returning from maternity leave - how on earth do you get everyone ready in the morning?

[reastie]

just wondering as I'll be returning later this year and currently we struggle to get out the house at 9am let alone the 7:30 I'll do when working - feeding dd her milk (she's bf), breakfast, changing her, sorting her out, getting changing bag etc ready and keeping her occupied etc is hard work let alone getting myself sorted - just how do you manage it? any hints

Changing bag / nursery bag packed the night before

Breakfast given at nursery

Bath / shower night before

One of you gives baby milk while the other showers or you get up before the baby

Babies are easy, put in sleep suit straight in car

It's once there at school and in uniform, need packed lunch, book bag, pe kit , homework done etc it gets trickier

I have been back at work 3 months now. I worried about getting out the house as whilst on ML I used to be in PJs til at least 10am. But you do manage and after the first week it becomes routine. Although I do still feel like I am always running late and charging out the door every morning. I need to be out of the house by 7:50am so I get up at 6:30 to enable me to get myself ready before getting DD up at 7am. I have a bath, wash hair, pack bags the night before.

The feeding schedule will have changed by then and you'll be expressing maybe or giving formula if you're going back to work?

I don't know how other do it, but I went back to work when DD was 11 months. I do the mornings which go:

Get DD's nursery bag ready the night before.
6.50 get up - DH holds DD in bed if she is awake before I am ready.
7.10 take DD and do nappy and clothes
7.20 leave the house with some breakfast in my handbag for me
7.30 DD at nursery - they do breakfast and milk

This is the theoretical timetable, but it does tend to slip by 10 min or so and until recently I have been doing DD's milk, but she isn't one to glug it down in one go so I am going to get the nursery to give it to her with her breakfast.

I think it all depends on how your childcare is set up. Having a nursery which gives DD breakfast is really useful for me as is having DH around for the time it takes me to shower, dress and do my make up.

Do as much as you can the night before: bags packed, shower, get your clothes etc ready. Make sure the childcare provider does breakfast. So all you need to do is get up, get you and the DC dressed and feed DD her milk while you eat.

Disclaimer: When I'm at work I have to leave before everyone else is up. So I delegate everything to my DH!

cj dh leaves for work v early so he won't be around to help. no sir-ee, just me to do it all . also I plan to bf still at that point but just morning and evenings

will her father help at all or is it all left to you

Oops. Note to self ....

Get everything you can ready the night before. Put clothes out with nappy and pack of wipes on top of pile... Pack bags for DC and leave in line by the door. Get up at least one hour prior to leaving. Oh and pay the CM to give them their breakfast.

hairy think it'll be all me

cece i used to get up at least an hour before going to work - what on earth did i waste my time do

reastie my DH leaves very early too so we have a similar struggle and I was worrying about it before I went back. This is my second week back and so far so good. Definitely agree with packing bags/sorting clothes the night before and letting nursery give breakfast. Also I have toy deposits all around the house so that DS plays while he follows me around the house as I get ready and there are things to distract him when he tries to eat the shower curtain or pull the hairdryer out of my hand...

to eating shower curtain worrisome

The little monster has actually managed to tear bite a hole in it!!

It helps to share the morning childcare arrangements with your OH if possible. You have to be very well organised, prepare as much as possible the night before (including sterilising bottles etc) and perhaps get the nursery or CM to give your LO breakfast.

DH gets up, makes up bottles and packs his bag while i shower and get ready. Then we swap and i feed DH his milk and get him dressed. Or vice versa.

We have to be up about an hour earlier than pre-DS (6.30am) but that's because we commute to work abot 30 mins away. We're out the door by 7.40am.

mantana I already set my alarm for 6:10 pre baby - an hour earlier?

I went back when my DS was 13 mths old. I got up around 6.30 and left house by 7.20. Went as follows:

• Get up, heat milk up for bottle, defrost bread for sandwich
• DH dressed DS while I had a shower (got DS's clothes ready night before)
• Make sandwich, grap laptop/bag/DS's bag (prepared night before)
• Drop DS at nursery (across road from work)
• Have breakfast at work and depending on how late I was running, put make-up on at work.

1.5 yrs down the line, things are a bit more relaxed as don't give him milk any more in the morning but I tend to do the preparation in the morning now rather than night before. The longer you do it, the more automatic it becomes and you don't even need to think. I found it incredibly stressful in the beginning and worked myself into a state the night before as I tried to prepare everything so I wouldn't have to think of anything the following morning but not realistic. Have my DH dress DS does help a lot.

We also leave the house at 7.30.

Get up between 6.00-6.20.
Shower
Get dressed
Make breakfast
Wake DS up
Eat breakfast
Dry hair while DS dresses himself in clothes I have put out for him.
Get oursleves and bags in car.

When he was a baby I used to wake him up to bf him and then put him in bouncer/on my bed while I dried my hair.

Helps to make lunches, iron clothes and pack bags the night before.

I keep out the way and let DH do it.

ursula

I know, he's a good boy he does night time routine too...

well trained ursula

cheers