First Week Back

Well, I survived my first week back at work. I'll be honest, Monday was rough and I cried every time someone asked me about William. Wednesday was MUCH better. I was extremely busy, so time flew by, and by Friday I felt like I was finally getting back into the swing of things. William has gotten excellent reports from daycare. His teachers say he is so sweet, never cries, and stares at other babies like they are crazy when they start crying. Pretty funny! He's always happy when I pick him up which makes me feel a ton better.

The most "traumatic" thing about my first day back was the lactation room. I imagined there would be little cubicles so I'd have plenty of privacy while I pumped - WRONG! The lactation room is literally a room full of little tray tables displayed in a circle with industrial size pumps. I actually sit there and TALK to complete strangers while I pump. For those of you who know me well, you know how modest I am. No, giving birth didn't take away my modesty. I was in a state of shock the first day, but I've gotten over it and don't care anymore! I refuse to stop pumping because of a less than ideal setting.

Another thing that has been difficult is having to actually think again. After 3 months of being in only baby mode, it's hard to shift and think about other children besides my own. My boss asked me to type up an educational summary from a child I saw right before I left for maternity leave, and I about choked. Thankfully one of my co-workers helped me write it. I was worried my boss would think I'd completely lost every brain cell if I did it on my own :)

I'm enjoying my time with William SO much when I get home from work and on Tuesdays and Thursdays when I'm at home with him all day. He seems to be adjusting well to our new schedule, and really doesn't seem phased at all by all of the transitions.

We may have a thumb sucker! I secretly hope so :) He's bound to have bad teeth regardless because his mommy and daddy spent a lot of their childhood in braces.

In other news, Grant and I are a few steps closer to becoming homeowners!  It's not final yet, but we are well on our way. We are ecstatic! We close on August 30th and hope to move mid-September. It's been a VERY eventful couple of weeks for the Davis family of three.

All of the pictures above were taken of William while he was watching the Olympics. He's seriously OBSESSED with TV. We may have a couch potato on our hands ;)

Oops

I just realized I've been miscalculating William's age for the past 2 months. In my head, I counted him a week older every Wednesday because he was born on a Wednesday. I didn't take into account that some months have more days than others. However, he will be 3 months old in 4 days. Wow...where is my brain?!?

Three Months Old

Tomorrow, William will be three months old. I fall more in love with this baby by the second. There's not too much new to report since the 2 month post, but he is sleeping for 7-8 hour stretches at night, which is huge news in the Davis household! Hopefully this trend will continue as I transition back to work. We usually put him down between 8 and 9, and he wakes up for a bottle between 4-5 and then goes right back down until 8am. After I feed him at 8, we "play" for 1-1.5 hours before he goes down for a morning nap for 1-2 hours. He usually naps in the early afternoon as well but the time and length of the that nap varies day to day. Then he'll take another nap from 4:30-6ish most days. I try to keep him pretty stimulated and make him have "tummy time" at least once a day, which he isn't a huge fan of. However, if I get down on the floor with him during tummy time, it makes it more bearable for him :) He is still cooing up a storm and we babble back and forth with him. He's very alert and seems to always take in new environments by scanning the room and checking everything out. I can't imagine another age being more fun, but with each age comes different developmental milestones, so I know all stages must be fun!

He's still mesmerized by his hands and usually keeps them close to his face. He will also grasp your fingers and hold onto small objects for brief periods.

"Mommy, are you serious...I'm naked!"

He loves to stretch and kick his wipes off the changing table.

Look at those ROLLS! I could eat him up!

His little neck is so strong and he enjoys sitting like a big boy on the couch and in his glider. The picture above actually looks like a picture of my Dad's father (Daddy Joe) when he was a baby. 

 His squirminess is making it much more difficult for us to take pictures. Here he is ripping off his 3 month sticker. 

 He was totally over the photo shoot by this point. 

Sunday night we had dinner at one of my co-worker's houses. I snapped a couple of pictures before we headed out the door. William did great for the first 2 hours we were there and then got pretty fussy so we boogied home.

Notice the spit-up...happens every single time we dress him.

Something about my camera makes this little boy have the most serious expressions. I'm determined to catch some smiles soon!

One Week

One week from today I will be sitting at my desk at the hospital while William is in the arms of one of his daycare teachers, or more likely in a bouncer or kicking away on an activity mat on the floor. I've had many up and down feelings about returning to work, but deep down I know this is the best decision for our family. Grant and I have spent hours discussing all of the pros and cons about whether or not I'd return, and I am so thankful for a husband that always supports my decisions no matter what. I'll only be returning to work part-time, and I feel so incredibly blessed that I was given this opportunity. In a way I feel like I'm getting the best of both worlds, time at home with my baby and some adult stimulation. As much as I've struggled with job related stress in the past, I'm really going to work on my perspective and attitude about work. Ultimately, William is now my main priority and he comes first no matter what.

Yesterday I "practiced" dropping William off at daycare while I went up to the hospital for a quick meeting with my boss. Tears were shed and it was definitely not easy, but as I drove away I thanked God that we are able to send William to the daycare of our choice and that I'm able to continue to focus on my career and personal goals for myself. By no means am I saying the transition back to work is going to be easy or even pleasant but I'm praying that God will give me the peace I so desperately need as I leave William in the care of someone else. The meeting with my boss went really well and she was very supportive and acknowledged how difficult it is going to be for me to leave him after spending everyday all day with him for 12 weeks. It also helped that everyone was so excited to see me and my phone was being passed from one person to the next so they could look at pictures of William. That's what honestly made me feel the most comfortable and excited to go back to work. This sounds cheesy but our Hematology/Oncology team at Children's Hospital is very close.

I only left him for 3 hours, but his teachers gave me an excellent report. They said he is a very "chill" baby and he didn't seem phased at all by the new environment. One of the perks of the daycare we have chosen is that there are cameras in the rooms, so we are able to log on anytime during the day and see what little William is up to. Grant watched William on the camera from his office the entire time he was there. I was in a meeting so didn't get to watch him yesterday but I know I'll be logged on next Friday. The best moment of my day was when I picked him up from daycare. He was happy when I walked in the room (Praise be to God) and he smiled the biggest I've ever seen when I bent down to pick him up. The waterworks were turned on again by this sweet moment when we were reunited. I realize I sound absolutely ridiculous but it was a BIG day for me. I'll update more next week after my first real day back at work.

Happiness

I've probably watched this video 18 times since this afternoon when Aunt Ragan made William giggle. Warning: If baby spit-up bothers you, don't watch.

4th of July

The week of the 4th of July 2012 is one that I'll always remember. I am so grateful that I got to spend a full week at the beach with my mom's entire side of the family. It was pretty much a miracle that all 20 of our schedules somehow managed to work. We came from AL, NY, CA, TX, TN, DC, NC, and my cousin Margaret had just returned from a semester abroad in Nicaragua. Grant worked the whole week so we all missed him so much but he did get to come down Friday night for the weekend. It was pretty chaotic with 20 family members all eating, drinking, sitting, playing, talking, and fellowshipping together but we wouldn't have wanted it any other way! William was passed from one person to the next all day everyday, and he loved every second of it. He was pretty fussy from Friday through Sunday, but I think it was because he was just completely worn out. I'll attempt to recap the week in pictures of course! Lots of these pictures were taken with my phone, so sorry for the poor quality ;)

William ready to go to Capt. A's the first night we were there. This may be the last time you see him in a "gown" besides his christening one. Don't want to scar him for life ;)

He was worn out after a long day of traveling. William and I drove to Dothan and then hopped in the car with my mom to head to the beach. I was a little nervous about being alone for the drive to Dothan but he slept all the way to Ozark before needing a bottle. He did great!

Reunited with Juju after a month apart.

William spent a lot of time on the porch in his beach rocker. I'd say he liked it okay. 

 Chillin' with cousin Paul at Quin's condo for dinner on night 2. William doesn't quite know how to "look at the camera."

 William gearing up for his 1st trip on Never Rest

 William and his great, great uncle Quin

 William and Mommy on Never Rest

 Angel

 William covered in spit up 30 seconds after I dressed him. That's what happens 98% of the time. 

 Just talkin' to great grandmother, Jan Jan, on the porch

 Margie and baby "Willum," as she calls him

Julie and Margie on the boat ready to head to Shell Island

 William and the birthday boy!

 July 4th fun.

Such a sweet moment. Sam is smitten with his great grandson.

 William and cousin Nelson

 With Aunt Birdie

 A big part of the week was meeting Paul's sweet girlfriend, Steph! She was one brave gal to put up with all of us for a week. 

 Sam and Big Lee 

We had an AMAZING spread on the 4th. It was insane. I'll see if I can remember everything we had: ribs, squash casserole, peas, tomatoes, homemade peach ice cream, and a birthday cookie cake for my dad. I'm certain I'm leaving some of the sides off, but it was delicious! We didn't make it out on the boat for the firework show this year but we could see them from the dock.

 Crooked Island - where the bay and gulf merge. Quin took us to this magical place several times during the week, and it was more beautiful than I've ever seen it before. The water was crystal clear and there were very few boats there which made for a lot of fun and relaxation. 

 Annual girl cousin picture

 Fleming family love

 Beautiful Julie

 Billings + Steph :)

 Aunt Lane and Lee

William and his new best friend. These two could spend hours "talking" and smiling at each other.

We've changed my Dad's name from Papa Steve to Daddy Steve. I grew up calling my grandfather on my Dad's side, Daddy Joe. 

Hanging out before dinner one night

 Dinner at Capt. A's again on our last night

 Snoozin' on Never Rest. 

William was very happy to be reunited with his Daddy at the beach after a long week apart!

 Sunday morning boat ridin' with Juju and Daddy Steve

Grant had Monday off so we had a nice last night with our little family of three. We ate leftovers from the week and soaked in a couple of more hours of porch time and salt air before packing up to head north on Monday morning. I can't wait to take William back to the beach next summer. He'll be ready to build sand castles and maybe even swim in the ocean.