Mother Stories
Day In The Life: Lydia María Lauer, Director at Nike Women
Written by Erin Feher
Photography by Photos Courtesy Of Lydia María Lauer
May 13, 2020
Today we are taking a peek into a day in the life of Lydia María Lauer, the Portland-based mama of one, global brand creative narrative director for Nike Women, and founder of Making La Madre, a site she started nearly six years ago to document her many thoughts as she was unexpectedly entering motherhood. Like so many of us, Lydia has been adjusting to WFH life, and learning new ways to connect socially when backyard BBQ’s are out of the question. We loved catching back up with this down-to-earth mama, who has previously shared with MOTHER her experience of teaching her son Mario about privilege from an early age. Now she invites us into her home and shares what a typical day looks like, nearly 2 months into lockdown with a 5-year-old and two parents working full-time. Click through the slideshow below to spend the day with her!
Want to see more Day in the Life profiles? Take a look at the “new normal” of San Francisco doctor Kat De Jong, Idaho-based stylist Laura Tully, Los Angeles creative director Andrea Hawken, and stenographer and mother of four Juvilynn Arbuthnut.
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Mike, 35, filmmaker and founder of Thousands Creative Agency
Lydia María, 36, Global Brand Narrative Director at Nike Women
Mario, 5, almost kindergartener
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- "We live in Southeast Portland and have been sheltering in place since March 14. The entire month of February and the first two weeks of March I took a sabbatical from work. We spent the majority of that time in vacation mode, with family hopping between Hawaii, the Pacific Northwest, and Mexico. The timing of my sabbatical coincided with a transition to a new role at work, so my first day with my new team was March 16, the first day we started to officially work from home."
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- A pretty entryway, ready to welcome guests again...one day.
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- "I feel like we are living in a sci-fi film. Once a week or so I am reminded of how bizarre this truly is. I will call a friend or just blurt to Mike ‘this is insane!’ Most of all, I am equal parts shocked and impressed by the true halt of our normal lives: the adoption of masks, social distancing, and other measures that have become second nature now."
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- "Between 7 and 7:30 a.m, our son Mario is our alarm clock. My meetings typically don’t start until 9 a.m., and without a commute I have the luxury of not needing an alarm or getting much together before my work day starts. No packing lunches, drop off negotiations, or planning ahead for my typical 30-minute commute."
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- "I am still in PJ's while I check my email and schedule of meetings for the day. I'm usually sitting on our couch next to Mario, who is reading a book and has already begun his screen time negotiations for the day. The first few weeks I would wake up and have to remind myself that this was our reality. I would rub my eyes and walk into the bathroom to retrieve my phone and check notifications. Seeing the stream of Covid-related news alerts would ground me back in reality. But still, it was stunning those first three weeks or so. Recently, though, I have acclimated. It will be an adjustment now when I do return to the office, whenever that is. So, most mornings I walk into the bathroom and ask Google for the forecast, cross my fingers for sunshine, brush my teeth, grab my phone from its charger in our bathroom, and then ease on downstairs."
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- "Calm. Mario slept in and I woke up on my own at 7 a.m. I snuck back into bed for a few more minutes of sleep and then once I made my way down the hall I found Mario peacefully playing in his room, which is always such a sweet surprise because it does not happen very often."
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- A rare moment of stillness.
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- "Mario usually eats two breakfasts. One with each of his parents. I guess it is more like breakfast and then brunch. For round one with me, it has recently been cinnamon raisin english muffins or arroz con leche. Both comfort foods for me from childhood that Mario has recently been requesting as well. Mike then usually makes eggs and a smoothie and shares them both with Mario. This morning I had warm water with fresh lemon, which I do most mornings. I don’t drink coffee until after 2 p.m. as a treat in the afternoon. I didn't start drinking coffee until January of last year. I am a very late adopter to coffee. But now that I do enjoy a cup, I have also become a snob. We have an espresso machine and in quarantine I have been learning to make cappuccinos. I use Stumptown Hair Bender beans and Milkadamia Latte Da Nut Milk."
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- "My morning meetings have wrapped. While I was in the basement working, Mike took Mario up the street to see his cousins and play outside for a bit. My family lives very close and in the past couple weeks we have reunited the kids. We are keeping some rules, like nobody can enter each other’s houses and adults keep six feet apart, more or less. We know a few other families who are also doing this and we figured the trade-offs were worth it. His cousins are his best friends and socializing is so important for all of them. I feel good this morning and I am about to go for a run on Mt. Tabor, which is about 1.5 miles from our house, and listen to a podcast for some 'me' time."
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- "Prioritizing my workout. I always feel better when I get it in before noon. Even better when it happens before my first meeting of the day. We developed a token system more or less for screen time: 3 turns each day that Mario gets to decide when to use. The time varies depending on our schedules, but we set a timer so there are no negotiations when it is over."
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- "Mike had a meeting at 12 p.m. so I am back in mom mode. I just got home from picking Mario up from playing with his cousins. He was really upset to have to leave and is grouchy and hungry. We had a mini meltdown together, made up, and now I need to feed him ASAP. I am now beginning what I feel like is the real part of my day. I don’t really get ready for the day until after my workout. So, I try my best to have that happen before noon. I check my email before I hop in the shower to see if anything needs my immediate attention."
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- "I showered and got dressed for the day—I found some new jeans with tags still on in my closet that I think I bought back in September!? Just sat down at our dining table to check on some emails and I am finishing Mario’s leftover mac n' cheese for my lunch. He is sitting down with his second screen time of the day, the Spanish language app Studycat, while Mike is working downstairs."
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- Keeping that Spanish fresh!
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- "He is a very social guy, so being stuck at home is hard for him. He is not afraid of the virus, but he is very curious and conscious about it. For the past year he has been obsessed with all things science, especially the human body, so the virus has been a great tool for him to flex his knowledge and continue to understand the way things work."
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- "Mario and I just got back from a walk and scoot in the neighborhood. He asked if we could take a route that would take him by his school. We live super close, so we take that route. My next meeting is in 15 minutes, so I make a little iced latte and Mario has some milk and a caramel we got from one of our favorite shops, Nationale, when I recently went to pick up some books curbside."
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- "I'm on a Zoom with my core team before our 5 p.m.—last meeting of the day! I have a little headache and realizing that the leftover mac n' cheese I ate earlier was not much of a real lunch. I collected some berries and pumpkin seeds and a large cup of water to snack on til these meetings are done. Mike is out on a run and Mario is downstairs watching a show, his third and final dose of screentime for the day. We got him a little rocket launcher toy as a surprise that arrived this afternoon, so I think Mike will be able to coax him out of the basement to play with that while I am on this call."
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- "I just wrapped my last meeting of the day. I still have a headache—I blame Zoom! Maybe I should invest in some blue light glasses?"
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- "Chicken tacos. I bought a rotisserie chicken this weekend during my big shop for the week. I will shred the chicken and put it on the stove in some El Pato sauce, make rice and beans on the side, and some fresh guacamole, too."
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- The secret sauce.
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- "As parents who both have demanding careers, it is difficult to give Mario the level of attention he was used to getting at preschool. We’ve tried to make a schedule to follow each day to give him structure, and so each of us knows more or less what he should be doing. In reality, we never keep to it exactly. I have a more structured work day than Mike, so he does what he can to keep Mario from interrupting my meetings, but I’d say Mario is good for at least one cameo per Zoom call. Aside from just trying our best to keep him entertained, we’ve always done a good job sharing the load. We both really enjoy spending time with him."
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- The happy family in their lush yard.
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- "Mike usually takes Mario up for bedtime, gets him ready, and reads to him. They started the tradition of reading chapter books this year and I love this time of the day, because all of the hard work is done. I typically clean up after dinner, load the dishwasher, wipe down the counters, and check Instagram."
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- "Tonight I am looking forward to heading down to the basement and watching the latest episode of Insecure with Mike. We have been watching The Last Dance on ESPN every Sunday night, so Monday’s have become our Insecure catchup night."
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- "I got frustrated with Mario a few times today when he was whiny and I feel I was mean. It made me second guess my parenting choices. I also struggle with feeling guilty that he spent more time than normal watching TV this afternoon while we were working."
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- "My run. I felt really strong and fast. One benefit of the shelter in place is healthy, home-cooked eating and more time to work out! Watering the garden with Mario. My coffee—the iced latte today with a giant ice cube typically reserved for cocktails. Lastly, my team meeting at 4 p.m. felt really productive and like we were all in alignment, which is difficult over Zoom."
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- "A casual potluck in our backyard with family and friends, music, margaritas, and the kids running through the sprinkler. Sharing food and drink and just enjoying time together without fear or concern. I am optimistic that employers will continue to honor flex schedules and remote working environments. And I hope that caregivers, educators, and essential workers will continue to be seen as everyday heroes in our communities." For more on Lydia and her family, be sure to follow her on Instagram here and here.
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