Lily just passed the 16-week mark. She’s thriving, laughing and cooing.  She also seems to switch up her schedule on a whim and as soon as I adjust to one thing, another nuance pops up. Couple these change-ups with a full time job and you have one mom that savors those bits of quiet time.

 

In the morning, the first thing I try to do is nurse Lily – depending on when she decides to wake up.  She’s being going to bed at 8:30, then up at 2 am or 3 am for a feeding (breast milk digests faster, making babes hungrier faster). If babe is sound asleep at 6, I rush into the shower, set my hair in velcro rollers, eat breakfast, make my lunch, pack my breast pump bag, get dressed and make my face look like it has some color.  (Sure I can do some of this prep packing the day before, but you’ll realize at this end of this post as to why I crash at night.) Assuming Lily is up at 7ish, I spend quality time with her nursing and watching some morning news.  By this time, Michael starts to wake up. After his shower and breakfast, I hand babe back to Michael.  I also make it a point to prep my daughter’s clothes for the day. Since I’m not with her, putting her outfit together, even if it’s a sleeper, make me feel like I helped set the tone for her day.

 

If all goes well, I’m out the door by 7:45/8, depending on that morning’s meetings. I have the good fortunate of having a quick commute to work, but there are always those days where I run into snafus:

 

-I’ve forgotten breast pump items at least three times, having to walk back to the condo from the bus stop

-I’ve hit bus rush hour

-I can’t find a thing to wear because nothing buttons properly across my chest

-I forgot to pack my lunch

-I forgot my laptop

-I forgot my CTA card

 

At this point, morning workouts can’t be consistent. I tried to hit the gym a few times, but quickly learned that it’s best to workout once baby goes down for the night. Our gym is below our building – no excuses.

 

Once at the office, the day is jam packed with meetings, deliverables and overall to-dos. Our team structure changed when I came back from maternity leave, putting additional responsibility on my plate.  I’m enjoying what I do, but this means that almost every ounce of my day needs to be optimized. I try to squeeze in two pumping sessions as well. This means that I take my mama supplies and my iPhone into the designated pumping room and keep in touch with my team members for the next 20-30 minutes.  You may think this is crazy, but 30 minutes, twice a day provides me time to catch up on news, RSS feeds and taking notes on printed articles. I also try to give Michael a quick call and check in on Lily.

 

I try to leave the office, pending anything crazy that pops up, between 5:30 and 6:15.  Michael and I chose not to use a nanny for the first months of Liljana’s life.  With the hubby freelancing, it enables him to have a flexible schedule, bringing in my mother in law when we need support during the day. Many of his clients need him for evening events, so it works out pretty well.  I also understand the need to relieve Michael of his day duties, so I try to zip home when I can. As soon as I get in the door, I change clothes, wash my hands and sweep Lily up from her current perch. 

 

At this point, the little one may already have eaten. I either take her for a walk or just play with her until she dozes off.  We’ve noticed Lily’s getting tired earlier, so the 8:30 sleep time has crept up to 8, leaving me less time with her. 7 pm tends to be her witching hour, meaning she used to nap for 30 minutes, get up, scream and be cranky, then eat again and be out for the night at 8:30.  I started putting her to bed earlier and the crying and rubbing of the eyes has stoppedJ. Then it’s the second favorite party of my day (aside from kissing my hubby when I get home), the rocking chair.

 

After Lily has her feeding, we sit in the rocking chair and I sing her random songs. By random, I mean the zany imagination I’ve always had shines.  This baby has no idea as to what I’m singing or what it means, but it soothes her every time.  I also have my favorite French songs playing in the background, transforming our room into an intimate French café. The two of us sit, rocking to and fro, with my lips resting on her little head and my hand stroking her cheek. In the nightlight glow, I can see those long eyelashes begin to flutter.  Next come the hands, slowly going from fists to flat pancakes, lowering to her sides. Then comes the baby snoring.  We sit like this for a while. When I know she’s out, I creep over to her crib, continuing with the rocking motion and ease Lily into her final sleeping place.  For the next two minutes, our little one rocks to and fro, trying to find her sweet spot. I rest my hand on her tummy, continuing with the rocking motion until my little girl is content in La-La Land.

 

Now we come to 8/830ish. I eat the rest of my dinner, catch up with Michael on happenings of the day or veg out for 30 minutes with a glass of wine. By this time, I’m usually too bushed to hit the gym, but this is where I need to push myself.  On the nights I DO go, I feel refreshed and have the energy to crank through some evening emails.  Besides, I just enjoyed an amusing day of spring shopping yesterday, getting even more motivated to shed those last baby pounds.

 

Bed time tends to be 11 or midnight, depending on what I need to do for the next day. On Fridays, I work from home. I'm plugged in to the office, but can look across the room and see Lily's face when I need a break. 

How am I doing? Pretty good. Is it difficult? Some days, yes. Some days, no. Is it worth it? Without question:). The key is two-fold: 1) having a strong partner 2) having a career that gets the life of a working mom. 

Next up: The Trials and Tribulations of Breast Feeding