Back to Work

As the days with Daphne dwindled, I started having anxiety about going back to work. Not once did I long for time away from her. In fact, in the eight weeks I had off with her, I left her once for only an hour. Going back to work was extremely hard.

Two weeks old

One month old

God blessed our family with an amazing woman named Cheri, who is my friend and who also runs a daycare from her home. Cheri is like the baby whisperer. I had the opportunity to volunteer at her daycare a few years ago, and I saw the magic touch she has up close and personal. I had no qualms about leaving Daphne with Cheri, but in reality, I didn't want to leave Daphne with anyone.

 

Daphne at two months, which is when I went back to work

The first day I left, I felt sick to my stomach. I cried all of my makeup off. Praise the Lord that Jon's schedule is such that he is the one that drops Daphne off at Cheri's. Unfortunately, this transition was just as hard on Jon as it was on me. He called me after he dropped her off the first time and said, "I'm supposed to be a tough guy, but man, I just cried and cried. I need Prozac or something after that."

Leaving in the mornings was hard for weeks. I cried every day. Jon and I did everything we could to figure out how I could stay home with the baby, but really, there is no way. Also, my job is very rewarding, and I believe God has placed me there for a reason, so I accept that I'm a working mom.

The transition was least difficult for Daphne. She absolutely loves Cheri, and admittedly, that is hard on Jon and me also. Daphne smiles and laughs at Cheri every time he drops her off and every time I pick her up. She is obviously well cared for and we feel blessed even if we are jealous.

If I had been blogging about Daphne since day one, I would probably remember every little thing that she has done between two months and five, but I don't. I wish I did, and I plan to write down as much as I can from now on.

Three months

Four months

One thing that I do remember, because it made me think that Daphne is absolutely brilliant, is that she learned to roll from her back to her stomach when she was three months old. Every baby website I've visited talks about how difficult this is, so, of course I assumed this meant my baby was extremely advanced. What it really means is that my baby learned to be mobile before we were completely ready for it.

Now, Daphne rolls to get from her rattle to her pink giraffe. She rolls from her activity gym to my chair. She lifts her hands almost in a "pick me up" gesture. She laughs uproariously at peek-a-boo. She works very hard on sitting up by herself, though right now she is just doing crunches (that kid must have abs of steel). When we place her sitting up, she can stay upright for short stretches of time.

Another milestone for Daphne: teeth! At four months old, she started showing the signs and now two on the bottom are breaking through. Though she was miserable the first few days they cut, she tolerates it pretty well now. She's such a happy kid - once, she even smiled at me through her tears.

I think I'm caught up on her milestones, as much as I can remember right now, so I will now be able to chronicle her from this point forward. Forgive me if I remember something adorable later, though, because I'll be sure to put that here also.