Well, it's official. Maternity leave is o-v-e-r. Our last week at home together was quite a busy one! Cade went to meet Ms. Debbie, who will be taking care of Cade in a couple of weeks while Todd and I are at work. It went very well. We dropped off his supplies, put his diapers, wipes, clothes and toys in his cubby and spent some time with Ms. Debbie and Cade's new friends. Ms. Debbie carried him around the whole time we were there and it was comforting to see her in action with him and the other kids. As much as I hate to leave him with anyone, I feel good about where he's going which is an incredible relief. Todd and I also went out to dinner for Valentine's Day Cade-less, which meant we had to leave him with someone else for the first time. Our good friends Ali, Austin and Olivia were very gracious to watch him for us. We also had Cade's 3 month pictures taken (a little early - he'll be 3 months old on Friday) and went to Puckett's Mill so my class and teacher friends could meet Cade. They were ECSTATIC to see us and could not get enough of him. I was lucky enough to catch them outside during recess so we didn't have to go into the germ-infested school. YUCK! Todd also got a new car to replace the totaled one. We found that we were surprisingly attached to the old car as it was the car we had when we got married, during my pregnancy and when we brought Cade home from the hospital. We are slowly but surely warming up to the new one. And finally, I finished the second of five courses for my master's program. It was a very demanding class so I am so, so, so thrilled to be finished with it!
I have mixed feeling about returning to work tomorrow. I'm, obviously, heartbroken to have to leave Cade and this sweet time we've had together over the last 13 weeks behind. But, I am somewhat ready to see what "real life" with Cade will be like. And as difficult as teaching can be at times, I have realized that I still love my job and I've missed it. I used to say all the time that I didn't understand how teachers with children did their jobs. Ready or not, I'm about to find out.
Girl, was that the fastest 3 months of your life or what?!?!
ReplyDeleteI will be thinking of you tonight and tomorrow and wishing you strength and peace. It may not be easy, but y'all will find your rhythm. I know Cade will love all of his new friends.
And I know I say this all the time, but he is just getting cuter and cuter!
...shame on me--I'm just catching up on your latest posts. I love them all! Cade truly gets cuter and cuter...and he was so cute from the get-go. I love the pic of Austin and Ali with Cade...it looks like Cade is holding on to Ali's finger for dear life--I'm so glad you and Todd had a nice Valentine's Day.
ReplyDeleteI'll be thinking of you tomorrow -- I know your first day back will be both short AND long!