You would think after 16 weeks off that coming back to work again would seem . . . different. It's not. Truly, it's like I've never been away. The last 3-1/2 months don't feel any different than if I had taken a week's vacation. I expected to have more problems getting into a groove again. I've been busier catching up and taking care of an urgent piece of work on plate, but that's about it. Everything else is exactly the same.
Baby girl continues to do well. Transporting her to and from daycare in her carrier everyday has proved challenging. Separately, baby and carrier are manageably light; combined it's like toting around a baby elephant. She now smiles when she sees her "teacher", so I am certain she's enjoying herself.
The daycare provides plenty of toys for her to play with. They have an exersaucer there which she seems to have taken to. She surprised us the other day when she managed to spin herself around in it without any help. Anyone taking bets as to how long it will be before she has one at home, especially considering mommy and daddy have a Babies 'R Us gift card they want to use up?
Our pets have settled back into their pre-baby routine during the day. They keep DH company while works, lucky bum. I think Sadie, our dog, is less stressed now. I noticed last week during a crying jag on one of Kate's fussier days, Sadie was actually shaking. I could feel it very plainly. It seems she finds Kate's crying as disturbing as thunder or fireworks. That might explain why she's been under foot for several weeks, following us all over the house, burrowing under the blanket, and taking every chance she can get to climb into our laps. I think she welcomes the change back to normality where the noisiest thing in the house is her.
DH and I our coping with the change. DH is able to concentrate on work more without the distraction of a crying baby during the day. Sleep-wise, however, we could be doing better.
Last night was a turning point. Kate woke up at midnight on the dot again. She fussed for several minutes before we decided she must be hungry. I got up, made my grumpy way into the kitchen (I'm not at my best in the middle of the night) to warm a bottle, and walked back to her room only to find she'd fallen asleep again. I made two decisions at that point: 1) I was awake with a warmed bottle and she was getting that bottle, and 2) That was her last midnight feeding. Unless she's actually crying, I'm not getting up. She's shown herself capable of sleeping through the night, and sleep through the night she will.
To be fair, she finished the bottle. Does that mean she was hungry. No, especially not when she continually fell asleep before finishing it. She was tired. If I had waited a few minutes longer, the bottle wouldn't have been necessary at that time. Not every night waking is a cry for food. Sometimes, she simply needs the time to figure out she's tired, and we need to give her that time.
We're learning.
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