by Nicki Dunn
(from Randall)
With days of laundry and dishes piling up, Nicki has been wondering where her time goes. Of course, watching our two children and providing childcare for four other children of similar age leaves her little time to finish the ongoing household chores on weekdays. Still, she decided to make notes of her usual routine one Saturday when I had to work, to give herself an idea of her typical day as a stay-at-home mom. After reviewing her notes, she feels a little less guilty about those dishes and laundry.
Please note that, apart from clarifying a couple of details, I have not changed any of Nicki’s notes – this really is a typical day!
Enjoy!
- RAD
6:40 am woke up, heard Noah
6:41 am gave him book
6:43 am got him and me dressed – went downstairs
6:45 am coffee and talked to Randall
6:55 am breakfast
7:00 am Abby up, went up to help
7:05 am Abby breakfast
7:20 am yelled at kids for not eating
7:23 am took breakfast away
7:25 am started dishes
7:40 am yelled at Noah to get down
7:45 am yelled at Noah to get down
7:57 am yelled at Noah to get out of cabinet
8:00 am yelled at Noah to get down
8:03 am yelled at Noah to get down
8:05 am changed unhappy Noah’s diaper
8:08 am Noah showed his new Mickey Mouse shirt
8:08 am told Noah to take toys out of laundry hamper
8:11 am finished all dishes
8:14 am told Noah to get down
8:17 am listened to kids laughing 
8:18 am finished cleaning stove
8:18 am break – coffee & breakfast
8:20 am watched Doodlebops with Abby because she likes it
8:22 am kids cleaning TV with Wet Wipes to help Mommy. love my kids! (promised myself to be full of joy & not get frustrated with kids. They are precious gifts from Heaven.)
8:24 am kissed Abby who said that I have good breath because I haven’t drunk my coffee yet.
8:35 am put all the Wipes back in the box, let Noah have a big handful
8:36 am yelled at Noah to leave Abby alone
8:36 am listened to good worship music & sang along: “I’ll stand with arms wide & heart abandoned …”
8:40 am broke up fight between kids
8:41 am went to separate laundry in pile on floor in utility room & wash clothes
8:43 am hugged kids, listened to “I Choose Jesus” on radio
8:47 am laundry in, started cooking chicken for dinner & cupcakes
8:49 am folded every single Wet Wipe & put them back in the box. Took entire box away – I didn’t get mad.
8:50 am made cupcakes with Abby. She measured & cracked all 3 eggs.
8:50 am cleaned egg that was dripping down counter & cabinet
8:51 am good song on radio as I taught Abby how to measure.
9:02 am laughed at Noah for cleaning me with Wet Wipes
9:11 am Abby used toilet paper packages to block Noah from going into the family room. Noah climbing over. I put T.P. away & instructed kids
9:15 am fed the “Hobbits” their 2nd breakfast – Multi-Grain Cheerios. Kept making cupcakes
9:19 am put cupcakes in oven. Cleaned counter & washed dishes
9:20 am combed Noah’s hair while he hit, pushed me, banged his head on back of chair.
9:21 am resumed dishes
9:25 am gave Noah more Cheerios
9:27 am answered door. Got money owed for babysitting.
9:28 am Abby asked for some sugar, told her no
9:31 am stopped Noah from pulling tablecloth off table
9:35 am argued with Noah as to whether or not he’s actually “all done!” eating
9:35 am saw Cheerios stuck to his butt. Cupcakes done. Started on banana bread (using up overripe bananas).
9:36 am talked to Noah while baking
9:39 am talked to Noah about Holly [child I watch] & Hannah [our boarder] “Go Bye-bye”.
9:40 am took Noah out of bathroom so Abby can have privacy
9:40 am started banana bread
9:45 am Abby mashing – Noah eating banana [he begged for banana upon seeing them, so gave him a piece]
9:45 am slight panic attack when I thought we were out of sugar.
9:46 am told Abby not to lick the sugar
9:48 am sigh, as Noah asks for more food!
9:49 am Abby cracking eggs for me
9:50 am clean egg off of counter as Abby wonders why there is egg white on counter
9:52 am got the eggshell out of banana bread mixture while Noah laughed at the mixer
9:55 am explained to Noah that he is not having more “num-num’s”!
9:55 am Abby is writing a letter & needs alone time. So Noah stays in kitchen with me.
10:00 am light-headed – didn’t drink any water today. Thought about kids’ lunch
10:01 am Noah happily taking potty apart
10:03 am glad I have a lock on the fridge
10:05 am told Noah not to touch
10:06 am wondering what he just put on the back of my jeans
10:06 am told Noah “no touch!”
10:06 am “no touch”
10:07 am “no touch, get down please”
10:09 am told Noah, “no touch, get down”
10:14 am yelled at Abby for sticking her hand in baking pan with banana mixture
10:15 am realized Noah was quiet because he threw all the magnets away & now they are covered with egg. Kicked kids out of kitchen. Lost patience. 
10:17 am yelled at Noah for hitting Abby
10:20 am told Noah, “No touch”
10:20 am cut up cooked chicken, made dinner to bake later
10:21 am pounding headache – prayed
10:23 am hugged Abby
10:25 am told Noah to stop touching Abby. Saw banana & Cheerios under table, got banana, left Cheerios
10:27 am Noah too quiet. Found him under table with my shoes & toilet paper
10:35 am told Noah to get down
10:36 am told Noah to leave baby gate alone
10:37 am never set timer for banana bread
10:40 am told Noah not to poke Abby in face or pull her ears
10:42 am told Noah “no touch!”
10:45 am Noah asking for “num-num’s”
10:45 am Noah asking to brush teeth, “go night-night” & “num-num’s”
10:46 am switched laundry over to dryer
10:46 am told Abby not to touch sharp things
10:48 am Abby killed ant on floor while Noah screamed about it
10:49 am laundry
10:50 am Abby came downstairs & asked when I would be done with chores. She left baby gate & door open, Noah started to come down. I ran back up, got them lunch.
11:00 am laundry.
11:10 am went to bathroom, was interrupted by story about Kindergarten
11:11 am interrupted again to hear “I love Mommy!”
11:13 am pried empty bowl of lactose-free yogurt away from Noah, because it was spilled all over. Told screaming child to eat the turkey sandwich.
11:14 am dishes again. Thought about lunch
11:15 am Noah won’t eat. Cleaned up, need to change his clothes. Did spelling with Abby. Checked banana bread. Abby singing “45 minutes til naptime!”
11:18 am dishes, helped Abby write her story for school.
11:22 am told Noah not to climb on Abby
11:25 am told Noah not to bite Abby’s feet
11:27 am listened to Noah dump out every toy from toybox
11:27 am warned Noah to leave Abby’s feet alone
11:30 am stinky diaper
11:33 am Noah threw football at my face. Warned Noah. Encouraged Abby in her writing.
11:34 am told Noah to get down.
11:35 am answered Abby’s continuing questions regarding Noah’s naptime.
11:35 am Abby yelling at Noah, who found a blue crayon & colored on floor. I cleaned up toys & crayon with Noah’s help.
11:44 am make lunch while Abby set timer for Noah’s naptime
11:45 am told Noah to get down while Abby sings. Noah moving all dining chairs around.
11:46 am told Noah “no touch”
11:47 am fix chairs & sweep up Cheerios
12:00 pm kids ate my lunch. Took Noah up for nap. Decide to eat banana bread & take a break.
12:50 pm dealt with attitude from Abby. Cleaned bathroom.
1:10 pm sweep & mop floors
1:25 pm dishes
1:37 pm left banana bread pans to soak in sink
2:00 pm make dessert with Abby. Did math.
2:05 pm Noah woke up, crabby & clingy
2:50 pm Noah finally off of my lap. Cleaned table.
2:51 pm stopped fight
2:52 pm resumed dessert.
2:59 pm Noah in Time Out
3:20 pm totally lost patience as vanilla pudding went everywhere
3:35 pm Abby & I cleaned out fridge while Noah ate applesauce
3:40 pm Abby cleaned applesauce out of Noah’s hair.
3:45 pm threw out old food. More dishes.
3:45 pm told Noah “no touch”
4:05 pm told Noah to give Abby privacy in bathroom
3pm-4:05 pm answered endless questions from Noah
Break! Then back to laundry.
4:30 pm cut Abby’s sandwich into a fish shape. Feed kids.
4:50 pm didn’t get back to laundry. Wondering how my hair looks.
5:00 pm put dinner into oven
5:30 pm guests arrive.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Submit as many stories as you wish, 500-1500 words in length, in any genre: action-adventure, comedy, children’s, drama, fantasy, horror, romance, science fiction, western, etc.
Please include your entire story within the body of the email, as attachments will not be read. Also, please do not include artwork, colored backgrounds or fancy fonts. Type your story in a clear, legible font. 
September:
My wife, Nicki, takes her job as a mom very seriously. Our five-year old daughter, Abby, is of another race, and we finalized her adoption four years ago in May. Nicki initiated our talks about adoption and followed up in finding out what we needed to do, got the paperwork we needed, and scheduled us for training classes to get licensed.
