Back to work

Well, this week I started back to work from maternity leave. It really wasn't that hard to leave Monday morning. Olivia was sound asleep in her crib, so I leaned over and gave her a kiss. Brad and I are so blessed to have his mom come to our house and keep her most of the week, and then my mom will be watching her some also. Knowing that family was going to be here made it easier to leave. I was so busy during the day trying to get back into the groove of work, and getting to know my students, the day flew by.

However, each day has surprisingly gotten harder. It is harder to hear her cry at night since I am not there during the day to soothe her. I feel like I don't hold her as much as I should. I feel like I have been more emotional this week than I was for the couple of weeks after giving birth. All of those who know me know that I tried everything I could think of to not have to go back to work. Sometimes we have to do things that we don't want to do.

Today was exceptionally hard for me for some reason. I think God was trying to speak to me, and I found a prayer book for mothers and found one that fit perfectly with how I was feeling.

Jesus, it was not my plan to work when my baby was so small. Yet, when I prayed for a way to stay home no way was possible. So, as I reluctantly leave my darling with a child minder...may (my) baby not feel abandoned. Let me be thankful to you, God, for providing another woman with a desire to nurture little babies. May the guardian angels of the babies in her home surround and protect them. Amen.

-Anonymous

Olivia's One Month Pictures

Last Thursday, Brad and I took Olivia to the Target Portrait Studio to get some family portraits, and Olivia's one month pictures done. (Although she was 5 weeks old by the time we got them taken.) Here are a few of our favorites.

Happy One Month, Olivia!

Yes, you read that correctly...Olivia is one month old today!! I just can't believe how fast this month has gone by! I still vividly remember the day I had her! It really just seems like yesterday. Brad and I have quickly adjusted to life with the little lady. We are functioning on much less sleep than we used to, and we are figuring her out more and more each day.

This morning my mom went with me to Olivia's one month well baby checkup. Thankfully, we didn't get any shots today. The Dr. gave her a clean bill of health, saying that she is doing everything a one month old should be doing. She weighed in at 9 lbs. 8 oz. (She weighed 7 lbs. 8 oz. when she was born.) and was 21 inches long. Her head circumference was 2 cm. larger than when she was born.

Well, the little lady is waking up, so I better go tend to her! ( I LOVE mommyhood!!)

Polo and Olivia

As I've probably said a few times already, Brad and I were a little worried about how Polo would handle not being the center of our home once Olivia came home. We weren't sure if he would resent her for taking all of our attention away from him. I kind of thought he would be OK with her after a few days. We did research on how to prepare a pet for a new baby. While we were in the hospital, he stayed with my parents. So, we had them take home one of the shirts that the hospital dressed her in so that he could get used to her scent.

My parents didn't bring Polo back to our house until we had been home for a couple of days. Needless to say, my anxiety over how he would react after not seeing him for a while was pretty high. However, he seemed absolutely enamored with his new sister. When he first saw her, she was asleep in her swing. We stopped the swing, and Brad picked him up, so that he could get a better view of her. He was interested and curious...until she twitched her leg. It scared him so bad, he jumped backwards almost 5 feet!

Anytime we have Olivia on her activity mat, or her tummy time mat, Polo is right by her side...or foot...or head. He watches her, and smells her. However, he is careful not to get too close to her. Here are a couple of pictures of Polo enjoying his little sister!

Three Weeks Old!!