If you had told me when B was just born that I would one day be watching two babies all by myself for a week or more , repeatedly, I would have told you you were crazy. (Mainly because I was a brand-new mom with no idea of how easy I had it and no idea what I was doing!)

But it turns out that Paul's job has turned into one with a lot of long business trips, at least one per month. Which leaves me home with the munchkins all day and all night for days. We survive, and honestly I enjoy the change of pace every once in a while.

These are my rules I live by daily.

Prioritize.
This is a two-step process: figure out the things that are really, really hard to do with just one pair of grown-up hands, and then do everything possible to make those tasks go smoothly. Things that fall in this category include: bathing the boys, bathing oneself, and putting the babies to bed. Getting a bath myself is the hardest task for me, but I've learned that if I time everything carefully, I have a few minutes in the morning before B wakes up I can get a long extra hot shower. But if things don't go as planned Brandon will jump in the shower with me, but that means my shower becomes a job of wrangling a wet wiggly toddler in warm water (I like my showers super super hot, but with B in with me it's not happening)

Take full advantage of help.
Remember the priorities you just thought of whenever another pair of helpful hands walks in the front door. What can you do in one-tenth of the time if someone else is there to entertain the boys? DO THAT. Or, if you're going absolutely nuts by yourself for the week with no adults to talk to, then throw the todo list away and just talk.

Stagger bedtimes.
This is pretty much essential even if there are two adults at home. Stagger bedtimes. Also, I make it a habit to not let B get up in the middle of the night. With just one adult home to fetch and soothe him in the middle of the night, I prefer Brandon to sleep all night, that way I only have to wake up 2-3 times a night for Peter.

Go out.
It'll entertain everyone, use up a lot of time, not create any mess at home, and if it turns out to be too much work, then you just go back home. Be chill, have no expectations, and enjoy the ride. I plan lots of play dates, group activities, and lunch dates.

Schedule.
I'm not normally a very scheduled person, but when I'm the only grown-up around, everything turns into a hyper routine. Our life becomes a series of blocks of time: first we go get some milk for Brandon and watch Disney Jr.,then we go bring Peter downstairs when he wakes up, then we get dressed, then we will go downstairs for some cereal for breakfast, then we will clean up and do morning chores…so on and so on. With no deadline of "Daddy's coming home!" there is no rush for me to get things done properly, and also no major obvious breaks in the day. Scheduling keeps things sane and also helps us move through the day more pleasantly and smoothly.

Minimize weaknesses.
I am not a coffee drinker so when the mid afternoon lull comes around I need to take a break, but on days when Brandon refuses to take his afternoon nap and Peter is just crying...oh maybe both of them are crying at the same time. I just have to remember that the boys can not stay awake forever or cry forever.

Cook.
I don't care very much what food I eat, and would happily eat pizza for dinner every night. Toddlers are very much the same—they don't distinguish much between macaroni and cheese or beef bourguignon. So, when Paul is not home, our dinners focus more on being basically nutritious and less on being culinarily impressive. I use the chance to try new made-up meals that might flop, and I also do a lot of baking instead of cooking. Sometimes it's hard to do both, on these weeks the extra cookies and cakes go to my neighbors.

Do everything with the kids.
When you're alone with the kids, the most precious commodity is time alone without the kids. Don't waste it by using it for chores! Whether it's laundry or mopping the floors, try to do it when they're awake and demanding, and save the naptimes and nighttimes for the things you really need to be child-free for–or just to breathe. Or sleep....or in my case blog.

Expect some tears.
You're pretty much guaranteed to have a few moments where you just can't make both of them happy fast enough, and there will be much more screaming than there would be if another adult was around. But it's okay. Just attack their grievances one at a time, luckily Peter's only cries when he is hungry, gassy, or tired. The worst of those 3 is gassy because there is nothing I can do about that after he's had his gas drops, it just has to run it's course which once took 3 hours, me ears felt numb by the end.

Find zones.
Find, or create, childproofed areas to put your kids for a few minutes. Know where your children can play happily and safely. It's a peace of mind to k ow you can use the bathroom or change a load of laundry. Just get as many gates or childproof door locks as you need to make it happen! When you're alone around the clock, the tasks you usually save until there's another adult around still need to get done.

Pray.
I don't mean pray to make it through the week, although at times that might be necessary! But I find that the house, and my mind, are much quieter when Paul is not here. I love to meditate before bed. Normally when Paul is home I'll get 90 minutes of hatha yoga in 2-3 times a week, this time is 100% me time, I never take it for granted. But being alone I can't get 90 minutes to do yoga, so my me time is once both boys are asleep. I love the quietness of my house.

Sent from my iPad