just way too much after four kids and a full time job. I do miss it though and often think about starting a personal blog.
I just checked out your photography site and it’s amazing!! I can definitely imagine life being too busy with 4 kids — I can barely manage 2! but I would love to read your blog if you started one! thanks so much for reading.
xx,
kileen
Thank you SO much for sharing your daily routine! I am currently a working lady, and I aspire to be a working mom someday. Sometimes I worry that it will be difficult to manage everything and find balance. I am inspired by your ability to juggle so many priorities. 🙂
I love this so much! Super fun to read!
-Kate // http://www.classyandkate.com
Thank you Killeen.
I live in Fort Worth, and I’m new to the blogging community. As a 2nd teacher my summers are free to spend being mommy and blogging. However, once the school year begins on August my routine will have to change. Thank you so much for your tips! (P.S I love that your kids have a nanny and get to be at home instead of going go to daycare. I’m so happy for your family!)
http://sassyteacherchic.com