3 Months Old!

These monthly updates are getting tougher! Maybe it's because I'm a career mom now. Holy crap what a transition that was! I went back to work full time at the zoo on August 23rd. Gramma Dee Dee was on duty as our day care provider. If you've never had to leave your 12 week old child for a full day, you have no idea what it can do to your heart. The words 'break' and 'wrench' don't even come close to describing how much it goes against everything it means to be a mother. "I just gave birth to this amazing little person. He can barely hold his head up, but I'm going to hand him off to a stranger to raise." At least I can leave Wyatt with my own mom who has nothing else to do all day but love and cuddle him. Even squirrel monkeys help raise their baby relatives. There is no daycare in the jungle. I don't know how you ladies do it leaving your baby in day care. I have so much more respect for the whole thing. You are stronger than I am. If it wasn't for my mom and dad, I would probably be unemployed right now. I'd rather live off of mac n' cheese and Spam than leave my little boy with strangers. I seriously think I would have had a nervous breakdown. OR at least thrown myself off a ladder or cut off a finger at work so I could go out on disability. It would have been THAT desperate of a situation.

After I got over the initial shock of not having Wyatt attached to my hip and/or boob, I actually enjoyed going back to work. (the Philly Zoo girls are laughing so hard that Diet Coke is coming out of their noses right now) The chaos was a good distraction though. I didn't have time to worry about Wyatt and I knew he was in great hands. I will say though that finding time to pump at work is getting old. 6 months of exclusively breastfeeding is my goal and I think I can make it, but man, every free minute that I have to sit down I spend in our locker room milking myself. Luckily I have a very understanding team who support the whole thing. And Sam sings me the "Milk Song". If you want to get creeped out, search for Sesame Street Milk Crisis on You Tube.

By the time I get home from work, I only have about 30 minutes tops with Wyatt before it's time for bed. That part majorly sucks. He and I had a horrific time adjusting that first week. As soon as I would get home, I could tell he was tired. About 2 seconds after I'd pick him up, he'd start crying, then SCREAMING until we'd rock him to sleep. That was pretty crappy. I couldn't stand my only interaction with him during the week being THAT and a few late night feedings when he was half asleep. Just one little smile was all I was asking for. We eventually figured out that he needed a little power nap around 6 or so and he'd be good to go. We even managed for Josh and I to get home one night, pack up the kid and go to dinner for Josh's birthday! That was a lovely night.

Overall, we are all adjusting to this new life of our's. Wyatt is getting bigger and bigger. He's outgrown 3 month clothes with feet in them, like sleepers. He's gonna be a tall one! He can hold his head up really well and is only a few weeks away from rolling over and being able to play in his jumper seat I think. He's so strong! Once he learns how to crawl, all bets will be off. I can tell he just can't wait to get movin' by himself! He doesn't sleep completely through the night yet, but is in bed for abou 9-10 hours and only gets up once to eat. Selfishly, I really don't mind. It gives me a little bit more time with him. We're ready for whatever comes next!