back @ work
Back from maternity leave.
What's to say?
I wake up, feed & care for baby until my husband finishes gym/work/class. If I'm lucky baby will sleep and I can do a couple hours of work on my laptop. So I bike to work, put in 6 hours on site, taking "breaks" to use the nursing lounge (thanks, company!), bike home and deal with Baby at his fussiest while my husband gets a break.
Baby has taken to staying awake, getting increasingly cranky, from about 5/6 PM to 9/10 PM. UGH. Fortunately, once he goes down, he STAYS down for at least 5 hours and more typically 6+. Rarely he'll wake up after 4 or 8 hours, but he's getting consistent at 5-6 hours. Hopefully he'll extend the time, too.
In other silly baby miolestones, we've stopped swaddling and have begun to put the little guy in a sleep sack. Essentially it's a garmet with a tank top flowing into a sleeping bag bottom (does that make sense?).
Seems like there weren't many crises in my absence. Makes me happy (and I'm sure Not-a-Mentor Guy was also happy). I will have a spot of time to catch my breath, then my projects will kick in full force. Works for me. I've been helping out Not-a-Mentor Guy and working on some Continual Improvement stuff. Life is good!
It's been difficult remembering to consistently pump every 3 hours. Establishing a routine here has been hard! At least the facility is pretty nice. The chair is very comfy and the facility is well designed.
Oddnesses:
1) I've not taken to locking the room and have had people barge in twice. Don't they believe in knocking? I should remember to lock the door - it's embarrassing for them (especially that time I had my shirt off!).
2) Then there was the woman sitting in there yakking on her cel phone. WTF? I wouldn't think the reception could be any good!
3) Finally, I've had to deal wiht a mystery person who likes to turn the chair around. I use the chair facing the counter (where I set my pump). Logical,no? This other woman puts the chair facing the door. I'm not sure how that works ...
In other happy news, I've been exercising a bit of (enforced) financial discipline by no longer buying lunches during work days. It REALLY added up, though it was fun. Now I'm eating lunch at my desk. I don't buy lunch at the cafeteria (new company is TEH suck) - I bring from home. Working mornings at home really helps me by giving me the opportunity to assemble a good lunch. Because I'm a smartypants, I've made stuff that I can partially prepare in advance.
So far, I've packed:
1) Japanese bento box lunch: teriyaki chicken, stir-fried asparagus and rice with fresh fruit. [made 6 of these - chicken sits in the freezer in marinade and gets sauteed while rice cooks in the AM]
2) Indian lunch: turkey kebab patties in naan with sliced tomato & onion plus green chutney, served with sauteed cabbage & peas. [made 4 of these - I saute the turkey patties in the AM]
3) Ramen lunch: standard ramen packet dressed up with Chinese sausage and veggies. [made a TON of meat/veg mix - all of this gets prepared in my cube neighbor's microwave]
Returning to the bike commute has been just fine. Weather has been excellent and the traffic has been reasonable in my corridor. Now that wildpatience has pointed it out, I see that ALL my fellow riders are male. Solidarity, WP!
The more I ride my bike, the more I am sad that I didn't buy that new road bike last fall (I was ready to plonk down ~$1000 but "my" bike hadn't been built when the shop said it was ... and by the time "my" bike was built, I found out I was pregnant and wasn't about to buy a new bike). My old bike is SO slow - I hate the road friction - I'm constantly fighting the road when I should be flying down the street.
What's to say?
I wake up, feed & care for baby until my husband finishes gym/work/class. If I'm lucky baby will sleep and I can do a couple hours of work on my laptop. So I bike to work, put in 6 hours on site, taking "breaks" to use the nursing lounge (thanks, company!), bike home and deal with Baby at his fussiest while my husband gets a break.
Baby has taken to staying awake, getting increasingly cranky, from about 5/6 PM to 9/10 PM. UGH. Fortunately, once he goes down, he STAYS down for at least 5 hours and more typically 6+. Rarely he'll wake up after 4 or 8 hours, but he's getting consistent at 5-6 hours. Hopefully he'll extend the time, too.
In other silly baby miolestones, we've stopped swaddling and have begun to put the little guy in a sleep sack. Essentially it's a garmet with a tank top flowing into a sleeping bag bottom (does that make sense?).
Seems like there weren't many crises in my absence. Makes me happy (and I'm sure Not-a-Mentor Guy was also happy). I will have a spot of time to catch my breath, then my projects will kick in full force. Works for me. I've been helping out Not-a-Mentor Guy and working on some Continual Improvement stuff. Life is good!
It's been difficult remembering to consistently pump every 3 hours. Establishing a routine here has been hard! At least the facility is pretty nice. The chair is very comfy and the facility is well designed.
Oddnesses:
1) I've not taken to locking the room and have had people barge in twice. Don't they believe in knocking? I should remember to lock the door - it's embarrassing for them (especially that time I had my shirt off!).
2) Then there was the woman sitting in there yakking on her cel phone. WTF? I wouldn't think the reception could be any good!
3) Finally, I've had to deal wiht a mystery person who likes to turn the chair around. I use the chair facing the counter (where I set my pump). Logical,no? This other woman puts the chair facing the door. I'm not sure how that works ...
In other happy news, I've been exercising a bit of (enforced) financial discipline by no longer buying lunches during work days. It REALLY added up, though it was fun. Now I'm eating lunch at my desk. I don't buy lunch at the cafeteria (new company is TEH suck) - I bring from home. Working mornings at home really helps me by giving me the opportunity to assemble a good lunch. Because I'm a smartypants, I've made stuff that I can partially prepare in advance.
So far, I've packed:
1) Japanese bento box lunch: teriyaki chicken, stir-fried asparagus and rice with fresh fruit. [made 6 of these - chicken sits in the freezer in marinade and gets sauteed while rice cooks in the AM]
2) Indian lunch: turkey kebab patties in naan with sliced tomato & onion plus green chutney, served with sauteed cabbage & peas. [made 4 of these - I saute the turkey patties in the AM]
3) Ramen lunch: standard ramen packet dressed up with Chinese sausage and veggies. [made a TON of meat/veg mix - all of this gets prepared in my cube neighbor's microwave]
Returning to the bike commute has been just fine. Weather has been excellent and the traffic has been reasonable in my corridor. Now that wildpatience has pointed it out, I see that ALL my fellow riders are male. Solidarity, WP!
The more I ride my bike, the more I am sad that I didn't buy that new road bike last fall (I was ready to plonk down ~$1000 but "my" bike hadn't been built when the shop said it was ... and by the time "my" bike was built, I found out I was pregnant and wasn't about to buy a new bike). My old bike is SO slow - I hate the road friction - I'm constantly fighting the road when I should be flying down the street.