Finn turned 21 months today and we are officially three months away from TWO and almost to the end of saying his age in months! I don’t know why but two feels like the cutoff on that for me.
(We love these Saucony shoes! They are easy to get on, functional and machine washable.)
Finn is a ton of fun (and a lot of work!) at 21 months. Here are some of the things that he loves most:
- Being outside.
- Zoey. Feeding Zoey, playing with Zoey, patting Zoey, calling for Zoey.
- Crackers. (Along with cookies, cheese and choc-y…all the C foods!)
- Music and songs.
- Brushing his teeth. He also likes for me to put body wash and lotion in his hands so that he can help.
- Reading books.
- Milk.
- Mema. He loves to hear her on the phone and to see pictures of her.
- Trucks and airplanes.
- Talking…up a storm!!! He’s saying so many words and starting to string 2-3 words together.
- Pressing buttons and turning anything on and off.
- Having freedom to run.
- Organizing, sorting and moving things from one place to the other.
- Being in my bed and all things “covers.”
- Rocks.
- School and his classmates! He knows all of their names and will answer when I ask him who he is going to to play with at school.
I am amazed every single day by all the things he’s learning and how fast he’s growing and changing. It’s the best (and most tiring!!!) thing ever. ๐
Here is a day in the life at 21 months.
DAY IN THE LIFE AT 21 MONTHS
Sometime around 4:45-5a. – Finn has been sleeping through the night lately but this morning he woke up around 5a crying. I give him 5 minutes to settle and it escalates into him calling out “MOMMY” in the most desperate voice so of course I go in. My alarm was set for 5:30a to get up and work but I decide to turn it off, bring Finn in bed with me and sleep in a bit. It was a good decision.
7a – up for the day! We have family cuddle time in bed with Zoey before heading downstairs to make coffee and give Finn milk. It’s the first thing he asks for in in the morning. (He’s drinking about 18-20 ounces of whole milk daily.) While I sip my coffee I scroll through the hashtag #resistancebandworkouts on Instagram to get ideas for my strength class at 9:30a.
We both snack on dry cereal during all of this.
7:30a – Finn simultaneously looks out the window for garbage trucks and school buses while also saying to the Sonos speaker “Exa, baby shark doo doo” and signing please. So stinking cute.
8a – breakfast. I have a slice of Dave’s Killer Sprouted thin-slice with butter, cream cheese and cottage cheese scrambled eggs with orange slices. I typically do two slices but I wasn’t super hungry and had to teach a strength class soon after.
Finn has the same breakfast but with toast and eggs separated.
8:30a – upstairs to get myself and Finn dressed for the day. I also pack a bag for him with toys, books, snacks and diaper change.
9a – leave the house. I drop Finn off with one of our VIBE5 studio owners for emergency babysitting with her twin teenage girls. My regular sitter came down with the flu so I had to scramble on Monday night to find coverage for Tuesday morning. Thankfully, it all worked out super well and Finn had a great time with them! And I’m now grateful to have some extra sitters on our roster.
9:30a – teach a 60-minute strength class at VIBE5…with lots of band work!
11a – pick up Finn, who I find eating a snack and having made best friends with Ruby the dog. ๐ I was supposed to have a personal training client at 11a but I moved her to Wednesday.
11:15a – home. We leash up Zoey and head out on a 2 mile walk on the trails. Finn was tired from his morning of playing but not quite ready for his nap. It was also supposed to rain later in the day so I knew it was our only window to get our walk in…and Zoey loves her walks!
Noon – feed Finn lunch and get him down for his nap around 12:30p. I make a smoothie bowl for my lunch. (And eat half of his uneaten lunch before making my smoothie!)
12:45-2p – shower and answer emails until Finn wakes up from his nap.
2:15p – blow-dry my hair and get ready for a video shoot at Greenapple Sports and Wellness. We leave the house around 2:45p.
3-4:30p – we hang out at Greenapple for the video shoot. We spent a while holding in the therapy room before they were ready for me. Finn had a great time with the foam rollers, med balls and these one pound dumbbells. Haha.
The shoot was for various marketing/promotional things. I was super happy to help as I have trusted the team at Greenapple for many years with all of my injuries, pains and tweaks. They’ve helped me with everything from calf strain to hip pain to neck issues to upper back issues…and much more!
I got my neck and back worked on and adjusted as part of the shoot so that was awesome! Luckily, no sound was required for my part of the shoot. Finn was an angel and watched Little Baby Bum during our quick filming.
4:45p – we have about 45 minutes to kill before Finn gets dropped off with his dad. It was raining, I didn’t have time to go home and didn’t have any errands to run so I wanted to find an indoor activity to do with Finn. I decided to head to the library and it was a great choice!
Finn’s favorite activity is coloring. I am so impressed by how he’s holding pens and crayons. I am guessing they are working on that in preschool because we don’t do a lot of coloring at home…but I think it’s time to change that!
5:30p – I drop Finn off with his dad and head over to Charlotte Yoga to teach at 5:45p.
7p – leave Charlotte Yoga and hop on a conference call for the Kid Runner ambassador team. I listen in on the way home and get so excited about being a part of this inspiring group of runners to share this very novel jogging stroller! I can’t wait to share more with you guys.
7:20p – arrive home. I am still on the call but start prepping dinner. We end the call around 7:40p. I eat some tortilla chips while cooking and listening.
7:45p – jump in the shower to rinse off since I taught a hot yoga class and I’m sweaty.
8p – eat dinner. I made steamed basmati rice with salted butter, sautรฉed spinach, sliced avocado and air fried tofu. Topped it all off with feta and hummus.
8:15p – start editing photos for this post and writing. Zoey keeps me company. She has decided that the couch is her personal dog bed this winter.
9:25p – I’m just now finishing up this post and so very ready to shut it down. I need to do some dishes and straightening up and then it’s time to read in bed. I just started Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah. It’s an old title of hers but I love her books and my friend Brittany just read this one and recommended it (and it was only $2.99 on the Kindle!). FYI – my favorite Kristin Hannah book of all time is Magic Hour. I also love Firefly Lane, The Great Alone and The Nightingale.
I am hoping to get up around 5:30-6a tomorrow to make some big progress on a project that is due tomorrow.
A quick note on this day…juggling work, child care (the decision to use it, finding it and paying for it) and my desire to spend time with Finn when I can is one of the most difficult aspects of parenting for me. I have many more words to say about this but not today. Just know that there is a lot going on behind the scenes.ย
I hope you guys enjoyed this day in the life! I didn’t decide to write it until this evening so it was a pretty unfiltered, real day for us.
QUESTIONS
I don’t really have anyย today. Just thank you for being a part of our journey! I wouldย love any input or personal stories that you have to share about anything that I wrote above.ย
Thank you so much for sharing that fitness hashtag! So helpful. would love to know some others good hashtags that you get inspiration from? that would be a great post “Different resources you use to inspire variety in your fitness classes”
My guy is 6 months older than Finn, but he still loves ALL buttons and light switches. You are doing a great job and Finn seems very happy! Be proud of yourself!
I would love to hear more about Finnโs preschool and how you came to that decision. I am trying to decide for my 15 month old.
Wow, thatโs a full day! Iโm impressed! Finn is super cute! Youโre doing a great job. I love day in the life posts, too, by the way!
Just wanted to day you are doing great!!! I loved your valentine’s day post and just haven’t had time to comment yet … I am single as well – and 47 – and it ain’t for punks. I struggle all the time with loneliness and wondering if something is wrong with me that I am single and divorced …. I know rationally that there isn’t, but I need to do the inner work you so clearly did. I’m doing a lot of meditations on coming home to the self and practicing self-love and acceptance. It can be extremely uncomfortable.
Also, I understand the juggling. I have a full time job for the first time in years – I used to teach yoga and work at home. Even though my kids are 11 and 14, it’s still a juggling act and there is still guilt! 2 nights a week my 14 year old has to study at the library until I can pick him up. Sometimes he is there from 3:45-5:45. And this weekend I was so overwhelmed with everything I lost it and yelled. Like REALLY yelled. And I’m not a yeller so it wasn’t good. I still feel so badly about it.
Anyway, just know that there is no perfection and that it’s just about doing our best and loving those little guys. What I learned from my meltdown is that I need to take better care of myself. So take extra good care of yourself this week while you juggle.
Thank you for always posting such beautiful messages about life:)
xoxo
Would you do a post on yoga essentials? I just started and need a mat, the towel thing (whatโs it for?), etc. is the Manduka the ONLY good mat? I have no idea where to start!
My son loves Little Baby Bum too! It’s the only thing on tv that will hold his attention for more than 10 seconds ๐
Childcare and mom guilt unfortunately seem to be a thread that holds us all together – working moms (office, yoga teachers, all of us) and stay-at-home moms alike!
I don’t have any advice because I’m in the same struggle boat with you right now – but I think it’s important to remember you are never alone! Have you read “you are a f*cking awesome mom?” It was a hilarious and therapeutic read!
I love day in the life posts and am always amazed by your productivity. Youโre such a great mama too. As a fellow fitness instructor/yoga teacher, Iโm curious if you find it worth it to pay for a babysitter to teach class? I only teach at a gym with childcare because otherwise I would end up paying the babysitter as much as I make teaching.