As we mentioned yesterday, it’s Blogiversary Week — four years already. We’ve shared a “day in the life” before, so this year we recorded a full day from both of our perspectives so you can see what each of us (and even Clara and Burger) are up to at any given moment. No two days look the same, though the biggest change this year is that we now have a toddler running around and a 260+ page book we’re writing on the side. Here’s how one typical day went:
7:30 am – 8:00 am
JOHN: Clara woke up right around 7:30 and the weather looked good, so I bundled her into the jogging stroller and went for a run. After changing her diaper, filling her bottle, and grabbing some Goldfish for a snack, we headed out. I managed a four-mile loop and was back in about 40 minutes.
SHERRY: I woke around 7:45 and the house was quiet, so I knew they were out. I grabbed my laptop and checked comments and messages before making breakfast or choosing an outfit. I also reviewed my planner — a messy but essential space for jotting post ideas, deadlines for columns and book work, and appointments. I noticed I had a 2:00 pm call with USA Today about a furniture painting quote, so I set a reminder.
8:00 am – 9:00 am
JOHN: Back from the run by 8:30, I took a quick shower and made breakfast: yogurt for Clara, scrambled eggs for Sherry, and cereal for me.
SHERRY: I kept answering comments and Facebook questions until they returned. I greeted both of them, played with Clara while John finished up breakfast, and kept working on reader replies — still in pajamas, of course.
9:00 am – 10:00 am
JOHN: I watched Clara while Sherry handled blog tasks. We read books, played with a ball and a toy car, and she “helped” me with a load of laundry—she’s fascinated by it.
SHERRY: This hour is usually for proofing the morning post, which went live right at 10:00 this day. Proofing means checking photo placement, reading through the text multiple times, adding links and clarifications, and catching typos. It’s a detailed step that helps keep posts clear and accurate.
10:00 am – 11:00 am
JOHN: More solo time with Clara while Sherry stays on comment duty. We read more books and played outside for a bit. Some days I have more hands-on childcare and other days I spend more time on projects—it varies.
SHERRY: Morning comments come in fast — sometimes more than two hundred in an hour — so I try to answer as many reader questions as I can, and remove occasional spam. Reaching a manageable number of pending comments is always a relief.
11:00 am – 12:00 pm
JOHN: I measured and planned trim for our wall-to-wall desk to make it look built-in, sketched some ideas, then drove to Lowe’s to pick up materials.
SHERRY: At 11:00 Clara usually naps, so I paused to tuck her in (dim the lights, turn on the sound machine). I changed into jeans and a t-shirt, then returned to comment duty and the ever-growing inbox — a mix of sponsor messages, book-related emails, column notes, and lovely reader letters we save and read aloud for motivation.
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
JOHN: While Clara napped, Sherry and I discussed trim options. I went to the basement to test a piece of trim against a cabinet, made cuts, and handled a few email tasks for giveaways and sponsors.
SHERRY: I planned to start writing a post for the next day, but Clara woke at 12:30. I changed her and spent some time together while John finished the trim. Babies don’t wait for deadlines.
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
JOHN: With the trim project wrapped, I reheated leftovers for lunch — quiche, spaghetti, corn, and beans — and we ate together as a family. Fifteen minutes later Clara was ready to play again, so I took her out for reading and playtime. (Kitchen furniture is often in flux; we’re always rearranging.)
SHERRY: I finished proofreading the afternoon post after lunch, added links, caught typos, and posted it at 2:00 pm.
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
JOHN: I folded laundry with Clara’s “help” and played ball with Burger outside once he woke from his nap.
SHERRY: I had a short call with USA Today for a quick quote about painting a chair, then returned to answering comments for the rest of the hour.
3:00 pm – 4:00 pm
JOHN: I took over on computer duty: emails about giveaways and sponsors, communications with our hosting provider about backups, and catching up on Twitter messages.
SHERRY: I spent the hour with Clara — playing, singing, and chasing the dog — and put her down for an afternoon nap around 3:45. Today she fell asleep right away.
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
JOHN: I edited and sized photos, began drafting a post for the next day, and set up a tripod to photograph the desk trim project for a future tutorial.
SHERRY: I planned to prime office chairs but prioritized finishing the next morning’s post and photo edits instead. Clara woke at 4:30, so I didn’t finish everything, but I made good progress.
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm
JOHN: With Clara getting restless, we went for an evening walk because rain was expected later. Burger was thrilled to come along.
SHERRY: We walked for about an hour, brainstormed post ideas for the upcoming week, and tossed around kitchen layout concepts. Sometimes talking through ideas helps us land on something we’re both excited to do.
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
JOHN: I cooked a quick dinner — a chicken with apples, raisins, and olives recipe — while Clara played on the kitchen floor and chatted with me between stirring and watching the stove.
SHERRY: I finished some blog comments, wrapped up the post I’d been working on, edited photos, and joined them for dinner at about 6:45. It was delicious — olives included.
7:00 pm – 8:00 pm
JOHN: We had family time before bed: reading books, playing, and trying to wear Clara out. Burger decided to join in.
SHERRY: Burger burned off energy racing around the room while Clara laughed. At 7:45 we brushed teeth, said goodnight to pictures of her grandparents, and Clara was out like a light.
8:00 pm – 9:00 pm
JOHN: Once Clara was asleep, we transitioned to evening work. We often have laptops out late into the night but try to keep it relaxed by sitting together and watching TV while working on smaller tasks.
SHERRY: I finished the next morning’s post. A typical post takes 2–3 hours to write once photos are edited and uploaded, so evenings are when we tie up those loose ends.
9:00 pm – 10:00 pm
JOHN: We filmed a Q&A video for our readers. I set up the tripod and organized about eighty questions submitted on Facebook, removing duplicates so the recording would flow.
SHERRY: I changed into a sweater, sat down in front of the camera, and we answered questions in one take to keep it natural. We hoped to finish in thirty minutes.
10:00 pm – 11:00 pm
JOHN: The filming took longer than expected but it was fun — we were goofy and candid, which made the time fly.
SHERRY: Agreed. The half-hour goal didn’t happen, but we enjoyed talking directly to readers through the camera.
11:00 pm – 12:00 am
JOHN: After uploading the video I replied to a few tweets and emails, then spent time teaching myself Google SketchUp to render kitchen layout ideas in 3D. There’s a learning curve, but it’s helpful for visualizing options.
SHERRY: I updated our House Tour page with recent bedroom and office photos and added progress labels to reflect current updates. Then I returned to comments and email.
12:00 am – 1:00 am
JOHN: I squeezed in more SketchUp work, turned off lights, set the alarm to night mode, and checked on Clara one last time before bed. I grabbed a small bowl of ice cream while I waited for a render to finish.
SHERRY: While John finished up, I started a BabyCenter post but didn’t get far enough to add photos. It was nearly 1:00 am by the time I finally got ready for bed.
1:00 am – 1:30ish
JOHN & SHERRY: We finally crawled into bed with Burger snuggling between us. We reviewed the next day’s must-dos — book intros to write, chairs to prime, posts to finish, inboxes to tame — then drifted off hoping Clara would sleep in. She managed until about 7:45 the next morning, which felt like a small victory.