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Back to routine

Writer's picture: SophieSophie

Last week was the final week of my 3 weeks of annual leave, and it was a transition week from full holiday mode (with family and friends visiting) to back to work/daycare/vacation care routine.


Monday and Tuesday last week we were all still off, and on Monday we had interstate friends on holiday visit us for morning tea, which was nice to catch up and give the kids a big play. Tuesday we took the kids to the local beach, which seemed like a great idea in theory (the week before on New Years Day we had enjoyed a lovely few hours at the beach), but O was not really into it, the kids behaviour was not great, and we barely lasted 90 minutes before calling it quit. Considering it had probably taken that long to get everyone ready, the bag packed including snacks, and to drive there, this did not feel like a great return on investment! But it did wear them out and we had relaxing afternoon once we got home and washed off all the sand. By Tuesday evening we'd had 2.5 weeks straight of no school or daycare, and both kids were getting bored and starting to bicker A LOT. I was also starting to get to the end of my patience.


Playing in the boot was a random Tuesday game
Playing in the boot was a random Tuesday game

Thank goodness Wednesday was O's first day back at (full-time) daycare for the year, and E had vacation care. O was adamant he didn't want to go back to "school", but once we got there, he immediately got absorbed in an activity and barely looked up as he said "Bye bye mummy". I did my first strength workout using the Sweat app, did some sorting, tidying, and laundry, and my parents came over in the afternoon to help Al and I out with some help with some home organisation and maintenance tasks (so much easier without small children around).


Thursday Mum took E for a playdate and I enjoyed some solo time - including some shopping (even grocery shopping is enjoyable solo - ha!), lunch by myself at a cafe, a nap, and a light walk. The only negative was I overdid the strength training and I was hobbling around all day! Oops. We all went over for dinner at my parents that evening.


Solo Cafe lunch- what a treat


Friday I had E home with me. I did some chores in the morning, and had grand plans to take E out to do some back to school shopping closer to lunchtime. But E felt very tired and was less keen to go out, and I realised I was actually exhausted too. So I let E have A LOT of screen time while I had a nap, read a book, and had my own screen time (re-watching Schitts Creek). We had Aldi Spanakopita (super easy and a family favourite) for dinner, and had an early night. I realised this was the only day in 3 weeks which had not had SOME kind of activity in it, and it was probably due.


Saturday and Sunday were fairly low key, but involved a visit to my parents, a visit to a larger library a bit further away, and a visit to Al's shop and the local market. It also included some side business work, some house chores, a fair bit of playing with the kids, and some reading and naps.

Oh and an impromptu fashion show from E- she had about 6 costume changes. Pretty funny


This was one outfit 😂
This was one outfit 😂

And now its Monday and I am gearing myself up for my back to work week. Luckily today is a work from home day so I'm easing into it. This week is back to routine (well, except for E still being on holidays for 2 more weeks). This will involve:

  • Kindy every day for O

  • 2 days of vacation care for E, plus 2 days at home with Al and 1 day with me

  • 3 x strength training sessions

  • 3 x blog posts

  • One hour of work on my side business each day

  • Walking and reading every day.


Feeling grateful to have had such a long break, that I’m enjoying the routine and work again!


What does the week look like for everyone? Enjoying routine or wishing for a break right now?

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6 Comments


Daria P
Daria P
Jan 15

We were to the routine as of January 3rd! And I very much loved going back to work after being at the house with small kids for 12 days. Ha.

Our routine is pretty straightforward: T and I work full time, me: 7:30 to 3PM, T: 9 to 4:30-5. Our kids have a long day most weekdays: 7 to 5ish. Evenings are mostly quiet with dinner, play time, piano, and books. Yoga and weights for me. We don't do TV or tech during the school nights. Much better for us to have it this way. We realized that the kids already use screens at schools, even at pre-K, so at home - no, you are done. I also found that…

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Sophie
Sophie
Jan 15
Replying to

Interesting. Can’t believe they use screens in pre-k! O has no screens at his daycare, so after a long (8.30-5) day playing, we are happy for him to have one hour of TV. (And E too). But we have to be strict in limiting it or it gets too close to bedtime. Kids really need an hour of analog time before bed I’ve learnt. We’ve definitely experimented with screen free weeks, and pull them out when kids need a reset!

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Jenny
Jan 14

We're also getting back into a regular routine this week, and I'm not too happy about it! But- vacation can't last forever. When you have little kids, it can definitely be a relief to get back to a routine. I remember being very happy for school to start again when my kids were younger. Now it just means an earlier wakeup and more running around, sigh. But, we will all make it work! I hope your week goes well.

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Sophie
Sophie
Jan 14
Replying to

I can imagine that once kids get older, going back to work after a break won’t be quite as appealing as it is currently! Hoping the transition eases back in for you this week :)

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optimisticmusings7
Jan 13

I love routine and, quite honestly, am feeling a bit antsy since we have had company in our house for almost a solid month. It has been lovely and I wouldn't change it for the world, but I feel so out of rhythm. Also, I THRIVE on having concentrated time alone and I just...haven't had much time alone. My sister and niece leave tomorrow and then I'm hoping to settle into a more predictable cadence. That said, kid extracurriculars are back in full swing, so there is something to many evenings. One of my main goals is to prioritize sleep. My husband handed down his old Oura ring and I will be very interested to see what patterns I can…

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Sophie
Sophie
Jan 14
Replying to

Yes having no alone time is so tough with visitors staying for extended periods- no matter how lovely it’s been. I hope you get a good chance to reset and embrace routines this week :)

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