After about 15 or 16 weeks of time dedicated 100 percent to Maya, I had to make the dreaded return to work on January 4! Not totally dreaded, but I was definitely feeling a little apprehensive about how it would all work out. Turns out, things are going great thanks to our big girl. The weeks leading up to my return we’d been practicing with the bottle, and Miss Maya was having none of it! She only wanted to nurse. But thankfully, five days before my return, things just turned around and she decided she didn’t mind the bottle after all. Now she’s a regular pro, and will even take one from me.
I had originally thought I’d only return to work part time; I loved every second of maternity leave but knew that I still wanted to at least work a little, to keep using that part of my mind. But we didn’t want Maya in daycare if we could at all help it. Thanks to their flexibility at the paper, we’re getting to make full time work, without feeling like Maya has to spend too much time away from a parent. Two days a week, Jason works an early shift and I work a late shift, so we pass Maya off at the office. These days are great for me, because I get to be at work, around adults, stimulating my brain again, for a full 8 hours, but I know that Maya is with dad so I don’t feel guilty about being away! And I think Jason and Maya are going to really start to love their time alone together each week. (It’s gotten off to a rough start with them both being a little sick!) The other three days a week, I work from home. So I’m just steps away from my little gal! We have a sitter that comes to play with her during some of that time, and then I do some of my work while Jason is home in the morning or at night, some on weekends, etc. So overall, I don’t feel like she is missing out on much time with her parents, which is a great compromise for all of us! We have a sitter whose true love for kids is so apparent that I really am excited about Maya being able to spend time with her. I think it’s been great for her to have someone new to play with.
So in the end, even though the transition has been a little rough, we’re all thinking it’s going to work out pretty well after we get used to our new routines!