Money on Monday: My week of full-time work as a student

Here is a more detailed account of my week of nanny/babysitting work and working 40+ hours a week while in full time school. I'm not doing this to complain or show off but just to give a glimpse of how much travel means to me and how I realistically make all of this money while I am home. It's not like oh I'm in school and I grab a part time job then be able to travel the world afterwards. It's more like how far can I stretch myself until I think I might snap. 

Sunday-  (5 hours work)

7:00- wake-up, write a paper

10:00-3:00- babysit an infant, change diapers, run around the yard, feed him lunch, watch him fight a nap, then talk him for a walk to make him sleep, he falls asleep, we come home and he instantly wakes up and screams bloody murder until I take him outside again. Dad gets home--- freedom

4:00-7:00- group project in the library

Study all night for my exam the next day

Monday- (7 hours work) 

5:00- up, gym, shower

8:00- 12:18- Babysit Diva, get dressed, feed her, go to the park, let her climb a hill herself only to have her come down covered head to toe in mud "but lexie I found a mud pile". Cousins arrive and I get some nanny solidarity, feed her a snack, chase them away from the street, load up Diva, get home, unload, feed her lunch while she takes every crayon out of the box and lays them on the ground, mom calls to say she is being late, freak out because I have an exam at 12:45. Mom gets home and I run out the door

12:52-2:00- burst into the door 7 minutes late for my exam, bust it out and then run out the door for my next job

2:25- get to preschool, go get nugget, grab her lunchbox, kitty, painting, coat, and blanket to put in the car. Ask her where she wants to go and we decide on the big park to feed the ducks. 

3:00-6:00- No food in my car so we go to the store to get bread (and I also grab some groceries- priorities). Then we go the park and I proceed to chase her like crazy for hours, drop kitty in the river and have an epic meltdown, finally load up the car to go get Monkey from school. Monkey and Diva get in a wrestling flight on the floor, then get diva's things and drive home through traffic while they sing for me from the backseat... it's beautiful. Get home and mom asks me to play with the baby for awhile while she finishes dinner. change diaper, etc. free

6:30-10:30- library time! get my reading work done for tomorrow

Tuesday- (work 13.5 hours)

7:45- wake up, my alarm didn't go off! run out the door

8:00- arrive at babysitting job. Kids are on spring break so I have both of them today. 

8:45- Little W gets up. He wakes up E and they start running around shrieking that they want to go to the park

9:00- breakfast,  They go to make a mess in their room while I pack lunch for the park. Potty and everyone dressed.

10:00- 1:00- Park. E walks into a bar and gets a massive bump. W throws a fit over taking turns on the bubbles. Snack. Make some friends.  W starts pushing all the kids and then becomes even more upset when I get him in trouble. Girls go into the sandpit and take off their shoes and socks and burry them. Other kids leave and I drag my kids to have lunch, W is exhausted and starving - so upset he wont even eat. We get the crying one and the sandy one into the wagon with all of our stuff and pull them home. 

1:00-3:00- Little W naps while E and I hang out. color and bake brownies, then she does dishes and sprays water all over the kitchen. 

3:00-5:00- Little W wakes up, water table, brownies and lemonade, W dumps water all over me. Great. we blow bubbles in the yard and I distract them as long as I can to keep them outside the house. 

5:00-6:00- Change them all to being dry, and clean. While also serving dinner, cleaning up dinner, and keeping them entertained. Mom gets home- chat quick then run out the door

6:20 - arrive at other babysitting job. 4 girls 5 and under. They meet me outside and we play in the backyard.

7:00-8:00- head inside because one the babies tips over the stroller on herself. read books and distract the girls for a bit, then get 4 girls to go potty, brush their teeth, put on diapers, and get jammies on. It's slow with lots of wrangling and fighting. 

8:00- put babies down, sing songs, and leave big girls on their own room to read quietly. Come in and find them both screaming about a fight. Read them stories and put them down. Go into kitchen and clean for parents. 

8:32- Oldest girl comes out saying her sister won't be quiet enough for her to sleep, go yell as sister and remind her the rules.

8:40-9:20- repeat the process with punishments and calls to mom until all girls are quiet.

10:00- parents home, drive home, park car, walk to room, crawl in bed

10:40- finally in bed and realize i haven't done any schoolwork today, oh well

Wednesday- (7.5 hours work)

6:00- up, do an assignment for school

8:30-12:00- babysit four girls again, bubbles, coloring, snacks, diapers, cleaning colors off the walls, crying, books, balloons

12:45-2:00- Class

2:15-4:00- lab work

4:15-8:15- babysitting, take baby to gym class, home and dinner, baths and ready for bed

8:45- dinner and school work, catch up on lab work

11:00- sleep

Thursday- (6 hours work)

6:00- up gym

8:00-12:00- open up the baby gym I work at, shift, teach 4 classes for babies and 2 year olds, run around, down water, chat with parents, sing until my voice is killing me

12:45- 2:00- class

2:00-4:00- readings and school work

4:00-7:30- seminar class

7:50- 10:00- go sit at the house with a baby while parents go out, get school work done

Friday - (work 12.5 hours)

8:00- arrive at Diva's house, breakfast and fun, 

9:45-11:45- load car, adventure science center, play, avoid groups, etc.

12:00-3:00- home, lunch, rest time

3:30- take Diva to go let out the dog of another family I work for

4:00- starbucks stop to go potty

4:30- toy store! play

5:30- another toy store, books, buy a stuffed animal, etc

6:00- take her to dinner

6:30- get her home, face-paint and throw a party with balloons and bubbles in the kitchen

8:00- bed

10:30 - mom home

bed

Saturday-  (13 hours work) 

8:00-1:00pm- teach baby classes, sing, talk to parents, meeting with my boss, etc. 

1:30-5:00- meet up with family friends that are in town with their kids, play with kids at the park while parents go shopping and eat, take kids to get popsicles, etc.

5:30-8:00- go babysit my normal 4 girl family but with their 3 cousins in town. That means I'm watching a 5-year old, 2 3-year-olds, twin 2-year olds and twin 1-year olds. CHAOS. Crying. dinner, diapers, changing, bottles, jammies, teeth, panties, etc.

8:00- all kids in bed, and then a baby wakes up and starts screaming

8:15-9:45- console baby, put him down,  he wakes up screaming again within minutes, repeat (he was sick, sharing a room with his twin brother, and right night to all 5 other kids room, therefore every time he woke up screaming they were fussing too)

10:00- silence! 

11:00- parents home, I go home and sleep

Sunday-

NO WORK! rest day... just kidding, I have a research paper to write, a group presentation to prepare, 3 chapters to read, and 6 hours of lab work to do to meet my weekly quota

And on Monday- I repeat.

Just to recap- that's 

64 hours of work

4 classes

10 hours of lab work

1 group project

1 exam

1 paper

and that's how it goes.