Good morning!
Our little guy turns 20 months old today (where does the time go!?), so I documented one of our days last week as a way to remember this stage in his life. I really love writing these monthly Day in the Life posts because they help me remember tiny details that we might otherwise forget. With that, here’s a glimpse into life at 20 months!
6:05 AM: Mal’s alarm goes off. Ugh. I had a rough night of sleep (terrible night sweats), so I am not psyched about getting out of bed. But, we have a big day ahead of us, so I grab my iPhone from my bedside table and try to wake up. It’s CNC’s 8th birthday, so I check to make sure my post and giveaway published. Unfortunately, the mobile view is messed up, but I can’t fix it from my phone, so I climb out of bed, head downstairs, and hop on my laptop.
6:10 AM: I say good morning to Mal. He’s already making breakfast in the kitchen. I pour myself a glass of iced coffee and take a few sips. Ok, I’m awake. Sort of.
6:15 AM: I head back upstairs to take a shower. I see that Murphy has gone back to bed. Good thinking, pug.
6:35 AM: I head back downstairs to make breakfast. On the menu: Breakfast potatoes and scrambled eggs with guacamole + ketchup and the rest of my iced coffee.
6:45 AM: I hear Quinn on the baby monitor. A little someone is ready to start his day, so I head upstairs to get him.
6:50 AM: I change Quinn’s diaper, turn on Paw Patrol, and then get him some milk to drink. Mmm… milk. We cuddle on the couch while I finish my breakfast.
7:00 AM: I get Quinn dressed for the day. I offer him breakfast, but he’s not interested. I let Murphy outside in the backyard to go potty. (We usually take him for a walk, but we don’t have time this morning.) Mal jumps in the shower.
7:20 AM: It’s time to leave for Quinn’s appointment, so I pack up a bunch of food and milk for him. He finally agrees to an apple-banana Crusher from Trader Joe’s. Before we get into the car, we all stop to wave to the school bus driving by. Quinn loves them!
7:30 AM: We make a pit stop at Starbucks for iced coffees and a donut to share. I order an iced decaf soy latte, but, as soon I as take a sip, I wish it was an iced Americano. It’s much too sweet with all of that vanilla soy milk. Oh, well. I drink it anyway.
8:45 AM: We arrive at the hospital 45 minutes before Quinn’s pre-op appointment and entertain him until it’s time for it. (Boston traffic…you never know!)
Some backstory: We met with ENT specialist last month, and he recommended that Quinn have a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy as well as tubes put into his ears to “improve his quality of life.” As a parent, hearing these words was tough, but they made us realize surgery was the best option for our little guy. Now we just hope and pray that it will make things better for him. FYI: Quinn has struggled with chronic ear infections (he’s had 10 since he was born), breathing issues (sleep apnea and regular mouth breathing), picky eating (the doc thinks he’s not super into food because it’s tough for him to breathe while chewing + he might have a diminished sense of smell and taste), and communication problems (he’s still not talking much).
9:30 AM: We meet with a Nurse Practitioner, anesthesiologist, and fill out some paperwork.
11:00 AM: We head home, but not before Quinn plays on the stairs that make bird noises!
11:45 AM: Mal and I are starving, so we swing by Rustic Kitchen for take-out.
12:00 PM: We arrive home. Quinn goes down for a nap, and Mal and I eat lunch. I went with the Harvest Salad with sweet potatoes, apples, goat cheese, pepitas, dried cranberries, and a sweet ginger vinaigrette. It’s really good, and I demolish the whole thing.
12:30 PM: I break out my laptop, make myself comfortable on the couch, and get to work. I also eat some Golden Grahams mixed with chocolate chunks.
2:30 PM: Quinn wakes up from his nap. We cuddle on the couch for 15 glorious minutes.
Of course, the pug isn’t too far away.
2:45 PM: I make Quinn some lunch: A mini bagel with cream cheese, canned peaches, cheddar cheese, and milk. I also gave him some blueberries, but he feeds them all to Murphy. Ok, then, blueberries are not the “fruit of the week.”
3:00 PM: While Quinn is eating his lunch, I make myself a rice cake with peanut butter and banana slices.
3:30 PM: I have a conference phone call about some blog stuff.
4:00 PM: I get dressed for CrossFit and say goodbye to Mal, Quinn, and Murphy, who are playing a game with a water balloon on the kitchen floor.
4:30 PM: I work out at CrossFit. Including me, there’s only two people in the class, so our coach spends a lot of time with us on Cleans, which is much appreciated since my Olympics lifts are generally crap. Haha! I also stay after class for 10 minutes and work on HSPUs. I’m kind of getting it!
5:45 PM: I drive home and drink a protein shake made with SFH vanilla Recovery and water.
6:00 PM: I arrive home, shower, and then reheat some leftovers for dinner.
7:00 PM: Mal does the bedtime routine with Quinn, so I clean up the house and put away an order from Boxed. (Yes, we’re still obsessed. I haven’t bought diapers or wipes from a store since we discovered it!)
I also bought GoGo SqueeZ Organic Applesauce Pouches and Mandarin Orange Fruit Cups
from Boxed for Quinn.
7:25 PM: After I finish cleaning up, I give Murphy his flea + tick and heart-worm meds. That head tilt…
7:30 PM: I make myself a mug of peppermint tea. It’s a brand new box, so it’s super minty! I also finish off our bag of Golden Grahams.
7:35 PM: I plop down on the couch with Mal and watch TV.
8:45 PM: I eat a half of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
9:15 PM: I head upstairs and get ready for bed.
9:45 PM: Lights out!
The end.
73 Comments
Hi Tina – My son has been treated at Children’s since he was born – I know they will take good car of your little guy. However, I do know trips into Children’s can be very stressful. I hope everything goes well and I hope you are able to get some rest.
I trust that Q’s procedures will be a huge success and that it’ll sort out all those issues! All the best. x
My son had the same surgery done when he was about three and it has worked out fantastically! It’s definitely hard to have your child go though surgery but you are at one of the best hospitals in the country in Boston and I’m sure will get the very best treatment!!
Good luck 🙂
So sorry to hear about Quinn needing ear surgery. I hope everything goes well and the little guy is much better soon!
Best of luck to Quinn! You are in great hands there. My son had two sets of ear tubes there and everyone was so wonderful and kind. Hoping he makes a quick recovery!
Thinking of Quinn and wishing him well!
Wishing Quinn all the best in his recovery! And yes, iced Americans are better.
What a great and interesting post – thank you for sharing so much of your life with us! You’re the sweetest with such a beautiful family. One day you’ll look back on this and laugh at how life changes (you’ll be glad you did the appointment) – Quinn will start talking soon and never stop!
I’ll be praying for Quinn! Hope his surgery helps and goes as planned!
I’m so sorry to hear about Quinn needing to have surgery!! Matilda had to have tubes put in (due to chronic ear infections) when she was 16 months old. It went very smoothly, but it was so hard to have to watch her hurting.
Thoughts and prayers to your sweet Quinn!
So I had a myringotomy when I was about Quinn’s age (not that I remember much of it) but since my parents opted to NOT give me tubes at that age I had terrible chronic ear infections until I FINALLY got tubes when I was 12. I’m sure it’s super scary to see your LO hurting from a surgery – but tubes are really a godsend! Sending good thoughts your way – love your blog!
xoxo-Elizabeth
Thinking of your adorable Quinn and all of you! Love your day in the life posts for Q. Fun to have a preview of what’s to come for our 15-month old 🙂
I’m sorry to hear Quinn has had such trouble with ear infections! One of my clients had a child with the same thing and things were 100 times better for her after the surgery and tubes, I know everyone is different but I hope it helps to know of people it really worked for. I ventured back to crossfit this week after a 2 year hiatus! It’s fun to be back although I feel like I’m starting over!
My daughter had her tonsils and adenoids out at age 3, and she was a completely different kid. She was suffering from sleep apnea/mouth breathing and once she actually got restful sleep at night, we were amazed at the difference in everything from eating to voice to developmental milestones, etc. It was a good decision for our daughter.
Wishing Quinn a quick recovery, I saw your post on Instagram!
I love TJ’s fruit crushers, especially the apple and carrot one as I’m always trying to sneak in veggies!
I can’t believe Q is already 20 months! I hope he has a speedy recovery!
Best of luck to you and Quinn. I know how stressful it is to have a little one in the hospital (sounds weird, but becoming a mom has really changed me in that regard). Hoping everything turns out ok for Quinn and that he becomes the little boy he deserves to be!
Not sure if you have tried, but when I was little I had chronic ear infections as well. Instead of doing the surgery my pediatrician told my parents to try the antibiotics for a month (maybe three?). I never had the surgery, and the ear infections went away.
Love love love these day in the life posts! Hope Quinn makes a speedy recovery. You did the right thing Momma!
I have three children: 6, 4, and 2. The oldest two have had tubes twice, and the youngest once. My 4 year old has a speech disorder because no one pushed for tubes sooner. Once he got tubes at a little over 2 years old, he almost immediately started talking more. He is still catching up, but I know the tubes are what made the difference! My youngest has had no ear infections since 7 months when he got tubes. I hope you also see a huge difference!
Sorry to hear about Quinn’s ear infections. I’m a speech language pathologist and wanted to recommend you and Mal look into getting Quinn evaluated for speech services if he seems behind on his communication. The state should pay for it and we even will go to your house!
@Lissa:
I’m a speech language pathologist also and I was going to say the exact same thing! Lots of people like to “wait and see” with communication delays, when really, early intervention is best and can help the child catch up more quickly. I hope for a speedy recovery for your little guy!
Oh my gosh, I think you are going to be amazed at the difference in Quinn after his surgery. My nephew had the same issues but he was nearly 3+ when he had this same surgery, and he went from not talking at all to talking up a storm. Speedy recovery, little buddy!
I’m sure Quinn will recover fast! Kids are so resilient like that. I had a lot of ear infections as a kid too, and it ended up being a dairy issue. I couldn’t have real milk, cheese, or ice cream for a few years. Praying for him!
Hope the little man is doing well!!!
I hope Quinn is doing well today!!
I’m so glad that Quinn is ok, I saw the post on Facebook. Big hugs to you guys!!
Hope Quinn recovers quickly and that it helps him!! Love seeing these kinds of posts!!
I hope the surgery does improve Quinn’s quality of life. I have a 20 month old with very few words and very low interest in eating. She is a snorer, too. She has only ever had one ear infection, but we are meeting with an ENT next month. I am starting to think she may need her adenoids removed as well (I did as a child).
And your deltoids look amazing in that CF picture!
I saw on FB that Quinn’s surgery went well. Hope he is doing okay. 🙂
They will take good care of Quinn. I had a tonsillectomy as a kid and was so thankful to get that removed and be healthy for once.
Thinking of you and your sweet baby. He will eat and sleep so much better after the surgery.
I had tubes in (twice actually) and tonsils and adenoids out as a child for similar issues with chronic ear infections. I was also a REALLY picky eater, never realized that might be related. Anyway, it helped me enormously, as I’m sure it will for Quinn. Thinking of all of you!!
Hi Tina – my son had tubes put in when he was 18 months and it helped him tremendously! He was plagued with ear infections and has only had a couple since the tubes and he is now 3. Good luck!
Man I haven’t had Golden Grahams in a long time. They sound so delicious to me right now. When I was younger I would mix in some half and half with my milk and it was GLORIOUS.
Hello Tina! I love the day in the life posts. My son George is right around Quinn’s age. I hope everything is okay with Quinn and I’m sending you all lots of love and good thoughts! It is so tough to see our babe’s suffering. George has struggled with chronic constipation and I had to take him to the hospital to have a barium enema and it was so sad and such a hard choice but we ruled out a disease that the drs wanted to look at. I’m sure you’ve made the best decision for Quinn and I hope that he is able to feel even better after his surgery! George’s appetite was impacted as well but since we’ve found a good remedy he’s been eating more and more. Some days he wouldn’t eat anything but would just nurse.
I’ve been through it with night sweats when I was gaining weight for recovery in anorexia. It was AWFUL. I remember the restlessness of it all so I sympathize for your pain. 🙁 I’m sorry you’re going through that!
Quinn is such a sweetie! I hope he recovers quickly. I’m sure he will..strong and tough like his parents. 😉
Question: What do you like so much about Boxed? Do you not use Amazon? I have yet to figure out the best/easiest/most economical delivery service for baby stuff and groceries!
Hope Quinn is feeling better soon, but I definitely think it was the right call to do the surgery now! I had a tonsillectomy (and partial adenoidectomy since mine were still there as an adult) in December at age 33 due to constant strep infections & hypertrophic tonsills – it was ROUGH as an adult. It’s so much easier for kids to bounce back from it & is a much harder experience as an adult or even teenager. 🙂
My little boy, Max, is 2.5 and has just really started talking in the last two months. Everyone had us so worked up about his lack of communication (is he hard of hearing? is he autistic? etc. etc.) I’ve talked to so many other moms who shared that their sons tended to talk much later than their daughters. Kids just do things on their own time frame. Max is a super picky eater as well and after talking to multiple doctors and his teacher at preschool, I think it’s just toddler crazy. I’m so glad Quinn’s surgery went well. He’s so so so cute and sweet and I’ve loved watching him grow on your blog and social media.
Awww I hope Q is feeling better now! My little guy who is now 2.5 had tubes put in at 1.5 and it was a world of difference for him. He is a super slow talker too – which is oh so frustrating and I am trying to learn my patience with it all. I get so frustrated because I’ve talked to ped’s and they said “Oh give him some time, he’ll talk when he’s read” but then you hear “Early intervention, early intervention is key for speech problems.” SO ANNOYING!
I’m sorry to hear about Quinn needing surgery, but doing something about it is the best thing you can do as a parent… wishing you all luck and a speedy recovery. I’m sure he’ll feel so much better!
Oh, poor baby! That does suck, but he’ll be so much better for it! I am jealous. What I would give to have my tonsils OUT… But, 32 is apparently NOT a good age to do that sort of thing, I guess. 😉 Whatever. Here’s to Q’s speedy recovery! He’ll be back to his normal self in no time!
I just wanted to say that my son was 20-24 months old and not talking much. We also ended up getting tubes for his ears and his speech blossomed quickly thereafter! He didn’t have infections, but had fluid trapped behind his eardrums. Good luck 🙂
I hope the surgery goes well for Quinn and that it really does help him to feel better. Poor little guy! I will be praying for him 🙂
I’m sending a big hug your way Tina, I hope Quinn is recovering well and feeling better. I had the tubes in my ears when I was little and my parents said it was the best thing they did. I wasn’t talking properly and it made a huge difference.
Totally jealous of Q’s 2.5 hour nap! EK naps maybe an hour if I am lucky. Q needs to teach her a thing or two! We got tubes about 4 months or so ago b/c EK was getting an ear infection every month. She just got another one (ug) but at least we had a 3 month break in between.
I love these types of posts! Hope everything with Quinn goes well!