Time. I need more of it.

There are not enough hours in the day. Who decided on 24 hours anyway?? And who decided we had to work 8 of them? Eight sounds like a small number, but somehow that number gets s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d and I don't think I ever just spend 8 hours at work. And this is just my job-work. Not my home-work.

So this is a day from my recent "schedule:"

7am - Feed baby
7:30 - shower, get kids ready
8:30 - Leave house
9:00 - arrive at work
7:30 - leave work
8:00 - get home, pump milk for tomorrow while watching kids
9:00 - eat dinner
9:30 - Handsome's bedtime routine begins
10:00 - Feed baby while talking to DH or watching tv
11:00 - bedtime
1:00am - Feed baby
1:30am - Sleep
3:00am - Feed baby
3:30am - Sleep
5:00am - Feed baby
5:30am - Sleep
cycle continues....
(Baby feeding times vary on demand. Lately he's actually been getting up every hour. Don't know what's up with that madness.)

Did you notice how much "me" time is in there??? Yeah, none. Closest I get is about an hour between Handsome's bedtime and the time my body decides it has had enough and I just fall asleep. That time isn't even really my time as I am talking to DH and holding/feeding the baby at the same time. Work time could possibly be considered my time as I sit in my office alone, but I am working to support my family and I just started a rather stressful trial period for a possible promotion in a year and a half, so basically it provides no relief.

So when am I supposed to find time to go to the gym or practice photography? I need both of those for my own health, and I just don't get the opportunity. I keep seeing lessons for a 365 or 52 week photography challenge and I REALLY want to participate so that I can get better and I just can't find enough time. I see people that improve so much in one year and here I am going along at a snail's pace. I get about once a month where I can get a couple hours to practice. I tried to take a picture of Handsome last night and he thought it was funny to run away at the last minute. Yeah, Handsome, very funny. Then I tried to take Junior's picture and he started to cry because it was time to feed him. Then it was time to put Handsome to bed. When I finished there it was time to feed Junior again so that he would fall asleep for his longer sleep period. And at that point I couldn't take a picture of anything else because all the lights in the house needed to be off. GAH.

I know DH is having just as hard a time because he has the kids all day long and the few minutes that he might get he has to spend on school work.

Oh Lord how I need strength.