What do you do when your child goes to preschool?

[RedRobyn2021]

DD is almost 3 and will be going to preschool a couple of mornings a week after Christmas, she's not been in a childcare setting before. I'm just going to send her a couple of mornings a week, it's only 3 hours a visit, but it's more time than I've ever had alone since she was born.

What do other parents do whilst their child is at preschool?

Sleep

How long is your commute each way? Honestly it sounds a lot of time but you'll quickly find it's more like 2 with getting back and leaving again etc.

Have you honestly not had two hours to yourself since she was born? Gosh I must be a terrible mother.

Coffee shop?
Housework?
Get dinner in the slow cooker?
Netflix?

Clean, do the shopping, tidy the house, walk the dogs, family admin stuff, shower, meal prep, sometimes I meet friends for breakfast.

I used to do the supermarket shop one of the mornings that DS was in preschool. It was a 3.5 hour session, and (sad as I am) I actually quite enjoyed having a good look at everything and choosing different things so that we didn’t stay in a rut of eating the same things on a 14 day rotation. By the time I did that, had a coffee afterwards with a newspaper in the coffee shop, too it al home and put it all away, it was pretty much time to go and collect. Maybe nowadays I would get an online delivery for another time and that would free up the morning.

On the other day that he went and I wasn’t working, I’d try and get errands done and co-ordinate meeting a friend for coffee in between.

So nothing that exciting!

Sleep (had a new baby), errands, food shop, sell things on Facebook/ebay, clean, make dinner ahead of time.
With DC2 study, go to college, go to uni, work, or the above.

I did go back to work 3 days a week for a year when she was 1, but worked from home 2 days. So I guess I had the time at work?

Her preschool is a 5 minute drive away, so it's almost a whole 3 hours! Twice a week.

It seems like a massive amount of time to me. I co-slept with her for over 2 years too and only night weaned her at 26 months so it was CONSTANT.

She goes to bed at about 7:30 so I have my evenings now

Feels selfish just to do stuff for myself, I feel like I need to do something productive

We do an online shop

I don't think that sounds sad, when I have been food shopping I can't stop for a minute even if she's in a trolley, she'll grab something on the shelves or ask me a million questions "but why mummy? Whhhhhy?"

We are trying for another baby, unfortunately I had an early miscarriage in the summer and my hormones are still trying to level out so it's not been easy.

I do all those things with her, so I guess I could do them when she's at preschool then play with her more perhaps?

Pre-school hours are my leisure time, so I do stuff that is just for me - visiting exhibitions, film screenings, beauty treatments, public lectures, walks, exploring London, creative activities and exercise.
I don't feel guilty about it as I am focused on my dc and family the rest of the time. There's no obligation at all to do something productive with that time.