Hi Ho Hi Ho, It’s off to Work Mom Goes!!

In a few weeks, my maternity leave will be ending and I will be going back to work. I feel like I am one of the 7 dwarfs and I have their theme song in the back of my mind.

Hi Ho Hi Ho, It’s Off To Work We Go!!
We did dig dig dig dig dig dig dig
In our Mine the whole day through
To dig dig dig dig dig dig dig dig
It’s what we like to do
It ain’t no trick
To get rich quick
If ya dig dig dig
With a shovel or a stick

My first maternity leave wasn’t much of a leave. I had a week off before my daughter was born, sat inside (July baby) for a month since I swear, it was the hottest summer ever, then went back to work part-time for another 4 weeks. It wasn’t too bad since I was working from home 3 days a week. The extra income helped and it kept me busy while she slept.

This time around, I told myself I am going to enjoy my time off since this is my last baby. Alexandra, my almost 2-year-old, still goes to (Inhome) daycare full-time from 8am-4pm. She loves her friends there and learns so much! This gives me time to stay home with Baby Vinnie and enjoy these few weeks that I will never have again.

With just a few weeks to go left of leave, I can’t believe how much time has passed and how LITTLE things I have done. I wanted to organize my whole house! Paint a room! Go to the zoo every single day and work off this baby weight. But here I am, 6 weeks into leave, and I am in panic mode. Forget my Maternity bucket list – time to prepare the house for the day-to-day grind of being a working MOM! But now, it is with TWO babies!!! EEEEEEEEEK

Soon I have to get up, get ready for work, and get two kids up, dressed, bottle fed and out the door in order to be at my desk by 7:30. I’m trying to potty train Alexandra meanwhile Vincent likes to just lay and keep a bottle in his mouth which means his feedings take soooooo lonnnnngggggg.

On one hand, I am so ready to go back to work.

On the other hand, Bye-Bye summer vacation.

Bye-Bye sleeping in until 7am, living in lounge clothes all day and watching Lifetime movies.

Bye-Bye taking my time and saying “I’ll do that tomorrow”.

Bye-Bye mid-day lunches outside with my book and a sleeping baby.

Hello to the Daily GRIND.

I just attended a family wedding over the weekend and had several people ask me “Are you ready to go back to work?” Some people were surprised I said “YES!!!” “How do you know you’re ready to go back?” they asked. Well….

• All the clothes that have been worn over the past year (and previous pregnancy) have been packed up and donated. Never again to be worn. OFF TO THE MALL FOR A WHOLE NEW WARDROBE!!!! (Well, partially… still got baby weight to lose!)
• Part of my new “Back to work wardrobe” includes a new coffeemaker with a TIMER! NO excuses why my eyes are drooping and it’s not even 9am yet.
• I don’t know what the top 5 most played songs played on the radio are – the only songs I sing now are for the 5 and under crowd.
• Wish my morning drive to work was 15 more miles. Those few extra minutes in the car, ALONE, with the radio blasting and coffee in hand = PRICELESS.
• Sleeping in until 7am and barely getting started with my day after 9am made me realize how much I treasure my 5am wake up call. Half my day is wasted away in bed. 5am never sounded so good.
• Can’t wait to tell my husband “I have to work in the morning (on his day off) you feed the baby when he wakes up at 2am” (what comes around… goes around!)
• Looking forward to my 20 minute lunch break so I can shovel food in my mouth in between meetings and not have to watch nursery rhymes on the IPAD or pick up peas off the floor.
• But best of all, I am so looking forward to the minute when I pick up Alexandra and she comes running towards me at full speed and throws her arms around me. “Hi Mama! Hi mama!” followed by a big wet drooling kiss! That hug and kiss from that sweet little girl makes my whole day!!!! And of course a hug and a little spit up from Baby Vinnie.