A Day in the Life of Frugalmom

5:30 am Frugaldad awakes with a start--what is that beeping sound? And does the puppy need to be let out? I assure him that I took her out at 2:30 am and I'll go take her out again after I turn off the beeping baby monitor that got unplugged. Turn off the baby monitor. Take the puppy out. Go back to bed.

6:00 am Frugalbaby cries. I nurse her and put her back in her bed. Go back to bed.

6:24 am Hit snooze again and again.

6:50 am Get up and get in the shower.

7:10-8:15 am Make breakfast for 6, lunches for 3, and supervise chaos. Change Frugalbaby's diaper.

8:15 am Drive Frugalboy and Frugalgirl1 to the bus stop with the other Frugalgirls in tow.

8:25 am Get back, get Frugalgirl2 ready for preschool, get a phone call from sister-in-law saying she'll drive the kids to preschool because someone else in the class called and needs a ride.

8:45 am Send Frugalgirl to preschool, get Frugalbaby dressed. Change her diaper again. Frugaldad distracts me by making me play with the new multi-handset cordless phone.

9:00 am Take the puppy out again. Check email briefly.

9:28 am Finally ready to leave. Run errands. Realize that we didn't discuss who was picking the preschoolers up. Call sister-in-law and tell her I'll pick them up. The kid she was supposed to pick up wouldn't get in her car so the mom had to take him anyway, so I don't have to take him home too. Nurse the baby while I am shopping for kids' coats.

11:20 am Pick up preschoolers 5 minutes late because of long line at the store.

11:38 am Get to sister-in-law's house to drop off nephew. She is already preparing lunch for all of us, as we planned previously to can applesauce in the afternoon.

11:45 am Run home (1/4 mile down the road) and take the puppy out. Gather canning supplies. Listen to messages. Try to return a call, but line is busy. Go back down the road.

11:55 am Eat lunch and start applesauce. Try to return the call again and get through. I am now committed to a group musical number in church in 2 Sundays.

2:35 pm Run home to let the puppy out again. Go back to keep working on the applesauce. Nurse the baby sometime in the middle of the afternoon. Change her diaper, too.

4:00 pm The older kids get off the bus and come to their cousin's house.

5:15 pm Run home to let the puppy out again. Call the take-out place so Frugaldad can pick up dinner for everyone. Go back to the applesauce.

5:45ish Frugaldad arrives with the food. Keep working on the applesauce. Finally the last of the apples are cooked and we can sauce them and start washing dishes. Change the baby again.

7:00 pm Go home, leaving sister-in-law to process the last 3 canner loads of applesauce. Bathe Frugalgirl2, who took a mud bath sometime during the afternoon. Frugalgirl1 asks to go to bed. Complains of a headache. Her temp is 101.4. Give her Motrin and send her to bed. Get Frugalgirl2 out, jammied, and brush her hair. Put her to bed. Change and nurse the baby and put her to bed. Say good night to Frugalboy.

7:55 pm Go to a song practice for the musical number.

8:51 pm Arrive home. Say good night again to Frugalboy, who has taken advantage of his bedtime.

9:00 pm Make popcorn. Eat a bowl of oatmeal. Eat half the popcorn. Read a magazine. Frugaldad is finally ready to watch Lost. Go outside with Frugaldad when he takes the dog out. Clear the breakfast dishes off the table.

10:00 pm Read email and order a ball-winder with a half-off coupon while Lost plays. Start blogging while still reading email. The cloth diapering group was especially chatty today.

10:45 pm Nurse the baby and put her back to bed.

12:00 am Still blogging, still reading email. Watching The Nine.