The Return of the Engineer

I started back to work Monday after taking the last three months off to stay with Micah. The idea is to continue breastfeeding, so I'd planned ahead and pumped enough to have what I thought was a pretty good amount of milk in the freezer - a stash he promptly guzzled down on the first day. I didn't expect him to eat so much, nor did I expect repeated pumping to make me feel like someone had whacked me in the boob with a hammer. The first day's results were pretty meager too, at least compared to what Milk-Hog McGee is gulping down. But since then the girls have stepped up to the plate, and now there is milk aplenty. I have never been more proud of mah boobies.

(If you're feeling uncomfortable right now, just know that every male coworker who's walked into the kitchen to see me rinsing out pump parts is totally with you.)

I figure it's going to take me a while to get used to being both a mother AND a full-time employee. I'm learning to organize and pack everything the night before, to get up early to fit in everything I need to do, to manage waking, feeding, and dressing a baby while still getting ready for work. I've got a routine down that gets me and the baby out of the door in the mornings with only a minimum of running around like a headless chicken. We're coming around to an evening routine that lets us spend time with Micah, but also gets him in bed at a reasonable time. Eventually I'll figure out how to stick to a menu, but come on, I've only been at this four days.

Going back to work has been simultaneously a relief and one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I love my job and my coworkers and I am so, so happy to be back. I don't think I'll ever get used to being away from my baby for eight hours every day.

But life goes on. Micah starts daycare on January 5th, so pretty much just as we get used to having my (awesome, caring, and oh-so-lovely) sister watch him, it will be time to get used to a new situation. The daycare is about five minutes from my office, so I'll be able to go over and nurse him at lunch (WIN) and I can drop him off and pick him up easily. I don't think it will always go smoothly or anything, but we're slowly getting used to this new life of ours.