Still alive, just sleep-deprived
So, I've got a few minutes with both hands free while little dude is entertaining himself on his fabulous activity mat ("baby gym.") We're all doing fine - well, I'm home sick from work today, but isn't that a nice option to have? All the interrupted nights of sleep have caught up with me - actually, it's more correct to say that the little one had a real problem with jet lag at the beginning of the month, and that the cold I have recently had with nighttime coughing has really taken it out of me. For all these reasons, I've never gotten so many nights with just 3-4 hours of (interrupted) sleep as I have since I went back to work at the beginning of the month. Makes me look at maternity leave with a whole new appreciation.
So, that's where we are - Theo is 4 months old and doing great. Mommy's given him not one but two colds as early Christmas presents, but he has shaken them quickly (yay antibodies in breastmilk!) He's doing all the fun things he should do - he recently found his feet, and laughed for the first time the other day, and is generally very interactive and fun. We are lucky. Feeding is a little trickier - he now gets bottles (of mama's milk) during the day, then nurses with me at night, and perhaps he's a bit confused as he's not entirely enthusiastic about either. But, he had a check-up this past week and so it's been medically confirmed that he's doing great.
A highlight of my maternity leave, which clocked in at about 15 weeks, was a three-week trip to the States - I was working for about one of those weeks in the DC area, so we got to see lots of friends there. We did the typical dash around NC and to Atlanta the rest of the time. Got to see practically everyone in those parts, and of course it was super fun and heartwarming to get to introduce the little guy to his extended family and share him with them for a little while. Hoping to have more visitors here in Oslo next year, and maybe to make it back to the States next summer too!
Not much else to report... no changes on Marcus' job front, no new cat yet, a quiet Christmas in the works here. Ah, I can report that it's fine being back at my job. I really didn't miss it at all when on leave, but I also didn't dread going back. There's almost no anxiety associated with leaving a baby with his (excellent, hands-on) daddy, so that hasn't been an issue. Of course I'd like to see him more, and would love to be within a short walk of home and/or working shorter days, but that's life. My office does lots of interesting projects, and it's fun to get back into the swing of things. I don't know why everyone doesn't want to work in public affairs! We're the ones who have all the fun.
God jul og et godt nytt år - or happy festivus, whatever you might be celebrating - hope everyone finds a good reason to celebrate as the year draws to a close and the new one waits in the wings!
So, that's where we are - Theo is 4 months old and doing great. Mommy's given him not one but two colds as early Christmas presents, but he has shaken them quickly (yay antibodies in breastmilk!) He's doing all the fun things he should do - he recently found his feet, and laughed for the first time the other day, and is generally very interactive and fun. We are lucky. Feeding is a little trickier - he now gets bottles (of mama's milk) during the day, then nurses with me at night, and perhaps he's a bit confused as he's not entirely enthusiastic about either. But, he had a check-up this past week and so it's been medically confirmed that he's doing great.
A highlight of my maternity leave, which clocked in at about 15 weeks, was a three-week trip to the States - I was working for about one of those weeks in the DC area, so we got to see lots of friends there. We did the typical dash around NC and to Atlanta the rest of the time. Got to see practically everyone in those parts, and of course it was super fun and heartwarming to get to introduce the little guy to his extended family and share him with them for a little while. Hoping to have more visitors here in Oslo next year, and maybe to make it back to the States next summer too!
Not much else to report... no changes on Marcus' job front, no new cat yet, a quiet Christmas in the works here. Ah, I can report that it's fine being back at my job. I really didn't miss it at all when on leave, but I also didn't dread going back. There's almost no anxiety associated with leaving a baby with his (excellent, hands-on) daddy, so that hasn't been an issue. Of course I'd like to see him more, and would love to be within a short walk of home and/or working shorter days, but that's life. My office does lots of interesting projects, and it's fun to get back into the swing of things. I don't know why everyone doesn't want to work in public affairs! We're the ones who have all the fun.
God jul og et godt nytt år - or happy festivus, whatever you might be celebrating - hope everyone finds a good reason to celebrate as the year draws to a close and the new one waits in the wings!