New Roles

Keith and I have both had some pretty big changes in the last week!  I have gone back to work (my first day back was last Thursday, August 2) and Keith has become an official SAHD (stay-at-home-dad).  I am trying to encourage him to do a couple of guest blog posts on here on his perspective of what it is like to be a SAHD. I'll keep working on it!  He has done fantastically well in his first week I would say.  The very first day Colin went to the State Fair with Miss Ashley so he just had the girls.  He took them grocery shopping (wearing one in the Baby Bjorn and pushing the other in the cart so that he had room for groceries too).  He said he got lots of attention from fellow (female) shoppers and especially from female grocery store employees offering to help him.

But the trips didn't stop there.  Since Colin has been home they have explored two new parks in Dublin (new to us), gone to the splash pad and gone to the zoo.  We just renewed our membership so they plan to go often!  Today was the first day that they stayed at home and they made no-bake cookies this afternoon!  I am amazed by him, I truly am.  And he manages to do laundry and wash bottles too.

I have been coming home at lunch to pump and eat so that has been a nice break in our day for both of us.  It has been pretty easy for me to get back into the swing of things at work.  It helps so much that I don't have to worry one bit about how the kids are doing at home.  I know they are in the best hands.  Our morning and evening routines don't seem that much different than when I was home either.  I guess I mean that they aren't overly stressful with rushing around, trying to get things done.  I am in a new building now than when I left.  I have to go up a couple of floors to the Mother's Room which isn't quite as nice or as convenient as it was in my old building but still totally adequate.  And I'm not super busy at work either so it is nice to be able to ease back in to things and not be slammed with a big work load.

One difficult thing for Keith has been that Colin has really been resisting naps lately.  I'd say it has been a bit of a challenge all summer really but it has really come to a head this past week.  He only naps 2-3 times a week I would say.  Keith has been doing everything he can possibly think of to get him to nap.  Luckily he will stay in his room and play quietly for 45 minutes to an hour but that's just not the same!  Some nights when he doesn't nap we put him to bed early so we get more evening time to relax but still we'd rather he would nap.  We wonder if he might be outgrowing his nap...we hope not!

Luckily the girls are good sleepers.  We eliminated their 10 PM "dream feed" about 3 weeks ago moved up their bedtime to right after their 8 PM bottle (which we now do closer to 7 or 7:30).  Well for a few days there we were having a heck of a time getting them to fall asleep after that bottle.  We would rock, sway, bounce, jiggle, basically everything we could think of to get them to fall asleep.  Then we decided to try to teach them to fall asleep on their own after reading a few articles online and reviewing The Baby Whisperer book.  The idea is that you put your baby down drowsy but awake.  When they start to fuss, you soothe them until they are calm and then you leave them alone again.  You do this until they fall asleep.  After a couple of long nights doing this, it really started to work!  Now many times we can just lay them down and leave the room and they'll fall asleep.  Other times they'll need a little bit more soothing - we either give them a binky or rock their little beds a bit (yes, they are still in their rock-and-play sleepers and not yet in their cribs!)  I am just amazed though when I see them fall asleep on their own.  With Colin we nursed him or rocked him to sleep EVERY TIME until he was 8 months old and we did sleep training.  Ah what you can do when you only have one child!!  The girls are also doing better with their night time sleeping.  Last night they made it all the way till 5:30 AM before waking for a bottle.  I got 7.5 hours of continuous sleep!  Blissful.

My mastitis seems to be under control after finishing the two-week course of antibiotics.  I am down to pumping only 6X a day (down from 8) and I am not setting my alarm to pump in the middle of the night.  I just pump after feeding the girls.  Sometimes if one is sleeping, Keith will feed them both (in succession) while I pump.  If they are both awake and frantic though, that doesn't work so well.

Keith is bringing the girls into work tomorrow while Colin goes to Miss Ashley's.  He only has two more days with her and then starts preschool on September 5th!

Life is good, I would say.  I think Keith would say the same.  I am looking forward to fall believe it or not.  Fall TV, caramel apples, pumpkin patch, Halloween, cooler weather.  There is something about being hot, sweaty and pumping or holding a baby that makes you wish for cooler temps.  I can't wait to see all three of my kids in fleece, footy pj's!