A Day in the Life: 6 Week Old Triplets and a Toddler

6 a.m. 
Jesse wakes up and takes a shower while I pump.  I feed/change Maddie while he feeds/changes Amelia and James.  Jackson sleeps in our bed.

7 a.m.
Jesse leaves for work.  I shower and dress before going downstairs to begin any laundry, dishes, sweeping, etc.  I boil the bottles and pump parts at this time every morning.

8:30 a.m.
Jackson wakes up.  I help him get dressed, read a story to him, and make him breakfast (normally a mini bagel with cream cheese or oatmeal and yogurt).

9 a.m.
I get whichever two babies are starting to wake up out of their cribs and begin morning feeds in the nursery.  When the two are finished, I prop them up on boppy pillows and get the third up.  I then begin the assembly line of changing and dressing each baby.  Jackson either assists me or plays upstairs.

9:40 a.m.
Pump (This is my time to watch TV or use the computer).  Babies are normally on floor mat for tummy time or in their swings.  Jackson likes to watch cartoons downstairs and play independently with blocks, cars, etc.  He goes upstairs to check on me at least five times.  When I'm finished I get bottles ready for the next feeding. 

10:00 a.m.
Bring babies downstairs.  Go for a family walk in the jogging stroller or load everyone up in the van for an outing.  (If we go out we aren't back until 11:30 or later.)  Babies almost always fall asleep in their car seats/stroller.  I make sure to exhaust Jackson so that he will want to nap later!

11:00 a.m.
Babies nap in pack-n-play, bouncer, my arms, wherever.  I switch out laundry, take out trash, unload dishwasher, etc. 

11:30 a.m.
I fix lunch for Jackson and I (chicken nuggets/mac-n-cheese, grilled cheese, ravioli, etc).  We eat together at the kitchen table.

Noon
Feed all three babies on the couch.  Watch Chugginton or Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (On Demand) with Jackson.  I bottle prop with James and/or Amelia and keep Madeline on my legs.  Change diapers.

Clifford makes the best bottle prop!

12:30-2:30 p.m.
Activity Time for babies, play with Jackson (read stories, Play Dough, kitchen, etc).  Maddie normally dozes off again at some point, but James and Amelia remain alert.  I pump again as close to 1 p.m. as possible.  This is by far the hardest time to balance interacting with all four kids and keeping everyone happy. 

2:30 p.m.
Jackson has quiet time in his room until he falls asleep.  He is really great about taking a solid 2-hour nap every day.  I bring the babies upstairs for cuddles, diaper changes, and afternoon feeding.

3:15 p.m.
Babies take nap together in pack-n-play in our bedroom.  While all four nap, I go downstairs to sweep and mop.  I also boil bottles and pump parts again.  (This will probably become my time to start dinner preparations, but I haven't had to cook dinner yet since the church committed to bringing us meals the first six weeks!)

3:45 p.m.
Unwind (TV, blog, nap, etc).  Pump.  Prepare bottles for next feed. 

The babies eat between 3.5--4 ounces of expressed breastmilk every 3 hours during the day.

4:30 p.m.
Jesse comes home from work.  We have a few minutes to debrief about our day before Jackson wakes up.  We give Jackson a snack and hang out before the babies wake up.

5:30 p.m.
If babies aren't already awake, we start to bring them downstairs and feed them just before six o'clock.  We set the table and get dinner ready. 

6:00 p.m.
Eat dinner.  We try to put the babies in the swing or bouncer, but Jesse and I almost always end up each holding or feeding a baby in our laps while we eat. 

6:30 p.m.
I clean up and do dishes while Jesse interacts with babies.  He watches TV or reads.

  

7:00 p.m.
Pump and prepare bottles...AGAIN. 

I pump for 20 minutes and get between 9-12 ounces each session.

7:15 p.m.
Play outside if it's not raining or too hot.  We race Jackson in the driveway, go for a walk around the neighborhood, pretend to mow the lawn, etc.  The babies are in a stroller, bouncers, or on a blanket in the grass.

8:00 p.m.
Bathe Jackson (every other day) and babies (1-2 a week).



8:30 p.m.
All six of us are upstairs getting ready for bed.  We go through the assembly line of diaper changes, pajamas, and swaddles.  The babies lay on our bed while Jesse and I spend a few precious minutes with Jackson.  Jack gets to pick out two stories (one of which is always If You Give a Mouse a Cookie).  Jesse reads the books while I rub Jackson's back.  We tuck Jack into bed and close the door.  (If you recall, just two months ago Jackson's bedtime routine consisted of an hour or more of stories, rocking, singing, etc!)

8:45 p.m.
Jesse and I feed the trio in bed while watching TV.

9:00 p.m.
Put James and Amelia in their cribs in the nursery.  Put Maddie in the pack-n-play in our bedroom.  (Madeline will return to her crib whenever we get her reflux under control.  Until then, I want my baby close by.)

Jesse falls asleep almost instantly.  I spend up to an hour power pumping while blogging, checking Facebook, etc.  I fall asleep between 10-10:30.

2:00 a.m.
Middle of the night feed.  Jesse feeds/changes Amelia and James in the nursery while I pump and feed/change Maddie in bed.  If the babies wake up before then, we try to stall them.  Most of the time they only wake up at 2 and 6.  I get the bottles ready for the next feed and am asleep within 30-45 minutes.  Even though Jesse feeds two babies, he is always asleep before me.

At some point between 2-6 Jackson comes to our bed.

6:00 a.m.
Repeat the day all over again.