ALEC’S AGENDA: If we’re lucky, we get to sleep in until 6, but that’s only when Alec doesn’t scream from his room at 5 that he’s awake. I’m normally up at 5 during the week, so I’ll take any extra sleep I can get. Max and I have this ritual of grabbing coffee from the kitchen and going to Alec’s room to hear him talk. He tells us what he wants to do that day. Usually, it involves something with fire trucks.
CUDDLES: Somewhere around 6:30, while we’re still with Alec, we’ll hear Sandra getting up. We bring her in Alec’s room, and we put her in his crib with him and he hugs her. It’s so sweet.
NOT OVER OR EASY: We make eggs for the kids. Sandra likes boiled eggs with avocado, and Alec takes them scrambled with a smoothie. I usually eat what Sandra eats while Max may or may not eat. He’s into intermittent fasting.
OH OH DOMINO: Our family outing is always in the morning. We’ll get dressed, put the kids in their double-decker stroller and venture out. Pushing the stroller is a serious workout, and since we don’t get to the gym on Sundays, we count it as exercise. Domino Park, on the East River, is always on our agenda. It’s beautiful. They have lots of climbing equipment and great water views. It’s hard to get Alec to leave.
CRAVINGS: After the park, we’ll take a nice walk through the neighborhood so Max and I can get more steps in. We eventually end up at the Whole Foods and pick up groceries that we need for the rest of that day. Lately, we go because I’ve had pregnancy cravings. That means plantain chipsor cookies-and-cream ice cream.
LEFTOVERS: We’re home by noon in time for lunch. This is the meal when we use up whatever food is left in the fridge. All of us follow a paleo diet as much as possible. We want to eat unprocessed foods, but we’re also dairy friendly. We have ground beef or ground turkey mixed with onions, this really great cauliflower casserole that we make during the week and various kinds of vegetables, including yams and broccoli. Max and I graze and make little plates for the kids.
NAP, PREP: Alec religiously goes down for a nap between 1 and 1:30 and is out for two hours. Sandra sleeps, too, but only for 30 minutes. In that short window of time, Max and I work. He’s checking into his cases while I get onto email and text and catch up on news stories that we may be covering the next day. Michael and I have a thread going on and prep for our upcoming shows.
INSIDE PLAY: When Alec wakes up, he’s in full play mode. We want to get him tired again and play games like hide and seek. He’s also really into these tiles that stick together. I love them, too. You can use them to create all sorts of structures. While we’re playing, we have music playing. We love Bob Dylan, Queen and Talking Heads.
PETIT PALEOS: The kids eat their last meal for the day around 4:30. It could be more eggs or more ground meat. Another staple is Parmesan chips dipped in salsa and guac. We don’t let them drink juice. It’s either water or milk.
NIKKI FOR THE WIN: Max and I try to book a baby sitter on Sunday nights so can go out and have a civilized meal. We have this great baby sitter, Nikki, who Alec loves to play with. No matter what, we go to this restaurant down the street from us called Sweetwater. It’s a great comfort food spot with American and French dishes, and we’ve been regulars for six years. Max may drink a cocktail or an Aperol spritz. I drank spritzes when I wasn’t pregnant.
PJ’S, STAT: Since we go out early, we’re home by 7:30. Both the kids are sleeping or almost sleeping. Max usually heads to the computer to work. I can’t get into my pajamas fast enough and then settle into the couch and get ready for the next day’s show. The prep team sends Michael and I notes about what we’re covering, and I go through the topics and scripts for the interviews. We’ll both work for a few hours, and then I crawl into bed. I’m out like a light a little after 9. It’s going to be a busy week ahead.