Steph Peters We’re all packed up, and the kids aren’t ready; or the kids are ready, and we are running around packing up …How long does it take you to get out of the house with your kids? This past weekend we had plans to go shopping for my dad’s birthday gift. We finally got out of the house… 4 hours later!
I’ve tried to get the kids out of the house ever since they were both newborns. I feel that way they get used to being in public and around people right away. It also helps us get used to what we need to take along to make it a successful outing with the kids. This day was a struggle… We were ready to go and then the baby needed to be fed, Bryce needed to nap, and then he napped for 3 hours?! We try to be productive while he’s sleeping, but almost every time we start a project he wakes up… You know the saying “a watched pot never boils?” It can be so true, when we actually want to go out of the house he naps for 3 hours, the days we want to get stuff done around the house, he naps for 3o minutes. It takes patience to get through these random set-backs in your schedule.
Bryce finally wakes up from his nap and we are starving. We decide to go out to eat and then shopping. We get all packed up, again, and get to the restaurant. We enjoy our dinner, but with the theme of our day, everything was going slower than usual. The restaurant was so busy! By the time we get out of there it was already after 8pm. We were now both stuffed, tired, and not in the mood for shopping anymore… So back home we go and call it a day.
Kids do test your patience. I ended up doing my scheduled shopping 2 days later, when I could go to the store all by myself after work. Never forget the importance of getting out of the house by yourself without the kids, take turns with your spouse and enjoy a little freedom from time to time!
With each additional child, I have had to add fifteen minutes to my preparation time in order to leave the house in a timely manner, and I am still twenty minutes late for everything. Make three of them go potty, change a diaper, wash four pairs of hands, find the correct and matching four pairs of shoes, get the water bottles and sippy cups ready….that never seems like it should take 40 minutes, but oh my. And there is so much more before that even, getting them dressed, fed, and teeth brushed…I am lucky if I remember to brush my teeth before leaving the house most mornings.
So true! I have all that to look forward to when they become toddlers, thanks for the warning Amy haha! – Steph