Daycare Blues

Today has been kind of killer, I'm not going to lie.  Charlie hasn't exactly mastered the art of sleeping, so please consider that a heavy veil of exhaustion hangs over all the little tests we face throughout the day.  Today we went to look at the daycare where we are leaving Charlie when I get back to work.  We hadn't been since I was pregnant so went in to sign the contract and introduce the daycare providers to Charlie.  Erik could only stay for a few minutes so he left while I was reviewing paperwork with the woman who runs the daycare, Celina.  Charlie started fussing in his stroller and Celina picked him up and next thing you know he had pooped all over her.  Now, we've had a few accidents here, within the confines of our apartment, but nothing major, and this was MAJOR.  There was poop everywhere, all over him and definitely all over her.  It was like he wasn't even wearing a diaper.  Now I know that you are supposed to carry a change of clothes in the diaper bag and I have been, at first.  But somehow we must have gotten a bit lazy about it (maybe it's one of those things that you really need to be burned by to adopt whole-heartedly.)  So, of course, I didn't have a change of clothes for him.  While Celina went to change her outfit, I tried to change Charlie who let out the biggest (and today's only) smile when I set him down on the changing table.  Once I started trying to navigate his squirmy body out of a poop covered onesie that smile quickly disappeared.  Since I couldn't bring him home naked, we had to borrow some clothes from the daycare.  So there's that.  That little gem of an experience, just a lowlight in a day of lowlights, let me assure you.  The good news is everyone at the daycare reacted quite well and even better thought it was kind of funny.  Thank god, or we would be back to square one.  Even still, I am dreading the day when I have to leave my little baby, and am terrified of trying to balance work and being a mom.  I know, I know that millions of women do it everyday, but when I think back to what our jobs were like before Charlie, it still feels like it will be very challenging. Here's to making it work, and with smiles on both of our faces...
xo,
C

Priorities

Hi Cuties,
Yeah, it's been a little while.  Still figuring out the dreaded mom word over here, "balance."  So far, "balance" has meant devoting all my time to Charlie and prioritizing the rest.  Lest you think I am turning into some sort of mom martyr, you'll note that the priority list squarely puts me at #2 versus housework or some other necessary evil. The daily list goes something like this (note: these tasks are accomplished with varying degrees of success depending on how long Charlie will let me put him down throughout the day.  Some days we make it through the list.  Most days we make it through task #3.):


1.  Eat yogurt and my Eggos.  If this task can't be accomplished by 11AM, #1 ain't happening for momma today.  I never ate breakfast before I got pregnant anyway, so maybe I should give up the dream.
2.  Throw in some laundry.  
3.  Take a shower.
4.  Eat lunch.  
5.  Get dressed and "do hair and makeup."  Don't get any grand illusions here - it's not pretty.
6.  Other Stuff.  Other stuff includes straightening up around the house, returning emails, returning phone calls, etc.  It doesn't really matter what Other Stuff actually includes because I never get to it anyway.  Yet. We're still getting the hang of things over here.


Now, cuties, you may be saying, what about TV Time?  C, have you given up TV, your most precious pastime for the devotion to your child?  Wrong!  TV Time coincides with Charlie Time and can be fit in during Breast Time or Sleeping On Mommy's Breast Time.  In fact, never have I been so caught up on TV as I am now.  I've had to resort to the dreaded On Demand and occasionally watching live TV, the horror.  Sidenote:  are you all watching Celebrity Apprentice?  How wonderful is Arsenio Hall? (editor's note: scratch that, just finished tonight's episode. Spoiler alert: Arsenio is a little cray cray. 110%.)  And how dumb is our good old Teresa?  Painfully dumb, right? And for anyone who's CONCERNED, while I do value the importance of exposing Charlie to "reality" at an early age, I currently reserve TV Time to moments while he is sleeping or "otherwise engaged."  Mostly.


xo,
C

Weekend Warriors

when daddy is home, mommy gets to be in the pictures!

Hi Cuties,
Hope everyone enjoyed the weekend.  Never did I imagine that I would look forward to weekends this much when I am not even working.  I figured all the days would blend together and I'd be like "what, it's Saturday?, I thought it was Tuesday."  But no, 'tis not the case because I have never so eagerly anticipated a Friday night as I do now.  I love Charlie and I am so glad to have this alone time to spend with him but I have come to cherish every moment of family time (aka when daddy is home.)  When daddy is home it is really starting to feel like we are getting in the swing of being our own little family.  We take walks to the park and run errands, visit with friends and family, coo over the cuteness of Charlie and his little outfits, and even are able to laugh through some of the more challenging moments (pee everywhere, Charlie's varying degrees of indignant crying, how his eyes pop open in wide awakefulness the second we put him in his bassinet.  HA, laugh I tell you!)  Charlie always cries through these challenging moments and to be honest, during the week, sometimes so does mommy.  
The heartbreaking part is to think about how much more I'll cherish the weekends in just a few weeks when I return to work.  We'll need to make every moment count because I know how quickly the time will pass.  While it's sad to think about less time with Charlie, it's nice to realize just how full our lives have become and just how special every minute together is.  
This week, Charlie and I will be spending a lot of time outside enjoying the nice weather.  Should be a good one.
xo,
C

The Final Monday, Monday

Hi Cuties,
Today was the first day of my last week at work before maternity leave.  I had butterflies in my stomach the whole day just because I am so nervous to go into labor.  Even right now, I am sitting on a towel on the couch while watching TV just in case.  I suspect everyone thinks I am crazy but I can't decide if I agree or not.  It is such a weird feeling to be leaving work for a few months and on the brink of something so completely different.  Definitely the biggest change in my life in the last 12 years or so and now that I am starting to feel better my excitement is really kicking in again.  It is hard to abandon projects that I am in the middle of and plan for things that I know I won't be a part of, but at this point there is nothing I can do but relinquish control and know that once I am back from maternity leave, everything will probably be completely different (or completely the same, ha, who are we kidding)  I guess time will tell.
xo,
C

Friday!

Tonight was part 2 of Alyssa's birthday weekend.  The mister and I made it to dinner but not out to the bar and dancing after.  I am too old and pregnant.  I don't know what his excuse is.  This has been another long work week and I can't wait to sleep in tomorrow (enjoy it while you can, I know, I know!)  Work has been so crazy, I feel like I really need some down time to start mentally preparing myself for the baby's arrival, but it's hard when the baby's not here.  Still, we have so much to do and we are running out of time.    I can only imagine that juggling work with taking care of a baby will be much more difficult than juggling work while preparing for a baby,  so it looks like I am in for a treat!
xo,
C

Tree Time

Hi Cuties,

Ugh, today was quite a day.  The emails were flying fast and furious, let me tell you.   There was an hour in the middle of the day where my back started hurting and I started getting a little premonition of what the next three months could be like.  It got me a little worried because there is so much that needs to get done at work and home before this baby comes.  This weekend is going to be devoted to personal life - it has to be.  We have so much to do to get ready for baby and I haven't bought a single christmas present either.  Not to mention that we don't have a tree up yet!!  The fact that we could have been basking in the light of the Christmas tree this whole week sends me into a state of panicky regret.  But.. the mister promised that this year we could get a real tree, so I think that's the plan.  Hopefully, my allergies will cooperate (and the allergies of certain little sister visitors.)

Tomorrow is going to be a crazy work day...but then weekend!  And time to take home the new car!!

xo,

C