As we discussed yesterday, it’s Blogiversary Week, baby (still can’t believe it’s been four whole years). and because we shared a day in the life during our last annual celebration (and about a year before that too) it’s time for this year’s breakdown (similarities: no day is ever the same, differences: now we have a toddler running around and a 260+ page book we’re writing on the side). This year we had fun recording a full day from both of our perspectives so you can see what each of us (and even Clara and Burger) may be doing at any given time. Woop, here it is:
7:30 am – 8:00 am
JOHN: Clara’s awake early enough (7:30) and the weather’s good enough (and I have enough energy) to take Clara on a run in the ol’ jogging stroller around the neighborhood. After changing her diaper, filling up her milk, and grabbing some goldfish for her to snack on we hit the road. I manage to squeeze in four miles and return home within about 40 minutes.
Our favorite Videos
SHERRY: I wake up around 7:45 and the house is too quiet so I know John and Clara are on a run. Burger stays in bed, but I drag my butt up and walk straight to the office and sit down in front of the computer. I’m not ready to make major decisions like which t-shirt I’ll wear today or what I’ll have for breakfast, so I check blog comments and answer a few questions instead. I also glance at my planner which always looks like this. I know it’s crazy, but it makes sense to me (I use it to write notes about post ideas, appointments/calls we have, book stuff that’s due, deadlines for our BabyCenter & Do It yourself magazine columns, etc). I check what’s going on for the day and notice that I have a call with USA Today at 2pm for a furniture painting short article they’re writing (they just want a quick quote) so I set my phone alarm to go off at 1:58 so I don’t forget.
8:00 am – 9:00 am
JOHN: After returning from my run around 8:30 I take a quick shower and make breakfast for everyone (yogurt for Clara, two scrambled eggs for Sherry, and a bowl of cereal for me).
SHERRY: I continue answering comments and Facebook questions until John gets home from his run with Clara and I get to smooch that face. Well, both faces actually. I play with Clara a little bit while John takes a shower and makes breakfast (we read books and do some highly coordinated dancing). Yes, this is a picture of me in my pjs answering comments. Gotta keep it real. I’m still not dressed.
9:00 am – 10:00 am
JOHN: I view Clara while Sherry does blog stuff. We read books, play with a ball and a car, and she helps me put in a load of laundry. She loves laundry.
SHERRY: This whole hour feels like it’s a minute. I spend it proofing the morning’s post which typically goes up between 9:30 and 10:00. On this particular morning it goes up best at ten because I need the whole hour to proof read. Proofing typically involves previewing what we wrote to make sure photos are centered and reading it through at least two times (sometimes three times if it’s a comprehensive tutorial- just to make sure things make sense and are in purchase and I haven’t written “somebody punch me” when I imply “somebody pinch me”). I also add links to things that I reference and additional info if I think something needs much more explaining. We still average about two typos a post so I can’t think of how bad it would be if I didn’t read things through beforehand.
10:00 am- 11:00 am
JOHN: I continue to hang out with Clara while Sherry does much more blog stuff (we do much more reading, play outside with a ball, and read even much more books). many mornings involve the me-with-Clara ritual because Sherry typically answers comment questions, which roll in furiously in the morning (she has better recall for the “where did you get X” and the “how much did that cost” queries). Although in some cases we switch. each day really is different (so I might have much more Clara time or much more project time one day and Sherry may have much more of it the next day).
SHERRY: I’m on comment responsibility the whole hour. Over two hundred of them roll in over the course of an hour, so I furiously try to keep up and answer every single question we get (and delete the occasional spam message that sneaks in there). Here’s a screen get that I snapped when I got it down to 30 pending comments, which is typically when I can breathe again.
11:00 am – 12:00 pm
JOHN: I start measuring and planning for our next project, which is to add trim/molding to the bottom of our wall to wall desk to make it look much more built-in. After taking measurements, pow-wowing with Sherry about ideas, and drawing a quick sketch to keep things straight, I head off to Lowe’s to get the trim that I need. (NOTE: This is what happens after Sherry says I don’t look “dynamic enough” taking trim out of the car).
SHERRY: Eleven o’ clock implies it’s time for Clara’s morning nap, so I take a break from the computer to change her diaper and “tuck her in” (which really just involves turning off the light, closing her blinds, turning on her sound machine, and saying “sweet dreams”). While John is measuring and running his errand I toss on real clothes (jeans and a black t-shirt) and hop back on comment responsibility because around 80 much more have rolled in before noon.
I also glance at my email but it’s too overwhelming so I just skim the page and delete the junk mail so the number in my inbox gets slightly less intimidating…because seeing 76 new emails at 11am (!!!) when there were none the night before can make ya crazy. A lot of it is sponsor and giveaway stuff that we have to manage along with book stuff or column stuff for diy mag/Babycenter. Mixed in there are sweet reader letters that we love. I star those and read them out loud to John a few evenings a week so he can share the warm fuzzies with me.
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
JOHN: Clara’s still napping (she typically gives us about an hour to an hour and a half) so Sherry and I meet up to chat about what we think about a few trim options/methods for the base of our new desk and I go down to the basement to make some cuts to see how trim looks around one cabinet before cutting the rest of it. I also rapidly check email and coordinate the next week’s giveaway and send a few sponsor renewal notices.
Sherry – I have a little meeting with John about the trim, answer much more blog comments, get through a few emails and am just about to begin writing a post for the next day when Clara wakes up at 12:30. So I change her diaper and hang out with her while John finishes the rest of his trim project. The bean waits for no one.
1:00 – 2:00 pm
JOHN: Trim project is finished, so I turn my attention to lunch. typically it’s sandwiches, but today we’ve got quiche leftover from last night’s dinner along with some other random leftovers (some spaghetti, corn, and beans). With everything reheated and Clara in her seat, we finally have a moment for all three of us to spend some time together (Burger is still sleeping). but about fifteen minutes later we’re done and I take Clara to go play and read some more. Note: disregard the crazy furniture placement in the kitchen- we are perpetually moving things around and it makes no sense.
SHERRY: I try to proofread as much of the afternoon post as I can (which typically goes up between 2 and 3:30) before lunch is ready, but I don’t make it all of the way through. I finish up after lunch by adding some links, catching some much more typos, repairing a few unclear parts and it’s finally ready for posting at two.
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
JOHN: Clara and I hang out while Sherry tends the afternoon post. She “helps” me fold laundry and we play ball with Burger outside (who is finally out of bed- yes he moseys out of bed around 2pm).
SHERRY: I have a quick call with USA Today (they want that fast quote for an short article they’re writing about painting a chair). It takes fifteen minutes tops (maybe twelve if I’m being exact?). then I answer comment questions for the rest of the hour.
3:00 pm – 4:00 pm
JOHN: Time to trade with Sherry (she takes Clara, I head back to the computer). I do a bunch of emails involving much more giveaway and sponsor stuff along with exchanging a few messages with some men at our blog hosting place (they’re doing some back-up server work and we want to make sure the site doesn’t crash). I also catch up on Twitter messages that I need to reply to.
SHERRY: I hang out with the bean. We put things on our heads, sing songs, chase the dog, and Clara looks exhausted again around 3:45 so I change her diaper and put her down for an afternoon nap. in some cases we get one and in some cases we don’t, but she actually falls asleep best away today. sweet girl.
4:00 – 5:00 pm
JOHN: I edit and size photos that we’ve already taken and begin writing a post for tomorrow afternoon. I also set up the tripod and shoot the wall-to-wall desk trim project that I did this morning for a future post about that (the thing about sharing 8 in a 5 day period implies you always have to be working on future ones while proofing/publishing/answering questions on the ones that are already written).
SHERRY: I had big plans to spray prime the office chairs (the first step in painting/reupholstering them) but it’s already four and I haven’t written the next morning’s post (a project that we already shot, but I still have to write it and edit the pics). so that takes priority. Those chairs and my can of primer might have to wait until tomorrow. By 4:30 Clara is awake, so I don’t get to finish my photo editing/post writing, but at least it’s a start.
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm
JOHN: The bean is restless so we decide we ought to opt for our evening walk now because it’s expected to rain a little later. Burger’s psyched and ready to go.
SHERRY: We walk around the neighborhood for about an hour and brainstorm post ideas for the following week. We also briefly talk about the kitchen floor plan and toss out a few much more potential layout ideas. who the heck knows where we’ll end up with that- we just believe in talking things to death until we land on something we both can’t wait to do.
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
JOHN: I cook a recipe that I tore out of everyday with Rachel Ray (chicken with apples, raisins, and olives). It takes about 25 minutes to make, so Clara plays on the floor of the kitchen while I cook and we chat whenever I’m not furiously trying to make sure nothing burns.
SHERRY: I’m back doing blog comments, finishing up that post I started for the next morning, and editing some photos. Dinner is on the table around 6:45. and it’s awesome. John even gave me extra olives. I’m a lucky lady.
7:00 pm – 8:00 pm
JOHN: Time to clock some quality family time together before Clara’s conked out for the night. We three, er, four (Burger chooses to join us) hang out, read much more books, and typically try to tire Clara out.
SHERRY: Burger is full of energy, so he’s zooming around the room and Clara finds it hilarious. but 7:45 is here before we know it and its time to put that baby to bed. After brushing her teeth and saying goodnight to her grandparents (well, a photo of them) she’s out like a light.
8:00 pm – 9:00 pm
JOHN: now that Clara’s in bed for the night we can do many of our work. It’s normal for us to both have laptops going until midnight or later, but we try to sit in front of the television and occasionally chat so it feels much more casual. Some nights we do major diy stuff together instead of sofa-computer stuff (since during the day it’s hard to get anything other than very small projects finished with a one year old around), but not tonight.
SHERRY: We sit in front of the TV (Project Runway’s on) and I finally finish the post for the next day that I’ve been writing on and off. It’s normal for a post to take us around 2-3 hours to write because we have to edit/size/upload photos along with writing comprehensive steps (that doesn’t include the time it actually takes to purchase materials and do the project). Unless it’s fast like a giveaway – those only take around 30 minutes to write (but probably take an hour or two to coordinate through email beforehand).
9:00 pm – 10:00 pm
JOHN: then I realize that we need to record our Q & A video because that will take me a few days to edit so I’d like the weekend to work on it. I set up the tripod & flip cam in the office and rapidly organize the 80-ish questions that people submitted on Facebook (removing any duplicates so we can just read the rest off as we go on camera).
SHERRY: I get ready for the video, including a very essential outfit change from a t-shirt to a sweater (I’m a wild woman, what can I say). It’s finally time to sit down, turn on the camera, and answer things in a one-shot-only-no-do-overs way (we hate feeling scripted, so having the one-take guideline is good because it keeps it real). hopefully we can knock it out in about 30 minutes.
10:00 pm – 11:00 pm
JOHN: general weirdness and chattiness ensues as we film our answers to a variety of questions. Gosh we’re dorks. and young boy is this taking longer than we thought.
SHERRY: What he said. The thirty minute goal of completion is shot, but we’re having fun talking to no one (aka: the flip cam).
11:00 pm – 12:00 am
JOHN: We’re finally finished with the video and I get the submitting process started while I respond to a few much more tweets and emails. then I turn my attention to Google Sketch-Up, which I’m teaching myself to use so we can render a few kitchen layout ideas in 3D. There’s a bit of a learning curve here, but not the kind that prevents me from eating some ice cream (with whipped cream) in the process.
SHERRY: I begin writing another post, but realize I haven’t updated our house trip page with new photos because sharing some bedroom and office updates, so I add the “progress” label to those pics and update those. five minutes later I realize that I ne