Back to the Grind

Here it is, the eve of my return to work. People keep asking me how I feel about going back to work, but to be honest, I feel a lot of different ways.

I am blessed to work for a company that offers amazing maternity benefits. For those of you who are keeping track, E is going to be four and a half months old tomorrow. She was born the first day of my maternity leave, exactly two weeks before her due date. But I would love it even more if the company offered flexible return to work options. I would love to work part-time for my company, but I don't think that idea would be well-received at this point in time. Maybe someday.

It has been amazing being home with her for all this time. I know there are plenty of moms out there that have to go back to work after a month or two, and I don't know how they do it. When E was that old, we were just figuring out our routine, explaining it to a caretaker would have been nearly impossible. But she is at such a fun stage in her life. She is developing so many new skills and rounding out her personality in a new way each day. I hate to think that something monumental will happen with someone besides me.

J and I are blessed to have found an amazing in-home daycare for her. I am completely comfortable leaving E there; she actually started going last Wednesday so we could all get into the routine. This was J's idea, and it worked out perfectly. We were able to drop her off without feeling rushed to get to the next stop and we got to spend some time alone before this transition begins. I know that the daycare provider will 'raise' E just the way we are, and that she will get wonderful care and attention there. It is still hard to think that she will be looking in someone else's eyes as she falls asleep during the day.  I still want her to think that her Daddy and I are the most fun people she knows.

But heading back to work means that I get to refine the skills that I haven't used in so many months. I want to make E proud that her Mama can do all this; be a successful professional woman, a supportive wife and a great Mama. I know that there will be some bumps as we go through this transition, but I think we have a pretty good game plan. J and I are also committing to fill one of the weekend days with a fun activity; going to the beach, zoo, hiking, or going to the park. E deserves our undivided attention, and I never want her to feel like she is getting anything less.

Little Ricer

After E's four-month pediatrician appointment, we started feeding her rice cereal once a day. She is a pretty good eater once she gets comfortable.

I am excited for this new phase, but I will be soooo glad when we get to the next phase because rice cereal smells horrible and resembles the material used to make paper mache. It might just be me, but I think E is ready for the next milestone too based on some of the faces I have seen during dinnertime the last couple of nights.

Here is her first experience with the delicious concoction.

One Third of a Year

I can't believe it's been four months since Baby E joined our family! I guess time really does fly when you're having fun, or exhausted. I've been having so much fun that I didn't do a post for her three-month birthday. Boo.

I finally got around to hanging a wall calendar in Baby E's room so that I can jot things down as they happen, instead of writing it on a scrap of paper that gets stuck in a pile until I have time to put it in a baby book. It's fun to look at the calendar when we are in her room to see how busy she's been.

Baby E, at four months:

• You weigh 12 pounds (16th percentile).
• You are 24 and a half inches tall (62nd percentile).
• You sleep through the night on a semi-regular basis. You were achieving this feat every night from about three months old until a recent growth spurt and the onslaught of teething.
• You are chewing on your hands constantly, and drooling a lot.
• We recently stopped swaddling you when you sleep, so you have taken to sucking your thumb, usually the right one. I guess it works for you, even it the rest of your hand is spread across the side of your face instead of tucked into a fist.
• You love to talk, and are very conversational. When you aren't jabbering away 
• You have been on your first camping trip to the beach. I had a great time and I think you did too.
• You giggled audibly for the first time when Daddy was making faces at you. This is quite the improvement from the laughing face without any sound that you have been making for months.
• You are fitting into most 0-3 month clothes.
• You found your hands and have started grabbing for everything in sight.
• You have rolled over from your tummy to your back, from the right to the left and vice-versa.
• Your right tear duct, which has been clogged since birth magically cleared up a couple of weeks ago. It actually took me a day or two to realize that I hadn't wiped your eye once! I was leery to add this milestone to the calendar in fear that the tear duct would flare up again.
• You love to spend time in front of the fish tank watching all of the activity.
• You are becoming quite the Skype pro, spending time with Nana and Grandpa as often as possible.

J and I are savoring every precious minute with our girl, or should I say Daddy's girl. J and E have created a very special bond. She listens to him when he's in the room, even if he is on a business call, she knows his voice from a distance and stops all activity to find him. Maybe it's because he whispered sweet nothings to her in the womb. 

We are gearing up for a trip to Northern California to visit family and friends. I am looking forward to having E's pictures taken while we are in town. One little girl's crazy Mama may have bought her a tutu for the occasion!

We are also counting down my last days of maternity leave. I will be heading back to work at the end of the month and E will be going to an in-home daycare full time. It will be a major transition for all of us, but especially me.