Context: We've got three young kids (5M, 3F, and 6 month old baby) and my wife's a teacher so she's been home for the summer while I work a normal 8-5 office job. Typically it's always been she'll cook and clean what she can during the day with the kids while I'll take over at night.
Ever since our third, it's like at least 60% of the time the energy is just not there at night time after the kids go to bed. The baby goes down around 7 while we tag team bed time ritual with our two older kids until I take my daughter to her room and my wife stays with our son. We then stay in their rooms until they fall asleep while we get pretty tired (getting out before 8) or fall asleep in the process of waiting (and then wake up around 9).
Once we're out I'll start cleaning (do the dishes, laundry, or put away the hurricane of toys) but lately it's getting difficult to put even an hour of work in after bedtime and if I sit down to relax first I just end up falling asleep waking up around midnight or whenever the baby wakes up. This then leaves the mess for my wife to deal with the next day unfortunately and her started to feel overwhelmed once things pile up and she was the last person to clean.
So my question is how do you do it? Back load your daily caffeine for the afternoon and night? Stop doing dinner and bedtime as a family and alternate days? Hire help?
Edit: I should clarify that especially with three kids i do not have the expectation for myself for the house to be spotless. I mostly mean the daily of getting toys off the floor and put in bins, dishes done, and then grabbing laundry and folding instead of letting it sit in the dryer for three days. The stuff where if you let it pile up it gets real bad. I kinda like how /@mec1963-Philippe_Rameau once I sit down I know I’m fucked. Maybe it’s just not letting myself sit down until the dailies are done and just push through the feeling of wanting to take a break
Ever since our third, it's like at least 60% of the time the energy is just not there at night time after the kids go to bed. The baby goes down around 7 while we tag team bed time ritual with our two older kids until I take my daughter to her room and my wife stays with our son. We then stay in their rooms until they fall asleep while we get pretty tired (getting out before 8) or fall asleep in the process of waiting (and then wake up around 9).
Once we're out I'll start cleaning (do the dishes, laundry, or put away the hurricane of toys) but lately it's getting difficult to put even an hour of work in after bedtime and if I sit down to relax first I just end up falling asleep waking up around midnight or whenever the baby wakes up. This then leaves the mess for my wife to deal with the next day unfortunately and her started to feel overwhelmed once things pile up and she was the last person to clean.
So my question is how do you do it? Back load your daily caffeine for the afternoon and night? Stop doing dinner and bedtime as a family and alternate days? Hire help?
Edit: I should clarify that especially with three kids i do not have the expectation for myself for the house to be spotless. I mostly mean the daily of getting toys off the floor and put in bins, dishes done, and then grabbing laundry and folding instead of letting it sit in the dryer for three days. The stuff where if you let it pile up it gets real bad. I kinda like how /@mec1963-Philippe_Rameau once I sit down I know I’m fucked. Maybe it’s just not letting myself sit down until the dailies are done and just push through the feeling of wanting to take a break