Week 2 and 3+ have been much better in terms of adjusting to our new reality of motherhood and taking care of a baby. How could I not love caring for this little man? He makes my heart sing and I love love LOVE spending time with him.
The one thing I am still trying to get used to is that my life operates on a 2 hour schedule. He eats about every 2 hours, so by the time I feed him and settle him back down to sleep, I don't have very much time to do anything else. I feel really useless, spending basically all day at home yet having nothing to show for myself at the end of the day. If I am lucky, I can finish a couple loads of laundry and run an errand. Before baby, I used to be a really efficient and got a high from crossing off items on my daily checklist. These days, I may make a checklist, but I only get one or two items crossed off before the end of the day. I am still adjusting to the fact that it is my full-time job to take care of Samuel for these 12 weeks that I am home from work. By the time I go back to work, hopefully his feeding schedule will be less demanding and I will be able to juggle my full-time job and my full-time life.
When I do get out of the house to run errands, I prefer any place that has a drive-through. I'm not talking McDonalds or Burger King (trying to slim down after pregnancy), but I have driven out of my way to go to a Starbucks with a drive through versus a Starbucks without one. It is kind of a hassle to schlep the baby in the car seat with the diaper bag, so if I don't have to get out of the car, then that is a double gold star.
Duke and Daisy continue to adjust well with Samuel. The novelty of Samuel has worn off a little bit, so Duke does not babysit him as much. However, Duke is still very protective of Samuel. Duke is fine with people he knows, but he can be snippy with people he does not know. One of our neighbors stopped us while we were out for a walk. This neighbor wanted to see the baby and chat for a few minutes. As soon as this neighbor bent over to look at the baby, Duke stood his ground near the stroller and growled at him. Duke was in trouble the rest of the day, although I'm pretty sure he thought he was just doing his job. Consequently, Duke is no longer allowed to greet people on the street if we are out with Samuel; we cannot risk Duke reacting to a stranger.
Daisy is my shadow most of the day, especially in the morning when I am eating my breakfast. If I go upstairs, she goes upstairs; if I sit on the couch, she sits right next to me; if I go to the bathroom, she is right behind me. Duke's daily routine seems to be somewhat unchanged from before- he likes to nap upstairs on our bed and look out the window. I have discovered that he barks at anybody walking by the window. Luckily, Samuel sleeps through his barking.
My parents were in town for a few days this week, so here is a photo of Samuel snuggling with Grandpa Stentz. My dad tries to act nonchalant about Samuel, but he secretly loves to hold him. My parents wish they lived closer so that they could spend more time with him. I know what it's like to not have grandparents around for all life's little moments; my dad's parents lived in Ohio and my mom's parents lived in Boston. We only saw them over holidays and during maybe one or two visits throughout the year. Because there is so much life lived in between major holidays, I hope my parents will move closer so that they don't miss out on watching Samuel grow up.
And that's my time....Samuel is waking up from his nap! :) So the 2 hour cycle begins once again.
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