Back to work

I've been back at work for over a week now, and it's going well. 

The kids are going to a new in-home daycare that's only a block from our home, so Collin drops them off every morning. Since I'm able to go directly to and from work without having to detour and drop off kids at daycare, it's shaved 30 minutes (one-way) off of my commute and made it much less stressful.

I have to admit, being at work is somewhat relaxing. The nature of my job allows me to listen to my iPod most of the day, so it's a nice change of pace after riding herd for three kids under six. Still, I miss them.

Violet seems to be doing well with the transition, thank goodness. She's adapted well to bottle-feeding and so far I've been able to pump more than enough for her. Hopefully I can keep it up. I'm able to use an empty office near my desk to pump during my breaks -- very convenient. 

The biggest obstacle so far is finding time to keep up with the housework. Violet wants to nurse constantly in the evenings, to make up from being away from me, so it's tough to even scare up something for supper let alone do any dishes or laundry. I guess I can try catch up on weekends, but we seem to be making a lot of plans for weekends lately so chores keep piling up. Collin's new work schedule is M-Th (10 hr days) with Fri-Sun off, so I'm hoping he can help pick up the slack on his Friday off. Last night I wore Violet in the sling most of the evening, and I was able to pop in a load of laundry and do some prep for tonight's crockpot meal, so I think the sling will be my modus operandi from here on out.

As stressful as my days are, though, it's wonderful to come home to my baby's smile. Her grin of delight just melts my heart.