My Moo Cow's other job

So that's a photo of Holly nursing over there on the left- don't worry- you can't see anything I don't want to share. Holly has taken to pulling on my shirt which is nice for coverage. So I worked a full week this week and everything went alright! There were a few challenges.

First off, Crazy Whompus (one of her many nicknames) has her first cold. We took her to the pediatrician last Saturday to confirm it. This has meant that we've had the pleasure of suctioning snot out of her nose at least once a day. Any parent or child who enjoys this process please raise your hand---right--- I thought not. Except for screaming long and loud during the bulbing process, she's been generally happy despite her stuffy nose. She was a bit fussier nursing during the first few days, but she's back to sucking with gusto.

Second off, Tom had a doctor's appointment scheduled for this week. This meant that we had to switch off on our usual schedule and I had to work the 11-7pm shift. I have to say that I didn't like this any more than Tom or Holly. My brain generally shuts down at 5pm to anything other than reading so I set myself up for mindless work from 5-7pm but it was still tough to focus. Holly was sad to find that instead of her Moo Cow she was picked up by Dad at 4pm so she was on the bottle for 3 extra hours. Tom, meanwhile, has Holly's cold so he had the pleasure of juggling a fussy baby, dinner and his own illness while I worked late. Happily, these shifts in schedule shouldn't occur too often.

The last challenge is one we're still working on. In addition to being a mom and a worker bee, I'm also co-owner of a house. Working together maintaining the house, cooking dinner and keeping the cats alive and somewhat happy is our biggest challenge right now. As I type this I look around at piles of unopened mail and cat-hair dust bunnies. We are using the weekends to clean up and cook as much as we can, but by Friday we're eating Ramen and surrounded by a mess.

Everyone keeps asking me how I'm doing back at work. I'm good, actually! I miss Holly like mad, but I really love my job. I like my colleagues, I like what I'm doing and I like that I can combine the two. I have been asked by quite a few people whether I feel guilty leaving Holly to go back to work. I find this question fascinating. Not a single person (that I'm aware of) has asked Tom this question. Although I do respect those parents who wish to stay home (full or part time) to care for their child/children---it's not for me. I also know in some cases it's really not a choice. Some children or economic situations require the full time attention of their parent. But in our case, I really think that Holly thrives with the interactions she has with her nanny and family. And I thrive in a work environment. One of the women at my work said her daughter (now in college) was asked how she felt growing up with a working mom. She said she was very glad that her mom kept working and wouldn't have it any other way.

That said, I feel very lucky that we've found a good childcare option and that our offices are letting us work on these flex schedules. I feel particularly lucky to have Holly and I try to tell her that every day.