Day in the Life With a Four-Month-Old

Heya, friends!

I thought it would be fun to share another little life update since so much has changed now that sweetie man is over four months old. Be sure to check out Day In the Life with a Newborn, too!

I have Max two days a week and our babysitter who starts next week will have him three days a week so I can work. Jeff and I are so grateful for our own moms (and my sissy!) who've come down to Columbus to help take care of Max many times over the past couple months!

When it comes to sleep, we've had weeks where Max happily goes down at 7:45pm and doesn't make a peep until 7am. We think we're in the clear and then one week he'll randomly start crying at night again.

We're hoping the Merlin suit will help keep him asleep because his little arms and legs are always escaping the swaddle. We've learned to never get too comfortable...babies sure like to keep you on your toes!

6:30am

Wake up and pump. Jeff is at the gym so I make sure I'll be done pumping by the time Max wakes up around 7am.

Sometimes I'll write a blog post early in the morning, especially when I know I won't have much time to get work done during the day. I knocked out editing photos and writing the content for Monday's Fluffy Lemon Blueberry Pancakes recipe, so that was awesome!

I started off the morning with a slice of zucchini bread (made in a loaf pan and baked for an hour) paired with hot java in my beloved Yeti mug.

7:30am

Now that I'm caffeinated, I leave the house for a Butcher Shop reformer pilates class and Jeff is on Max duty. Butcher is my favorite workout ever! It's pretty much the only exercise I do these days besides walking. I love how challenging it is while still being low impact.

9am

Get home from my workout class and start breakfast while Max is still asleep. Eggs and overnight steel cut oatmeal (love having it ready to go in the fridge) for the win!

10am

Max wakes up around 9:30am. His naps are 45 minutes to an hour lately. We play outside until it's time for his second bottle at 10am. I've been loving feeding him outside on our deck!

11am

I pack up all the things and head out to meet a friend and her little one for a walk, grabbing a couple chocolate bites on my way out the door. Max falls asleep in the car and looks like such a smushie cutie face. Then it's time to pump again!

1pm

Max drinks his third bottle. Once he's done, we walk to Fox in the Snow for iced coffee. Then we pack up and head to Target to return a few things.

We stop home so I can scarf down some lunch. I'm so glad I made my curried chickpea salad over the weekend! I also have some Mary's Gone Crackers for crunch plus chopped pineapple.

2pm

We head to Kroger to pick up groceries. Lately I've been ordering them online ahead of time, which saves soooo much time and energy.

3pm

Max wakes up from his nap and is super cranky. He doesn't eat until 4pm, so I do my best to entertain him while I unload groceries, pick up the house, and throw in a load of laundry. Luckily he still loves the Bjorn bouncer so much!

Max is generally a chill baby. Starting a few days ago, the time between him waking up from his nap and his next bottle is quite a doozy. He's still tired but doesn't want to sleep any longer, so it's been lots of tears!

We're in a leap according to the Wonder Weeks app and I know things can get wonky around four months so we're just rollin' with it.

4pm

This is always the toughest part of the day because I have to pump and Max has to eat. I start feeding him and then luckily Jeff has a 15 minute break from work so he can keep feeding him while I pump.

Then we play on the play mat, get in some good tummy time and read stories. Max is loving the Mozart Magic Cube Grammie got him!

5:15pm

Max goes down for his last nap of the day and mama is tired. Good thing Jeff gets off work at 5:30pm. I'm suddenly starving so I make a chocolate cherry smoothie for both of us and hop on an Alchemy call.

The pandemic has been incredibly hard for restaurants as it is, but right now food supply and labor shortages are the toughest they've been.

6pm

Bubbie bear wakes up and Jeff takes him on a walk. We try to walk him around this time every day to get some fresh air before bedtime.

While they walk, I take a hot shower in our newly renovated bathroom and it feels like the world's greatest gift!

6:45pm

Bath and bedtime. We love the newborn sling that came with his bathtub. We use just water most days since his skin is dry and then we use a little soap down below and on his hands. He loves the bath now!

Typically one of us tackles dinner while the other feeds Max and does bedtime. We've been super into this tikka masala with salad and naan.

At the same time we add the chicken, I add a can of chickpeas and a bag of frozen cauliflower that I've defrosted in the microwave. Then I just give Jeff all the chicken when we serve it! We make brown rice in the Instant Pot so it's hand off.

7:45pm

Max is *hopefully* falling asleep around this time, so Jeff showers and I get dinner together. We eat while we watch Top Chef, our current favorite show. I die for Padma.

We dig into amazing almond flour cookies for dessert while I pump for the last time! I tested the vegan version with flax and it worked like a charm.

9:45pm

Get ready for bed and do it all over again!

Things I'm Loving Lately

1. I caved and bought this toiletry travel bag because I always have to bring multiple bags to fit everything and then I can't find my glasses, ear plugs, etc. I'm excited to have something that can house everything in one place and also be hung up!
2. How cute are these strappy sandals on sale for $24.97? I got them in black but I was eyeing the brown, too.
3. I got this wide strap bikini and I'm in love. Great support and flattering bottoms.
4. I love this smocked maxi dress for summer. Also in black!
5. My dietitian friends Alex and Whitney of "Plant Based Juniors" wrote an amazing book called The Plant Based Baby and Toddler: Feeding Guide For 6 Months to 3 Years. I can't wait to dig into this wonderful resource from true experts.

Have a fab week!