Making Over My Nights

It’s hard to get anything done, right? Grocery shopping, errands, even a trip to the library can seem insurmountable with child(ren) in tow. Add to that my germophobia which seems to be getting worse (better?) by the year, causing me to cringe and/or obsessively wipe my toddler’s busy (i.e. into everything) hands.

I’ve never considered doing any of these things at night. Why? Am I dumb? I’ve been operating the past 2.5 years under the premise that “by the time 7:00 rolls around and the kids are in bed all I can do is plop on the couch and watch TV.” Have you ever said or heard this sentence? I am guessing you have! And I’d like to share that I am on week 3 of making over my nighttime perception and routine—and it’s great!

One of the benefits of being a stay-at-home mom is I have the ability to get most of our family’s needs taken care of during the week. Laundry, grocery shopping, etc. But extra things like yoga, or yard work, often fall on the weekends, and can take up lots of time. This probably isn’t an issue as kids get older, but with two little ones, if I’m at a 90-minute yoga class which is a 15-minute drive one way, that really adds up, and isn’t always practical with being on the nursing clock, or just plain wanting to spend time together.

The spring weekends have been extra busy lately, so a few weeks ago I decided to do my usual Friday grocery trip on Thursday night. It was great! The store was practically empty, and without kids in the cart, I could take my time, actually think about what I need, price compare, and not rush. I think I made it through the store in 45 minutes which is a record for me when I’m doing a full trip! And putting everything away was so much quicker and easier without juggling Amelia and telling Eloise not to throw avocados across the room :)

I’ve repeated the Thursday night trip for another two weeks now, and I think it might be a new normal in my weekly routine. I've also started going to a weeknight yoga class once the girls are in bed, and because I've found a place in our routine for it that usually works fairly easily, I can go more often!

Nick works at home every other Friday, and has the other Fridays off (in exchange for working longer hours), and in the past I’ve always taken full advantage of that by cramming as many errands into those two off days a month, which usually results in me running around like a crazy person and leaves me exhausted, and also a little sad that I’m not spending that time with my family. Nick loves spending time with his girls, but if I asked him, I’m sure he might also say it would be nice to not have me gone most of his off days so he can get some things done too (or just relax a bit) (although he doesn’t know how to relax)!

This is probably way too much to write on something as seemingly obvious as getting things done at night, and if you work, you probably already know all of this! (Although when I worked I still did all my extra things on weekends, for the most part.) But I’m so excited about this whole new world of productivity! How many mediocre shows do we need to binge watch, anyway? How many times do I really need to check e-mail or Instagram until way too late, then fly upstairs and try and wind down before bed?

I will say that, knowing myself and my tendencies, I’m going to have to watch myself and make sure I don’t start filling EVERY night with tasks or errands, because I’ll burn out and go back to being a couch potato. Last week I was at the library one night, yoga another, and the grocery store a third. I think if I keep it to 2-3 manageable tasks a week, I will be in a good place.

Do you routinely get things done at night, too? Or are you a couch potato? I’d love to know your thoughts!