The New Normal
Five months ago today Theo officially became my son. A week ago I finished up a whirlwind paternity leave, one I knew would be short and would require nearly a week of daycare transition. It was a good time.
I went into it fighting an annoying cold. My nose was running, my throat was sore, my energy was low. So it was tough going at the beginning. Theo has energy to spare. It takes a lot to keep up with him. Luckily for me, Elizabeth gave me a great list of activities available on given days, and I relied on that plenty.
Elizabeth was trying to get out the door early (so she could be home early), which meant that I was on my own by 8-8:30 or so. We'd play inside until after 9/9:30 and then head to the destination of the day. After that, lunch (home unless we left West Seattle) and nap. And then some more play. I learned my lesson after a week or so to take a nap when Theo naps. It's a shame I can't do that now that I'm back at work.
Theo has really come a long way. His English language is improving daily, both comprehension and speaking. That means communication is a whole lot easier. I can imagine how much harder it was for Elizabeth in November and December, figuring out who to do with Theo all day (this kid wants to get out all the time) and being able to read his moods and interests. She invented the formula.
My last week, I started bringing Theo into day care. Each day he stayed longer. Each day he cried a bit when I left. But he's crying less and less, and most of the time he doesn't want to go at the end. We've set things up where Elizabeth brings him there in the morning on her way to work and I pick him up when I'm done with work (either 3:30 or 4, depending on whether I went to the office). Then I get some 1:1 time until we get home and Elizabeth is home from work. On the nice weather days we had last week, that meant more playground time and watching high school baseball. Today it's rainy and cold and I will probably bring him straight home.
We're hoping to get Theo into a better (we think) daycare at the West Seattle Y. The location isn't as good for picking him up on foot (or at least the walk back is no longer flat). But I can get him faster on days I take the bus. We'll see how long we will go before circumstances switch things up a bit.
I went into it fighting an annoying cold. My nose was running, my throat was sore, my energy was low. So it was tough going at the beginning. Theo has energy to spare. It takes a lot to keep up with him. Luckily for me, Elizabeth gave me a great list of activities available on given days, and I relied on that plenty.
Elizabeth was trying to get out the door early (so she could be home early), which meant that I was on my own by 8-8:30 or so. We'd play inside until after 9/9:30 and then head to the destination of the day. After that, lunch (home unless we left West Seattle) and nap. And then some more play. I learned my lesson after a week or so to take a nap when Theo naps. It's a shame I can't do that now that I'm back at work.
Theo has really come a long way. His English language is improving daily, both comprehension and speaking. That means communication is a whole lot easier. I can imagine how much harder it was for Elizabeth in November and December, figuring out who to do with Theo all day (this kid wants to get out all the time) and being able to read his moods and interests. She invented the formula.
My last week, I started bringing Theo into day care. Each day he stayed longer. Each day he cried a bit when I left. But he's crying less and less, and most of the time he doesn't want to go at the end. We've set things up where Elizabeth brings him there in the morning on her way to work and I pick him up when I'm done with work (either 3:30 or 4, depending on whether I went to the office). Then I get some 1:1 time until we get home and Elizabeth is home from work. On the nice weather days we had last week, that meant more playground time and watching high school baseball. Today it's rainy and cold and I will probably bring him straight home.
We're hoping to get Theo into a better (we think) daycare at the West Seattle Y. The location isn't as good for picking him up on foot (or at least the walk back is no longer flat). But I can get him faster on days I take the bus. We'll see how long we will go before circumstances switch things up a bit.