Going It Alone

It was so wonderful to have my husband and mom there when my son was born. Thanks to Christmas, my parents were back at my house soon after my mom had left from the birth. Anthony was able to take 2 1/2 weeks off work total to spend with me while I adjusted to being a mom. All of that was so nice! My mother-in-law even came over the first 2 days this week while Anthony went back to work, and she made sure I was all caught up on the household chores before I was left completely alone. As I said before, generosity has been plentiful in our household this season!

But the real test for me was going to be Wednesday (the 6th). It would be my first day to be ALL alone in the house with the kid for more than about 2 hours. And since Anthony had been working this week, I was also not asking him to get up in the middle of the night (though I know he would) so he can be rested up for his transition back into the real world. It was all me! Our little baby also turned 3 weeks on our first day alone, and I had a doctor's appointment with my OB. That meant not only would I be alone with the kid, but I'd have to leave the house with him, too. That meant remembering everything I needed to bring, remembering how to drive (it had been a month since I'd done that), and figuring out my stroller.

Of course we came through just fine, and the day I had dreaded and been anxious about is now looked back on fondly because (as Leah told me) you get to start your new normal. This is how things are going to be; just me and the baby. Nobody to hand him off to because I really need to go to the bathroom or I'm really hungry or really sleepy. But it also came with a sense of empowerment. For 19ish hours of the day, this guy is solely my responsibility, and I did it! Without losing my sanity!

I'm still pretty tired these days. For all the friendly advice from people on "sleeping when the baby sleeps", I just can't sleep during the day. And sometimes I'm so wound up from not sleeping that I don't even sleep when it's night. I know, I know, but my body doesn't work like yours!

Here are some photos of Anthony playing on one of his mats (which involves his tolerance and his tears)...








And here's the little guy when we got back from our first trip out alone into the world